The Perfect, Imperfect, Vegan, Gluten Free, Drunken Apple Pie

Well I guess the title says it all. I could stop right there. But all great dishes have a story and this is no different. I like to play with my food and sometimes I cheat. I like to  break rules.  This is for those of you with a Rebel Spirit.  By the way,  I bow in awe at the feet of  my chef friends who really can bake, I know they would probably gasp if they saw this, I can feel the eye rolls. Don’t worry, I know my place.

I am a big fan of slight (and sometimes more than slight) imperfections. It’s like leaving a few lumps in the mashed potatoes just to show they are real and you are human. I like that. Often I just throw things together. I’ll look at basic ingredients and in my head I am already calculating healthier, adaptable ingredients, like making something vegan, or gluten free, or to suit a clients allergies. 

I never drink alcohol. However, My girlfriend came over for dinner the other night and brought a bottle of Moscato d’ Asti. Maybe it was all that kosher wine my grandmother drank, I like sweet, so what, right?  That went down easy, and a bit too fast. Damn! That was good! Three glasses later…..

Which brings me to this last minute pie that I wasn’t going to bake.  I went to my old store,  grabbed a frozen gluten free pie shell and to work I went. I has to be dairy free, and by the way there are no measurements.  Preheat the oven to 325.  Here’s how it went down: 

Ingredients:

6 apples peeled  I had fujis  on hand so that’s what I used

brown sugar, eh, about a handful and another handful for the  crumb topping

cinnamon to taste, a few sprinkles but I like more

coconut oil  approx 2 tablespoons

juice of one lemon

Gluten free pie crust

2 cups gluten free flour

Moscato d’ Asti

Peel the  apples and place in a large bowl. Sprinkle with cinnamon and brown sugar, and squeeze that lemon in. Mind the seeds please!

In s separate bowl add the flour, another handful of brown sugar, and more of that cinnamon. Add in the coconut oil (it should be soft, solid, not cold.) Quickly rub it in to the flour to form loose crumbs. Taste it. Add a little more coconut oil if it’s too dry.

Place the apples in the pie crust, and top with crumb mix. Bake for about 30 mins

Insert expletive here: OH ______ the apples are still not softening! Hurry, take it out of the oven, grab a little knife and pour a little Moscato a tablespoon at a time, around the pie. Bake a further 11-12 minutes. until it bubbles. Its done, and its yum.