With Thanksgiving this week, folks all over will be looking for those tasty and delicious holiday recipes to add to their menu. Straying away from the classic pumpkin pie (or pumpkin pasties, if you prefer), I've whipped up this sweet and salty caramel apple pie to add to the day. Our day will be anything but traditional, as my husband and I have decided to go out to dinner on Thanksgiving day. However, at least we will have some comfort holiday dessert waiting for us at home.
I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and I hope you do something fun this Sunday!
Ingredients
Shortbread Pie Crust:
See recipe for shortbread biscuits **you will need to double this recipe
Apple Pie Filling:
3 Granny Smith apples, sliced thin
1 tbsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup caramel**
**Caramel (makes about 1 cup):
2 tbsp. coconut oil
1 cup brown sugar
1/8 tsp. vanilla extract
1 pinch of sea salt
2 tbsp. almond milk
Additional Ingredients:
2 tbsp. of almond milk for top of pie for baking
Pinch of salt for topping
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Prep the pie crust:
In a medium sized bowl, cream together the vegan butter and powdered sugar. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, vanilla, and ginger.
Slowly add the flour and mix together well. This will form a dough.
Sprinkle on a floured surface. Coat a rolling pin with flour and roll out the cookie dough in a medium-thin layer. **Remember, you will double this recipe. split the dough into two.
Butter and flour a pie pan, and place the first half of the shortbread dough into the pie plate. Cut off any excess around the edge of the pie plate. Poke the bottom of the crust dough with a fork several times. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 minutes and remove to cool slightly.
While the bottom crust is baking, prep the filling:
Slice the apples into thin slices and add to medium sized bowl. Add the lemon juice, cinnamon, and nutmeg. toss until apples are completely coated. Add to baked pie bottom pie crust. Set aside.
Prep the caramel:
In a medium sized skillet, heat the coconut oil on medium-high heat. Whisk in the brown sugar, vanilla, almond milk, and pinch of sea salt. Bring to boil and lower heat to low. Mixture will be thick. If too thin, add more brown sugar until mixture thickens.
Add 1/4 cup of caramel mixture to pie filling. Toss until caramel sauce completely coats apples.
Roll out the 2nd half of the pie crust dough into thin layer. Lay over top the pie and cut off excess dough. Take a spoon, and push down the edges the whole way around the pie. Cut four giant air vents in the middle of the pie. Add decoration with left over pie crust dough if you would like.
Taking a pastry brush, coat the top of the pie with thin layer of almond milk and with thickened caramel sauce (about 2 tbsp.).
Bake at 350 degrees F for 30 minutes. Remove pie and let cool slightly.
Brush baked pie with additional caramel sauce. Sprinkle with additional pinch of sea salt. Serve pie alone or with your favorite vegan vanilla ice cream. Happy Thanksgiving!
