No-Added-Sugar Apple Pie
No-Added-Sugar Apple Pie
Years ago, I was having a terrible craving for apple pie. The only decent
frozen pie was called "Mrs. Smith's Natural Juice Apple Pie." Unfortunately,
the store was out of them, so it was up to me to make my own pie. I didn't
have a clue what went into apple pie so I made something up. Since the term
"Natural Juice" appeared in in the name of my favorite frozen pie, I started
with apple juice. It came out great. I later learned that my recipe didn't
even remotely resemble a normal apple pie recipe, except that it contained
apples. The best thing is that it can be made without refined sugar. Since
the fructose in the apple juice is handled differently by the body than
normal sucrose, this recipe can have some use for diabetics and others who
have problems with refined sugar. Enough blabber, here's the recipe.
(1) 16 oz. can frozen concentrated apple juice (12 oz will
work for non-deep dish pie and is easier to find.)
UNRECONSTITUTED
commercial apple pie spice (follow directions on package for quantity)
3-4 ozs. corn starch depending on quantity of apple juice.
5-6 medium baking apples (rome, winesap, etc.)
Granny smith will make a VERY tart pie without sugar,
and I probably don't need to tell this groups readers not
to use Red Delicious.
(optional)
3-4 ozs brown or regular sugar. The pie is nicely tart, but sweet without
any sugar. I suggest trying it without sugar first. But if you must have a
sweet pie, this will do it.
Put the defrosted apple juice in a saucepan and add the spice and cornstarch
(and sugar if you must). Cook over medium heat stirring constantly until
the cloudiness from the cornstarch disappears and the mixture thickens.
At this point you can add the apples to the pot to coat them with the glaze,
or pour the glaze over the apples in the pie crust. I have tried both with
equal results. However, I am terrible at estimating and prefer to put the
apples into the pie crust first to ensure that I have the right amount.
Cover with top crust or lattice, depending on how much work you want, and
bake at about 350 for about 60-70 mins or until it looks done (use some
common sense)
I don't include any recipe for crust because whenever I make pie crust from
scratch it comes out tasting like cooked play-doh. And the Pillsbury crusts
are so good, I'm not going to waste my time making and rolling out pie
crust, even if I could do it well.
I think you'll find this easier than most apple pie recipes, and it makes a
delightfully different pie. Hope you enjoy it.
Source: rec.food.recipes
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