If I had to rank pies in order of my favourite – rhubarb would be first with apple a very close second. I had been promising to make an apple pie all week and finally got around to putting one in the oven last night.  Poor Moe, I wouldn’t let him have a slice before bed last night.  And not because I was worried about his health, but because I wanted to wait until morning so I could get a good picture.   He had to wait to have his pie for breakfast.

Basic Apple Pie
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5  or 6 apples
juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup of white sugar
1/2 cup of brown sugar
cinnamon to taste
2 tablespoons flour
(more if the apples are very juicy,less if not)
1 tablespoon butter
double pie crust

Heat oven to 425°F.

Peel and slice the apples.  Squeeze half a lemon over slices and toss to coat.   Add the sugars, flour and cinnamon and toss again.

Roll out bottom crust and line pie plate.  Add apples, dot with 1 tablespoon of butter and cover with second crust.   Decorate with leftover pastry.  Make sure to cut a couple of vent holes. Brush with milk and sprinkle with a little sugar.

Place pie on bottom rack.  Bake for 15 minutes.  This helps to cook the bottom crust.

Reduce heat to 375°F, and raise the pie to the middle rack.  Bake for 40 to 50 minutes.  If the crust is browning too quickly, you can cover loosely with a piece of foil.

Butter-Lard Pastry
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2 cups all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup lard (or shortening- Crisco)
5 to 6 tablespoons of ice water, or more as needed
(note: if using for a sweet pie, add 1 or 2 teaspoons of sugar.)

Mix flour with salt, and cut in butter and lard. You can cut the butter/lard in using the food processor or with a
pastry blender.  Or you can use a box grater for the butter.

Put flour mixture in bowl and add water mixing with a fork until pastry comes together.  Form in to a ball and cut in two pieces. Form each into a round flat disc and refrigerate for 1 hour.

The secret to a good crust is to not over handle the dough.