Apple Pie by Me
The Hummingbird Bakery is one of my favorite dessert places in London so when I heard they released a cookbook I ordered one right away from Amazon. Since I have a lot of free time during Ramadan I will be baking a lot more and today I started off with an Apple Pie.
I passed by Sultan Center to pick up my ingredients around 3PM but it was a huge mistake. The supermarket was packed and everyone there was shopping in large quantities. My favorite line I overheard today was a daughter telling her dad “but that’s a lot, we don’t need that much” and then the dad replying “it’s Ramadan so it’s fine”. That’s why the 10 items or less line was practically empty and why I was able to leave so quickly without waiting in the humongous lines with people who had carts filled to the brim with food.
Anyway back to baking. The cookbook has a lot of pretty pictures and instructions for baking but they really don’t take you in great detail through the process. Since I hadn’t baked an Apple Pie before I used a Betty Crocker cookbook from the 70’s that had step by step pictures which helped out a bit specially when it came to putting the bottom crust in the pan without ripping it (you fold it twice so its a triangle and then you put it in the pan and unfold back into a circle).
According to the cookbook you’re supposed to bake the pie at 170degrees celcius for 30-40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. It took me 1 hour and 30 minutes to get the crust golden brown! Next time I will be increasing the temp up to 180 to try and speed things up a bit. The result though was an extremely delicious tasting pie. I had only one minor issue and that was with the bottom crust and top crust separate while baking on one side of the pie but its a minor quibble which I should be able to solve next time.
So far the Hummingbird Bakery cookbook looks to be working. If you want to order it, it’s available on Amazon for around KD5. [Amazon Link]
Previously: My favorite cookie recipe
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44 Comments, add your own...
1. Max | August 22nd, 2009 at 9:52 pm
So, you are a cook too….
The pie looks good.
How did it finally taste ??
2. Mark | August 22nd, 2009 at 9:53 pm
I don’t cook, I just bake. I would love to cook but its too complicated. The pie turned out to be really good, had it with a large scoop of vanilla icecream :)
3. s00da | August 22nd, 2009 at 10:13 pm
Make sure you use the upper heating element of the oven to get the crust to brown.
4. Mark | August 22nd, 2009 at 10:15 pm
The pie and cake baking setting on the oven automatically turns on both the upper and lower heating elements.
5. ohyeah | August 22nd, 2009 at 10:43 pm
heheheh…wala enak lazez….start ur own show!…..i love apple pie…it looks great
6. vampire | August 22nd, 2009 at 10:46 pm
my God,, your photography is porn to me
7. Daddy's Girl | August 22nd, 2009 at 11:08 pm
The good news is that green apples are amazing for ur acid reflex :D
Good job… i think im going to bake my own one soon…!
8. Patrick | August 22nd, 2009 at 11:16 pm
Vampire:
That’s kinda scary.
9. Sn3a | August 22nd, 2009 at 11:31 pm
looks delecious!
bon a petit
do you have an idea where do they sell a perfect apple pie?
10. Mark | August 22nd, 2009 at 11:44 pm
Not sure, fudds maybe?
11. Remote Control | August 23rd, 2009 at 12:19 am
looks good but the 3 bars of butter look frightening !
12. pinkdress | August 23rd, 2009 at 12:33 am
i could never master baking an apple pie :( though i do amazing cinnamon rolls (or so i’ve been told) :o)
13. The Kuwaiti Godfather | August 23rd, 2009 at 12:56 am
pinkdress:
I love cinnamon rolls.
Mark:
The apple pie looks perfect. I hope you enjoyed it. Starting your own show would be a good idea.
14. zaydoun | August 23rd, 2009 at 1:27 am
I don’t know why I only get the urge to cook in winter… I have a few cook books and I enjoy attempting new dishes
15. Burger Girl | August 23rd, 2009 at 1:28 am
U have to try the apple pie in Spain, Marbella in Los Bandidos restaurant .. The best apple pie ever!
16. Ansam | August 23rd, 2009 at 1:52 am
You are the next Martha (or shall I say Marka) Stewart ;-) The pie looks GOOD…. and Sn3a I would highly recommend Johnny Rockets or Chili’s apple pies
17. Projectile Mayhem | August 23rd, 2009 at 2:47 am
Hmmm… amazon link says the Hummingbird Bakery was opened by a Tarek Maalouf… that’s a lebanese name :-)
18. Projectile Mayhem | August 23rd, 2009 at 2:57 am
LOL Mark, I think you painted your walls pink just so your pics would look good on this page :P
19. ariston | August 23rd, 2009 at 3:15 am
Mark, the posted images makes my hungry… lol
now, you can set-up your own pie and cookie factory and open a franchise… and you can do the branding too! :)
20. pinkdress | August 23rd, 2009 at 4:18 am
There’s this amazing, huge apple-shaped factory just outside Toronto, can’t remember where exactly, or it’s name for that matter. They have all kinds of apple related stuff: apple pies, biscuits, cookies, u name it! y.u.m.m.y!!!
21. Sn3a | August 23rd, 2009 at 5:05 am
Ansam:thaanx;)
22. NS | August 23rd, 2009 at 5:55 am
http://find.myrecipes.com/recipes/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1054849
This link might help you for next time. Some other hints:
1) You should reduce the baking time when you bake in glass.
2) Following American recipes such buy this or that because like this flour you are using belong to general Mills which all sister companies too with Betty Crocker brand name.
3) Try not to buy bleached flour it is not healthy on the long run. I prefer King Arthur flour; I think it is expensive in Kuwait. Beside Kuwaiti flour by the way was better than any 30 years ago?
4) Test which I’m sure you have done that with your oven by making one simple muffin following the recipe exactly and see what happen. Convection oven by the way you need to reduce the temp which today automatically will be reduced.
5) Kneading the dough is better by hand like the French pastry in the old days.
I’m sure you did put the dough in the fridge before assembling it….
6) Best baking is placing the shelf in the middle rack.
7) Stick with the time to bake the pie shell and put weigh on to keep the shape because it is going to bake again with the apple.
Now regarding your health issue, have you tried chewing your food real well which will reduce weight with the time and the reflexes too? Try one herb weekly or ginger, green tea and see which one works best for you; other medication will ruin your kidney so try to avoid them. You should know your system and anxiety better than any doctor…..
Well! On a positive point the pie looked better than many I have seen around the net….Sahteen or should I say—Yummmmii with praline vanilla ice cream (Hagen Daz)
http://www.haagen-dazs.com/products/product.aspx?id=376
23. Yummy | August 23rd, 2009 at 6:40 am
Yummy :)))
If you have free time, how about reading about Islam from Islamic source.
You will make a good Muslim :)
24. Mr.pedro | August 23rd, 2009 at 9:57 am
Let me know what Nat Says about ur Apple pie :P
anyways looks Delicious !!
25. Mark | August 23rd, 2009 at 10:42 am
Remote Control: 220 grams of butter for the dough and 150 grams of butter for the apples. Plus also contains 200 grams of caster sugar. So yeah this is probably not a good dessert to lose weight on.
26. Mark | August 23rd, 2009 at 10:43 am
Mr. Pedro: Nat thinks it needs more sugar. It doesn’t.
27. Zohak | August 23rd, 2009 at 10:57 am
let me know when you are making cherry pie, I’ll gladly help you eat it!!
28. Ansam | August 23rd, 2009 at 11:02 am
So are you gonna add recipes?? I will be waiting if you do so :-D
29. PeevishGuy | August 23rd, 2009 at 12:01 pm
looks good
30. Patrick | August 23rd, 2009 at 12:58 pm
Needs more sugar? No way. It’s already pretty sweet.
31. Mark | August 23rd, 2009 at 1:04 pm
Would u listen to me or Nat when it comes to food?
32. M | August 23rd, 2009 at 2:36 pm
You of course!;)
33. Ryuuzaki | August 23rd, 2009 at 4:42 pm
The IR burners in the second pic just compliment the “248am” theme. Are they magenta, or did you just pull it off?
34. curlysue | August 23rd, 2009 at 4:44 pm
Ooooh that looks good, and right around now, 14 hours into a fast, i could do with some!! Can you deliver?
35. Mark | August 23rd, 2009 at 4:53 pm
Ryu: they r actually red
curlysue: just finished the last piece of the pie :)
36. Mark | August 23rd, 2009 at 4:54 pm
Ryu: they r actually red
curlysue: just finished the last piece of the pie :)
Oops…forgot to say great post! Looking forward to your next one.
37. Realist | August 23rd, 2009 at 5:22 pm
Did you use chilled water for the crust ?
38. Mark | August 23rd, 2009 at 5:33 pm
6 table spoons of cold water
39. TweeZ | August 23rd, 2009 at 5:58 pm
does it taste as good as johnny rocket’s apple pie?
40. organic kuwait | August 23rd, 2009 at 8:50 pm
i love the pink kitchen wall
41. dandoon | August 23rd, 2009 at 9:09 pm
looks good!:)
any idea what falafel&companys ramadan hours are?
42. Burger Girl | August 24th, 2009 at 1:41 am
dandoon : From 5 till 1 am.
43. dandoon | August 24th, 2009 at 2:41 am
thanks!
44. Desert Girl | August 24th, 2009 at 2:50 pm
If you ever come across any, try adding 2-3 tablespoons of tapioca pudding (dry form) to the apples before baking. It makes it much moister.
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