Thanksgiving Apple Pies

What's better than Thanksgiving dinner? How about two Thanksgiving dinners? That's right friends, I went to Thanksgiving twice this year, so besides eating two times more food, I had to bake two times the pie! Ever since this whole diet business, I haven't baked much. Lots of low-calorie cooking, but very little baking. So, I was a little excited about getting to bake again. Making pies is fun! Though, it can be quite a time consuming process - especially when you have to bake two.

I made the crusts the night before, and chilled the discs of dough overnight. That made it a little easier in the morning. I don't have pie weights (yet), so I usually end up with a somewhat sloppy process of fitting the dough into my pie plate, but I think it came out okay? I used a fork to add some texture to allow the top of my pie crust to adhere a little easier.

While the pie crusts chilled in the fridge for a little longer, I worked on the apple filling. Mr B made the process go a lot quicker by helping me peel all the apples! After the apples were all cut, I added some lemon, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, flour, and a few cubes of butter. Then, in the pie crusts they go.

Next, it's time for the top crust. I always use little cookie cutters for the vents. I almost went freestyle with some autumn leaves, but totally chickened out, since we were a little tight with time. I think the stars worked out just fine though. After adhering the two crusts, I brushed on my egg wash and poured a generous amount of sanding sugar on top.

I let the whole pie freeze for about 30 minutes, then into the oven they went. Here is pie number one:

And pie number two:

I got to sneak a taste of each pie, and I do think pie number one was the winner.

I used an actual pie plate to bake this one, which ensured even baking. For pie number two, I ran out of pie plates, so I used a vintage pyrex dish that was somewhat pie shaped. Now, I love my vintage pyrex, but I gotta say, the baking was a bit uneven with this one. I might have to experiment again with an actual pyrex pie plate, but from now on, my little pyrex will go back to making casseroles and looking stylish.
Now, what will I be baking for Christmas....???