Some days are just regular days. And then some days, a friend sends you a glorious new pie cookbook out of the blue, and the world becomes a better place than it had been 30 minutes earlier.

This book appeared unannounced on my doorstep, courtesy of my good friend Kelly. Spontaneous acts of kindness, guys—we’ve got to do more of them.

The book is First Prize Pies by Allison Kave, and it is some serious eye candy in addition to the usual, you know, belly candy. I’m enjoying the incredible variety of ideas she includes—no two pies are similar.

I’ve had in mind ideas (piedeas, as I like to think of them) for an apple cider pie, with a pudding-like bottom and a cinnamon whipped cream topping. Lo and behold, Allison had a recipe for one, and it looked delicious. I made it according to her instructions (Actually, her boyfriend’s… long story. Read the book.), with the only exception being that I spiced my apple cider as I was reducing it, and I added a drizzle of caramel sauce to the top. It was excellent–just the right amount of sweet and tangy, and a smooth, custardy texture. Definitely one to make again.

Apple Cider Cream Pie (Take 1)

But, my one disappointment was that you really lost the apple cider flavor, which really surprised me. I really wanted a pie that tasted primarily of spiced cider, with whipped cream as a compliment quality, not a dominating one. I started doing some hunting online, and it seems that no one has made the apple cider pie I was envisioning.

So, I went back to the kitchen, and it became a 2-pie week. To make the pie, I modified my chocolate pudding recipe, replacing the milk with reduced apple cider and omitting the cocoa powder. I topped the pie with mildly sweetened whipped cream (deciding to leave out the cinnamon here), and drizzled my favorite caramel sauce over the top. This pie was also quite good, and it was much more like what I had been picturing. The apple cider punches right through, and the caramel sauce brings out the cinnamon and cloves spicing the cider. And just like that, another week goes by without giving away more than a slice or two of pie. Full disclosure: without giving away more than a slice or two of either pie.

Apple Cider Pie, Take 2

Apple Cider Cream Pie (made 10/23/15)
(Very slightly adapted from Allison Kave’s Jay’s Apple Cider Cream Pie)

1 unbaked pie crust – I used my standard recipe, which you can borrow from this recipe, but substituted chilled butter for shortening

Filling:
1 ½ c. apple cider
1 cinnamon stick
6 whole cloves
¾ c. granulated sugar
½ c. sour cream
¼ tsp. salt

Topping:
1 c. heavy whipping cream
2 Tbsp. powdered sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon (optional: I omitted it because of the cinnamon in the cider)

Caramel Sauce:
½ c. (1 stick) butter
½ c. sugar
1 Tbsp. molasses
1/8 tsp. salt
¼ heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees, and roll pie dough into a circle about 11 inches in diameter. Transfer it to a 9-inch pie pan, and crimp the edges. Blind-bake the piecrust until it is partially baked: Fit a piece of aluminum foil into the unbaked crust so that the edges come up above the level of the pie crust, and fill with pie weights (or dry rice or beans). Bake for 20 minutes; if the crust still appears wet when you remove the weights and foil, return to the oven at 350 degrees for another 5 minutes.

For the filling: Combine the cider, cinnamon, and cloves in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat, and allow to boil until it has been reduced to half (3/4 cup). Let cool—this is important, so that you don’t cook the eggs when you add it to the other filing ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, sugar, sour cream, and salt until well blended. Slowly drizzle in the apple cider, whisking to incorporate. Pour the filling into the crust. Bake at 425 to 20-25 minutes, or until the filling has just set and is still a bit wobbly in the middle. (Mine took quite a bit longer.)

For the caramel sauce, combine butter, sugar, molasses, and salt in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil, stirring frequently. Continuing to stir, allow to boil for one more minute. Add whipping cream and return to a boil, stirring constantly and allowing to boil for 2-3 minutes further.

For the topping: In a stand mixer, with a hand mixer, or by hand (I’ve started doing this by hand—phew, it makes you tired! but the texture is irreplaceable), whip the cream with the powdered sugar and cinnamon (if using) until soft peaks form.If you are serving the entire pie at once, pile the whipped cream on top of the cooked pie filling, then drizzle caramel sauce decoratively over the top. If you plan to store part of the pie, I recommend spooning whipped cream on and drizzling caramel over individual pieces, as you eat them.

 

Apple Cider Pie, Take 2 (made 10/26/15)

1 unbaked pie crust – again, I used my standard recipe as shown here, but substituted chilled butter for shortening

Filling:
4 c. apple cider
2 cinnamon sticks
10 whole cloves
1 tsp. lemon juice
¼ c. cornstarch
¼ c. sugar
2 tsp. butter
1 tsp. vanilla

Topping:
1 c. heavy whipping cream
1 Tbsp. powdered sugar (more if you like your whipped cream sweeter)

Caramel Sauce:
½ c. (1 stick) butter
½ c. sugar
1 Tbsp. molasses
1/8 tsp. salt
¼ heavy whipping cream

Preheat oven to 425 degrees, and roll pie dough into a circle about 11 inches in diameter. Transfer it to a 9-inch pie pan, and crimp the edges. Blind-bake the piecrust: Fit a piece of aluminum foil into the unbaked crust so that the edges come up above the level of the pie crust, and fill with pie weights (or dry rice or beans). Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the weights and foil from the piecrust. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees, and bake for an additional 10 minutes.

Combine apple cider, cinnamon sticks, and cloves in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Allow to boil until reduced to half its original volume (2 cups). Let cool. Still in the medium saucepan, add to the apple cider the lemon juice, cornstarch, and sugar. Whisk well. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil and begins to thicken. Still stirring, allow the mixture to boil for an additional 2 minutes. Remove from the heat, and stir in the butter and vanilla. Pour into fully baked piecrust, and let cool.

For the caramel sauce, combine butter, sugar, molasses, and salt in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until it comes to a boil, stirring frequently. Continuing to stir, allow to boil for one more minute. Add whipping cream and return to a boil, stirring constantly and allowing to boil for 2-3 minutes further.

Using a hand mixer, stand mixer, or by hand (oh, my tired arms!), whisk heavy whipping cream and powdered sugar until soft peaks form. If you are serving the entire pie at once, pile the whipped cream on top of the cooked pie filling, then drizzle caramel sauce decoratively over the top. If you plan to store part of the pie, I recommend spooning whipped cream on and drizzling caramel over individual pieces, as you eat them.