Today’s post was originally published here on the Blind Pig in October of 2010. With all the talk of apples I thought it would be a good time to repost it.
Today I’m going to show you how Granny makes Fried Apple Pies. I bet most of you have already noticed, the pie in the picture isn’t fried. If you did you’re smarter than I am. It took me 20 years to figure that out. Well not really. I always knew they weren’t fried, but Granny and all the rest of us call them fried pies. Sometime after I was grown, probably the first time I made them myself I realized we called them fried pies even though they’re not.
First Granny opens a jar of applesauce and along with sugar to taste she warms it through on the stove.
While the applesauce warms Granny turns the oven on to 450 degrees and then she makes the dough.
Granny sifts 2 cups of plain (all purpose) flour and 1 teaspoon of salt into a mixing bowl. Granny says-don’t forget the salt or the pies won’t be any good.
Next add 2/3 cups of shortening to the flour/salt mix.
Mix the shortening into the flour. A pastry cutter works good, but Granny just uses her fingers. (thats how she makes biscuits too, with her hands)
Once the shortening is mixed thoroughly with the flour Granny said to add 5 to 6 tablespoons of cold water, but she added more than that.
After the flour has come together in a stiff dough Granny divides it into 6 lumps.
Granny said “everybody has their own way of doing this part and this is how I do it.” She rolls each lump out to about the size of a salad plate.
As Granny rolls each lump out she piles them in a plate with flour between each to prevent them from sticking.
When Granny is through rolling out the dough she puts the excess flour back into the canister “so it don’t waste.”
On a greased bread pan, Granny puts a large spoonful of applesauce in the center of each round, folds it over,
and crimps the edges shut with her fingers. She takes a fork and pokes holes in the top of each pie to let the steam escape, then bakes the pies at 450 for about 20 minutes or till light brown. (if you want them a deeper golden brown Granny says to brush the tops with melted butter before you bake them)
So there you have it, Granny’s Fried-I mean Baked Apple Pies. They are delicious piping hot straight from the oven, but they’re good the next day with a glass of cold milk too.
I asked Granny why she baked the pies instead of frying, I thought maybe her mother did it that way too. Granny said somewhere along the way she started baking them cause she was never pleased with how her fried ones turned out.
Have you ever seen anyone else who bakes them?
Tipper
p.s. Granny’s ‘fried’ pies also work great with my biscuit recipe if you’re a fan of it!
What a treat! Baked little apple pies! We love the fried but hardly ever have them because of them being fried. Thank you and Granny for the recipe!
Tipper,
My Grandma and mom could make the best fried pies. I remember they would make a variety from peach, apple, chocolate, blueberry which was my favorite. It was always a treat for us grandkids when it came time for them to make those fried pies. I think now it would be a little healthier to bake them.
I might have to give these a try baked style. Thanks for sharing your mother’s way for fried pies.
Deb
Our Grandmothers both made the best pie crusts too, about the same way, except our maternal Grandmother put a pinch of sugar in her mix. I’ve never had the knack, even with no-fail recipes, and I don’t know why cause I surely do love pie.
God bless.
RB
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I am sorry to say I have never had a fried pie. Very, very sorry! Something to look forward to, though.
My husband grew up in Kentucky & his grandmother used to make fried pies for him. I have made them once, but I used a recipe that make about a dozen, unfortunately ???? the two of us had to eat all of them. Every time we go to the Amish area of Ohio we find a place & buy a few.
Tipper,
Those baked apple pies look so
good. I’ve never made these fried
or baked singles, but I love to
make Bunt style plain cakes with
a good crust and spoon applesauce
over each piece. Served hot with
cold applesauce is my favorite way
to eat…Ken
My Grandma didn’t make fried apple pies, but she did make applesauce pies & man where they ever yummy! She put a little thickener in her homemade applesauce & made a monster double crust pie. It always amazed me how those slices of pie held their shape so nice, yet the filling wasn’t like a block of jello. What she did fry, was bread dough. But that’s a whole different animal! Yowza did I love bread making day! She would fry up some dough in a cast iron skillet & we would slather on the butter & top with sugar & cinnamon, too, if you liked. Eeeee….my mouth is watering!! P-:
Thanks Tipper for posting this again. I copied down the recipe the last time and tried them.They are a big hit and Bob really liked them. They are what you would call comfort food! Inez Jones
My mother and both grandmothers fried their pies. It has been many years since I had one but I can still taste them as I looked at your photos. They used big cast iron skillets that were burned black from cooking over the years. Yes and they always used a fork to make holes, often getting a little fancy with designs.
My first taste of ‘fried apple pie’ was during my first trip to Pigeon Forge to some apple place. I was with a friend who introduced me to them. She couldn’t believe that I had never had one. To say the least – I devoured it. I had never seen how they were made, but I like the baked ones just a bit better -less calories consumed in the frying. At least I know how to make the dough.
What a great recipe! I love fried apple pies, but the kind I make soaks up tons of oil. Tell Granny that Texasware bowl is worth about $40 on ebay. While trying to replace some of mine that ended up missing, I paid ridiculous prices. But they are worth every penny.
I make “fried pies” much like Granny does. And my reason for baking instead of frying is that I never learned the hang of turning the pie over in the frying pan without some of the filling running out! I guess I just didn’t do it all quite right! But nevertheless, baked for the short time and at the high temperature, on a greased baking sheet and with a slathering of melted butter over the top of the pie, it comes out tasting almost as good as the “fried” pies of our childhood memories. Instead of applesauce, dried apples cooked into the “brown” applesauce, work wonderfully well in these pies. I do a sprinkling of cinnamon in the applesauce/dried applesauce to give the pies that little extra flavor. My cousin’s wife, who got really adept at making the old-fashioned fried pies (actually fried) used to make 100–yes, 100–to bring to our church’s annual Homecoming Service in June with that famous “Dinner on the Grounds” (not on the ground–but on the church grounds on those long outside picnic tables!). After Bonnie got elderly and couldn’t do her expected 100 apple pies, her daughter had learned how to do it, and she kept up Bonnie’s wonderful tradition of feeding us fried apple pies at Church Homecoming.
My Mother started baking fried apple pies when I was a little girl. I think she baked them so she could cook more at a time. The pies were also bigger than the fried. I will ask her this a.m. Have a fabulous Friday!
My Mom and Aunt would slice up the apple, put it in the frying pan with a little butter and sugar. She would cook them on low til they were nice and soft. Then she made the pies, baked in the oven. I always thought they were called fried apple pies because the apples were fried up in the butter. Barbara
I will try this. Would be healthier than fried pies. Thanks for new idea. I enjoy easy recipes.
Now your talking,, apple pies and coffee,, now that’s the start of a good day.
My Grandmother fried her pies. She soaked her home-dried apples, sweetened and cooked them. Her dough looked just like Granny’s.
Mother fried pies up until my father’s first heart attack. Then she switched to baked. I have always fried pies using a HOT skillet and little oil.
Oh my wouldn’t one of them be good with my coffee.
Love fried apple pies. One thing I do not make is a pastry, I will have to continue to purchase mine from Merciers.