I do not know how many might be in a peck. I do know I am up to my eyeballs in apples. We’ve made two pies, I’m making apple butter, and I foisted some off on my mother-in-law for applesaucing. The first pie was the standard toss-sugar-and-apples, put-in-a-crust-and-bake scenario. The second, though, called for a carmelly, syrupy concoction that’s poured over the apples. I didn’t follow the original recipe to a T, but it was still delicious. Here’s what I did:

Caramel Apple Pie
Pie crust for double-crust pie (I usually use Pillsbury, but this time it was store brand.)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon white sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 egg white
6 apples, peeled, cored and sliced

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Stir in flour to form a paste. Add water, brown sugar and 1/2 cup white sugar, and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature and let simmer.

Place the bottom crust in a pie plate. Fill with apples, mounded slightly. Gently pour the caramel mixture over the apples. Top with second crust; crimp edges and cut a few slits in the top. Brush top crust with egg white and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon white sugar.

Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven. Reduce the temperature to 350 degrees. Continue baking for 45 minutes or until apples are soft.

So, what’s your favorite apple application?