Melissa Elsen's New York Orchard Apple Pie Recipe

The Four & Twenty Blackbirds pie shop owner shares a classic recipe

If you can’t make it to Four & Twenty Blackbirds in Brooklyn to get a taste of their delicious pies, you’re in luck! Melissa Elsen, the founder of the pie shop and co-author of The Four & Twenty Blackbirds Pie Book, shares the recipe for her classic apple pie made with New York apples. It’s the perfect blend of autumnal spices, finished with a buttery crumb topping. (The seasonal pie is available at Four & Twenty Blackbirds through October.)

To make things even sweeter, Four & Twenty Blackbirds partnered with Yes! Apples on a special baking box, which includes Melissa’s recipe and the three varieties of apples needed.

Melissa, a certified pie wizard, drops so much apple pie wisdom in her recent conversation on our baking podcast, we had to pause to take notes:

• Use 2 to 3 types of apples for a balance of sweet and tartness, and softness versus crisp (for example: a McIntosh will break down and fill in the gaps while bringing that unmistakable apple cider flavor). She likes Cortland, Ida Red, Honeycrisp, and Golden Delicious.

• Let the apples sit and vibe in lemon juice and spices for 20-ish minutes, letting out their liquid and becoming more pliable. Drain the juices (or splash them in your Old Fashioned) before baking.

• Sprinkle sugar and flour at the bottom of the crust before adding your filling for an extra layer of protection to soak up liquid—avoiding soggy bottom woes.

• Slice with a serrated knife. After cooling the pie *at least* two hours, run a serrated knife through each slice three times for the cleanest slice. Nice.

Check out Melissa’s cookbook

Ingredients

Makes one 9½-inch pie; 8 to 12 servings

You’ll Need:

A single pie crust for a 9½-inch pie, fitted to a glass pan, crimped and refrigerated

Topping:

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 4 tablespoons packed light or dark brown sugar

• 4 teaspoons granulated sugar

• 1⁄4 teaspoon kosher salt

• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1⁄2 inch cubes, at room temperature

Filling:

• 2 lemons

• 6 to 7 baking apples (about 2½ pounds)

• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar

• 1 cup packed light or dark brown sugar 3 to 4 dashes Angostura bitters

• 1⁄2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

• 1⁄4 teaspoon ground allspice

• Pinch freshly grated nutmeg

• One grind fresh black pepper

• 1⁄2 teaspoon kosher salt

• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Don’t miss Melissa on our baking pod

Method

Make the topping: Stir together the flour, brown and granulated sugars, and salt in a large bowl. Sprinkle in the butter pieces and toss to coat. Rub the butter into the dry ingredients with your fingertips until the butter is incorporated into the dry ingredients and the mixture is chunky but not homogenous.

Chill for at least 15 minutes before using.

Make the filling: Juice the lemons into a large mixing bowl, removing any seeds. Core, peel, and thinly slice the apples. Dredge the apple slices in the lemon juice. Sprinkle the granulated sugar over top and toss to coat. Set aside to soften slightly and release some of the juices, 20 to 30 minutes.

Position the oven racks in the bottom and center positions, place a rimmed baking sheet on the bottom rack and preheat the oven to 425°F (400°F if using a metal pie pan).

In a small bowl, sprinkle the Angostura bitters over the brown sugar, then add the cinnamon, allspice, nutmeg, black pepper, kosher salt, and flour, and mix well.

Drain any liquid that has been released from the apple slices, then add the sugar spice mixture to the apples and gently toss to distribute.

Tightly layer the apples in the prepared pie crust so that there are minimal gaps, mounding slightly higher in the center.

Evenly distribute the chilled crumb topping over the top of the pie.

Place the pie on the preheated baking sheet on the lowest rack of the oven.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the pastry is set and beginning to brown. Lower the temperature to 375°F, move the pie to the center oven rack, and continue to bake until the crust is a deep golden brown and the juices are bubbling, 35 to 45 minutes longer. Test the apples for doneness with a skewer or sharp knife before removing from the oven—they should be tender, but not mushy.

Allow to cool completely on a wire rack, 2 to 3 hours. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.

---

Four and Twenty Blackbirds All-Butter Pie Crust

Makes one 9 to 10-inch pie crust

Ingredients

• 1¼ cup unbleached all-purpose flour

• 1½ teaspoon granulated sugar

• ½ teaspoon kosher salt

• ¼ pound (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces

• ½ cup cold water

• ½ cup ice

• 2 tablespoon cider vinegar

Method

In a large bowl, stir the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter and coat with the flour mixture with a bench scraper or spatula. Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour mixture, working quickly until mostly pea-size pieces of butter remain (a few larger pieces are okay; be careful not to over-blend).

In a large measuring cup or small bowl, combine the water, ice, and vinegar. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of the ice water mixture over the flour mixture. Mix and cut it in with the bench scraper or spatula until fully incorporated. Add more of the ice water mixture, 1 to 2 tablespoons at a time, using the bench scraper or your hands (or both) to mix until the dough comes together in a ball, with some dry bits remaining.

Squeeze and pinch with your fingertips to bring all the dough together, sprinkling the dry bits with small drops of the ice water mixture, if necessary, to combine. Shape the dough into a flat disc, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to preferably overnight to give the crust time to mellow.

Note: The dough can be made 3 days ahead. Wrap tightly and keep chilled, or freeze for up to 1 month.

Please note, some of our links may earn us a small commission.