Gluten-free Smilin’ Warm Apple Pie

Of the many times I've made this recipe, I've used different apples each time, sometimes combining two or three varieties at a time, and have never been disappointed. Keep a good mixture of sweet & tart such as Jonathan, Jonagold, Stayman-Winesap; sweet as in Pink Lady, Fuji, Empire, Braeburn; and tart as in Macoun, Idared, Newton Pippin. McIntosh and Cortland apples tend to get mushy when baked.

I use fructose in this recipe, instead of raw sugar, which (I believe) lets the true flavor of the apples come through. If you use sugar, double the amount. The dough will most likely misbehave, as most gluten-free dough does, so put aside any high expectation and have some fun learning how to keep the sides from crumpling apart and making them look 'pretty'. With pie as tasty as this, it won't last long enough to be judged ;o).

Add all ingredients together, cut in butter, add more or less ice water - dough should be moist and easy to roll out. Do not over mix. Roll half of the dough out onto a surface lightly dusted with gluten-free flour using a rolling pin, enough to drape it over a 9-inch pie pan and 1/2 inch over the rim. Roll out the second crust to prep for below filling.

Once you have your filling ingredients stirred together, your stomach starts smiling, knowing you're not too far away from the warm pie goodness.

Toss apples with combined sugar, gluten-free flour, cinnamon, salt and gluten-free cornstarch. Place into pastry lined 9" pie plate. Sprinkle with orange juice and dot with butter.

Notice the edges of the pie crust bottom tend to break off easily after putting it into the pie pan... if you aren't able to fully pinch the top and bottom crusts together, make sure to add a baking sheet below your pie in the oven to prevent too much spillage.

Cover with the top crust, tucking the top edge under the edge of the bottom crust and pinch the edges together. Cut slits in the top so the steam can escape (smiley faces are fabulous!). Brush the entire top crust with the egg wash, optional to sprinkle with 1 teaspoon sugar. Bake at 400* for approx. 40 minutes. Check after 20 minutes - if sides start to brown too quickly cover sides only with foil. Uncover for the last 5-8 minutes to have equal browning. Serve warm.