Dearest readers of Mirror,
In the final days of October, with Halloween around the corner and the leaves around campus just passing their peak, we want to take a moment to celebrate the fall, the harvest and the Upper Valley, a place we love so much. In the spirit of the season, we have a special fall-themed cooking column! Kent shares his apple pie recipe.
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Apples are the essence of fall. Of course, in terms of the delightful fall apple foods, there’s not only apple pie, but apple cider donuts, hot spiced apple cider, caramel apples — the list goes on. Few things say fall in New England more than apple picking.
It was in this spirit that my friends and I visited Riverview Farm in Plainfield, N.H. last Saturday, set on rolling hills along the Connecticut River.
What a lovely time it was. Walking through the apple orchard on such a perfect late October day allowed me to let the cares of the world drift away. If you’re reading this from the Upper Valley, there isn’t too much time left to go apple picking this year — if you haven’t been yet, let this be your sign!
I had it in my mind that we’d bake a pie after, inspired by my love of apple pie. While at the farm, I learned from the farmers that Cortland apples are best for baking and picked about a dozen. Because it was late in the year, the apple picking was a bit sparse, but that didn’t spoil the fun we had walking through the orchard.
A few notes on the recipe, which was largely a product of improvisation. The pie dough is adapted from a recipe by Melissa Clark. The main difference is that she uses a food processor, and I didn’t have one, so I adapted to make do without. I also used a bit less ice water than she recommended. Making your own pie dough from scratch might seem intimidating, but we recommend you give this simple and foolproof recipe a try.
For the filling, I didn’t look at any recipe, just adding a lot of sliced apples, nutmeg, ginger, cinnamon and, as suggested by my friend, a bit of Vermont maple syrup.
Whether or not you go apple picking, baking an apple pie and enjoying it with your friends and family is the perfect fall activity. Whether it’s alongside a cup of coffee for breakfast or a scoop of ice cream for dessert, a slice of homemade apple pie is a simple, any-time-of-day pleasure you should enjoy soon! Or if you want to follow New England tradition, melt a slice of cheddar cheese on top of your pie.
My kitchen filled with the thick and comforting scents of cinnamon, nutmeg and apples baking. After the pie finished, my friends and I sat amongst the scent and enjoyed the pie.
For the pie dough:
1 ¼ cups flour
¼ tsp salt
10 tb cold butter (cut into small pieces)
1 tb ice water
Mix flour and salt, then mix butter into flour till pea-sized bits. Add ice water. Roll into a ball, refrigerate for at least half an hour.
For the filling:
Four to five apples (preferably Cortland), peeled and sliced thinly
Spices (we recommend cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger), to taste
Maple syrup, to taste
To assemble:
Roll out half the dough, flouring the surface generously, then place in the bottom of a pie pan. Layer apples, sprinkling spices and maple syrup on each layer.
Roll out the top of the pie crust and place it on top of the pan, pricking the top and crimping the sides with a fork. Bake at 425 degrees for 40-50 minutes until golden on top.
Question of the Hour
Hi K and V!
I just carved two pumpkins for Halloween and I have so many pumpkin seeds! What should I do with them?
Sincerely,
Carving Conundrum
A perfect use for all those pumpkin seeds would be to roast them in the oven with olive oil and a sprinkle of salt, or whatever other spices you want to add. You can bake them at 350 degrees for about half an hour. Just make sure they are very well cleaned and completely dry before roasting them. You might want to lay them out on a baking sheet overnight to completely dry. They’ll make a wonderful snack!
Cooking with Kent and Vidushi is a cooking column co-written by Kent Friel '26 and Vidushi Sharma ’27. If you’d like to submit a recipe or cooking question, email it to kandvcook@gmail.com
Kent Friel ‘26 is an executive editor at The Dartmouth.
Vidushi Sharma ’27 is a managing editor and news reporter. She is majoring in Government and minoring in International Studies and Sociology. On campus, Vidushi is a Dickey Center War and Peace Fellow, an educational access advisor for the Dartmouth Center for Social Impact and an associate editor for the Dartmouth Law Journal.
