Sunday, September 23, 2012

Apple Pizza Pie

It was one of those weekends when my kids had a late breakfast and nobody wants any lunch. So I browsed thru my cookbooks to look for something that I could make for tea-time instead, as I'm pretty sure when the clock strikes past 3 o'clock, they would want something for their tummy! I found this wonderful recipe, Apple Pizza Pie, the name certainly caught my attention! Since I have some apples, which I really wanted to clear anyway, this is a perfect way to use them.

According to the book, the base which is a yeasted butter pastry,  is even suitable to make the regular savoury pizza.

Let's get started on the Apple Pizza Pie :


  1. Mixture of Fuji and Granny Smith apples, and some thymes from my garden.
  2. The risen dough is placed on a pizza pan, the base coated with cornmeal. To make the dough, refer to the instructions in the recipe below. 
  3. I use a rolling pin to roll out the dough to fill the pan and press the edges at the sides so that it forms an upstanding rims all around. Refrigerate for 10 minutes.
  4. Scatter with bits of butter all over.




5. Prepare the apples as per instructions below. Arrange apples slices on the crust and sprinkle a mixture of cinnamon, sugar and rosemary (I use thymes) over the apples evenly.
6. Bake for 8 minutes in a preheated oven at 425F (I baked mine for 10 minutes),  remove pan from oven, then lower the oven temperature to 375F.
7. Scatter the top with shredded cheese and continue baking for another 5 minutes until cheese has melted but not bubbling. (It took mine an additional 10 minutes more as it was not brown enough).
8. The baked pizza pie is ready!



Testing time : Of course a slice was quickly cut barely 5 minutes out from the oven!


Let me just admire the pizza pie first!!  Haha!


Review : I like it, the kids love it, my hubby not so! When you take a first bite, first you taste the saltiness and softness of the cheese on top, then you get the next taste of the apples, a little bit sweet and tender.


The crust is lovely, with crusty crispy sides and bottom. Soft, spongy and tasty bread-like texture in the centre. It is especially good when eaten warm, my hubby does not like the combination of sweet and salty in this bake.  My kids love it, there was no leftovers!


Great with a cup of warm Earl Grey tea. I'll be using this easy crust for other savoury future bakes!



Apple Pizza Pie
(Apple Pie by Ken Haedrich)
1 recipe yeasted butter pastry (below)
fine cornmeal or semolina

Filling :
2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
2 Golden Delicious or other firm-textured cooking apples, peeled and cored
1 tablespoon sugar
pinch of ground cinnamon
big pinch of finely chopped fresh rosemary leaves (I use thyme leaves)
2 cups sauerkraut (optional), drained and warmed
2 cups grated Gruyere or extra-sharp Cheddar cheese

  1. If you haven't already, prepare the pastry and set it aside to rise for 1 hour. Meanwhile, lightly oil a large baking sheet and dust it with the cornmeal.
  2. When the dough has risen, without punching it down, turn it out onto the center of the baking sheet. Using oiled fingers, press the dough out into a 13-inch circle, smoothing it, if you like, with a floured rolling pin. Try to keep it of even thickness; you want to aviod making thin spots you can see through. Pinch the dough around the edge, forming an upstanding rim. Refrigerate the dough for 10 minutes. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
  3. Dot the surface of the dough with the butter. Halve the apples lengthwise. Place each half cut side down on a cutting board and cut into very thin slices. Arrange the slices on the crust, overlapping them slightly. Mix the sugar, cinnamon, and rosemary together in a small mixing bowl and sprinkle evenly over the apples.
  4. Place the baking sheet on the center oven rack and bake for 8 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees. Remove the pizza from the oven and sprinkle with the sauerkraut, if using. Sprinkle evenly with the cheese.
  5. Bake the pizza for another 5 minutes, until the cheese has melted nicely; it shouldn't bubble. Do not overbake, since this is a buttery, porous dough, it tends to get fairly brown after about 15 minutes. Slice into wedges and serve as soon as possible.
Yeasted Butter Pastry
(makes enough pastry for 1 large pie)
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 package (about 2 teaspoons) active dry yeast
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt 
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
1 large egg yolk
  1. Measure the water in a 1-cup glass measure. Sprinkle the yeast over the water, mixing briefly with a fork. Set aside for 5 minutes to dissolve the yeast.
  2. Meanwhile, put the flour, sugar, and salt in a food processor. Pulse several times to mix. Remove the lid and scatter the butter pieces over the dry mixture. Pulse the machine 7 or 8 times, until the butter is broken into very small pieces.
  3. Add the egg yolk to the yeast water; blend with a fork. Remove the lid from the processor and add the liquid. Pulse the machine repeatedly, until the dough coheres, then run the machine nonstop for 8 to 10 seconds to knead the dough. Remove the dough and place it in a medium-size oiled bowl, rotating the dough to coat the entire surface.
  4. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set aside to rise in a warmish spot for 1 hour. If for some reason you're called away and you need to delay the rising, simply put the dough in the refrigerator.


kitchen flavour's notes :
For the filling :
~ Use a mixture of Fuji Apples and Granny Smith Apples
~ Use thyme leaves instead of rosemary leaves
~ Omit the sauerkraut
~ Use Cheddar cheese
I rolled the dough out with the help of a small rolling pin into an 11-inch pizza pan. Baking time extended by another 10 minutes as the pastry was not brown enough.

22 comments:

  1. I've never made sweet versions of pizza but I was watching a programme on Food Network the other day where they showed a place where they sell all kinds of sweet pizza versions, from marshmallows to m&m's. That certainly caught my attention. Now your lovely photos and description. How long will it take me to try? Not much, I'm sure. :P

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  2. What a great idea Joyce. I'm sure your children were delightfully surprised when they saw this "Pizza."

    Thanks for sharing...

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  3. I like the way you arrange apples slices on top. Very neat. I love fruits pie.

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  4. I love apple pie, but never dared to make it with a pizza pastry ! I like the comment of Louise, so true ;D
    "Come on, children, there's pizza !!"

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  5. Wow, it looks awesome! I don't know how it would go over with the family, but I'd definitely be willing to try it out. Yum.

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  6. What a delicious combination of sweet and salty! Lovely and delicious.

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  7. LOve this idea look absolutely delicious!!

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  8. Joyce, this sort of dessert pizza is quite popular in the US. Last time, when I was studying there, I used to go for all these pizza buffets and eat this non-stop. Seeing your pizza reminds me of them and how much I loved them. I wish I could have a few slices of yours.

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  9. With a good pizza crust base that you have and some creativity, any ingredients from every part of the grocery store and kitchen can be used as toppings. Keep them coming!

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  10. This does look very delicious. I would love to have a slice with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Yum!

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  11. What a fabulous idea!! this is simply beautiful and I can only imagine how great it tasted - it looks delicious !
    Mary x

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  12. a yeasted pie sounds rather special and i love how rustic it looks too. Your kids will never get hungry in the house with so much food to eat! 3 o'clock, i might probably say, 'hey, dont disturb me, i want to take a nap! '

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  13. Thanks for sharing, and bookmarked for to-do-soon list!

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  14. Great idea , Joyce ;) It looks absolutely delicious ! Actually , I've been lurking at your site yesterday looking for some bread recipe ! lol

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  15. oh i wish you could see my face right now. i am jumping for joy, smiling and shouting YUM YUM YUM!

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  16. Joyce,

    You are very creative with your pizza baking. I would never think of this clever idea. Your apple pizza looks very delicious!

    Your family is so lucky to have you baking and cooking all the delicious food for them :D

    Zoe

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  17. Joyce, this is definitely a very interesting recipe & I think I never have a dessert pizza b4!

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  18. Hi Joyce,
    Love your Apple Pizza. It sound very interesting.
    Your pizza base also look so good. I like it to be crispy at edge, side and soft like bread in the centre and that is what you mention. It's simply wonderful piece if pizza!
    mui..^^

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  19. This is beautiful, Joyce! And I just love that topping combo. Perfect idea for apple season...I may just have to try it! So happy that you've added it to the BYOB bread basket this month =)

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