Rain Makes Applesauce Recipes

Book

Rain Makes Applesauce
by Julian Scheer and Marvin Bileck

Do you ever look out the window and see rain make applesauce? Wear your shoes inside out, dance with your dolls on the moon, tickle your friends, and make your own Rainy Day Applesauce.

Then, with your leftover apples and your stars made of lemon juice, try a Lemon and Spice Apple Galette.

Cook

Rainy Day Applesauce

Complexity: Simple. Peeling and slicing apples, stirring the pot.
Time: 15 minutes prep plus 60 minutes inactive cooking.

Ingredients

10 apples (We like to use 5 Pink Lady and 5 Jonagold. Make sure that you pick apples that are good for saucing)
1 cup water
¾ cup sugar, more or less to taste

Directions

Peel, core, and slice apples. Apples should be sliced thinly.
Place apples in pot with 1 cup water. Turn
heat to low and let sit for 1 hour. Stir with a spoon. If apples do not break up nicely, continue cooking for
10 minutes. If the apples are at your desired consistency, add sugar and mix well.
Eat warm or cold, and enjoy with cinnamon sugar.

Cook

Lemon and Spice Apple Galette

Complexity: Complex dessert-making. Chopping, mixing, making pastry dough, and baking. Kids can help with mixing the filling.
Time: 45 minutes active prep plus 20 minutes cooling and 55 minutes baking.

Dough Ingredients

1 ½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon table salt
11 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter
1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons whole milk

Note: You can also purchase pastry dough if you want to skip this step.

Filling Ingredients

4 cups peeled, thinly sliced apples
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
Pinch table salt
1 large egg, well-beaten
2 tablespoons sugar

Directions to Make and Roll the Dough

Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes and add them to the flour. On low speed, mix the butter and flour until the flour is no longer white and holds together when you clump it with your fingers, 1 to 2 minutes. If there are still lumps of butter, break them up with your fingers. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the bowl, ensuring everything mixes well.
In a small bowl, mix the egg yolk and milk and add them to the flour mixture. On low speed, mix until the dough just comes together, about 15 seconds; the dough will be somewhat soft.
Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap, press it into a flat disk, wrap it in the plastic, and let it rest in the refrigerator for 15 to 20 minutes (or up to four days) before rolling it out.
Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350. Line a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet with parchment. Remove the dough from the refrigerator. If dough is too firm to roll, let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes. On a floured surface, roll the dough into a 13-to-14 inch diameter circle. Transfer the dough round to the baking sheet and put it in the refrigerator while you prepare the filling.

Directions: Assemble and Bake the Tart

Put the apples in a large bowl. Toss the fruit with the 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Taste the fruit and add up to 2 tablespoons more sugar if it is too tart. Add the flour, vanilla extract, cinnamon, and salt. Toss until everything is evenly mixed.
Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature for about 5 minutes to keep it from cracking when you assemble the tart. Heap the apple mixture in the center of the dough round. Using your fingertips, fold the edges of the dough over some of the apples to create a rim about 2 inches wide. Work your way all around, pleating the dough as you go.
Using a pastry brush, brush the pleated dough evenly with the beaten egg. Sprinkle the 2 tablespoons sugar directly on the dough and fruit.
Bake the tart until the pleats of dough are completely golden brown without a trace of unbaked dough, about 55 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.
Slice and serve warm or at room temperature.

Note: These store well in the freezer.