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How to Make Bacon Apple Pie – Jenn Louis

January 26, 2016 by PDX Food Dude 31 Comments

Bacon Apple Pie Recipe. Why in the world haven’t we ALWAYS eaten this?

This is a repost from 2008, as it was just featured on the Food Network, which has generated lots of traffic today.

They say one can’t taste a dish through a picture. Conversely, they say a picture is worth a thousand words. This picture of a bacon apple pie left me speechless and drooling. As Nancy Rommelmann said, “It makes you wonder: why in the world haven’t we ALWAYS eaten this?”

Chef Jenn Louis has been recognized as a semifinalist for the 2010 and 2011 James Beard Foundation’s “Best Chef Northwest,” and in 2012 was named Food & Wine’s “Best New Chef” for the Northwest region. She has made appearances on ABC’s The Chew, and her work has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Food & Wine, Bon Appetit and The New York Times. She has appeared on Top Chef Masters, and in 2016 her bacon apple pie was featured on the Food Network’s Guilty Pleasures. In 2015, Jenn released her cookbook  Pasta by Hand: A Collection of Italy’s Regional Hand-Shaped Pasta.

In 2008 Jenn Louis honored us with this bacon apple pie recipe. It tastes as good as it looks.

 

bacon apple pie - Finished pie
Finished Bacon Apple Pie

Here’s the recipe:

Makes one 9-inch pie

  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for work surface
  • 1 recipe Pate Sucre, see below
  • 3 pounds crisp red apples: rome, braeburn, gala
  • 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
  • 1# bacon, sliced

On a lightly floured work surface, roll out one pate sucree disc into a 13-inch round about 1/8 inch thick. Fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate. With a sharp paring knife, trim dough about ¾ inch over the rim. Turn rim of pie dough under to form a runstic crust. Freeze again until firm, at least 30 minutes.

Bacon Apple Pie Filling
Bacon Apple Pie – Filling

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss the apples with the lemon juice, granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt. Remove pie shell from freezer, and fill with apple mixture. Dot with butter.
Arrange the strips of bacon over the top of the piecrust in a lattice, then fold the edges of the pie crust over the bacon and crimp.

Bacon apple pie - lattice added
Bacon-Apple Pie – Lattice Added

Bake for about an hour, until the bacon on top is nicely crisp, the crust is browned and a knife pushes easily into an apple slice. This should be about an hour.

Every apple has a different water content and will react to cooking differently. So, just pierce with a knife to make sure the apples are soft and the bacon is crisp!

Pate Sucree

  • 1 large egg yolks
  • 2T ice water
  • 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
  • Salt
  • 4 ounces (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Lightly beat yolks and water in a small bowl until combined.

Pulse flour, sugar, and a pinch of salt in a food processor until combined. Add butter, and process until mixture resembles coarse meal, about 20 seconds. With the machine running, add yolk mixture in a slow, steady stream. Process until mixture just begins to hold together (no longer than 30 seconds).

Shape dough into 1 disk, and wrap in plastic. Refrigerate until firm, 30 minutes to overnight.

Jenn says, “to answer the question from one of your readers, yes, the cutting can be challenging on a whole pie. But, really, who cares? Bacon and apples? The pie for two will be in its own dish and the guest will cut it, so it will be real pretty when it gets to the table.”

Related

Filed Under: Food Writing, Portland Food and Restaurant News and Discussion, Recipes

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jeff Shultz says

    December 1, 2008 at 3:17 pm

    YUM!

    Reply
    • Sandy Willhite says

      February 20, 2013 at 5:53 am

      This is a delicious recipe, but I have one hint. Wait until you’ve finished the bacon lattice on the top of the pie before rolling the rim. I tucked the bacon under the rim of the crust, then pinched the rim as usual, It kept the bacon from shrinking and pulling away from the rim during baking. I also used thick-cut bacon for the lattice.

      Reply
  2. biabub says

    December 1, 2008 at 3:52 pm

    OMG! I can’t believe they’re not open tonight!

    Reply
  3. Tim says

    December 1, 2008 at 4:37 pm

    I want to give this a try, but I can’t find any reference to it on Lincoln’s website, or either of the blogs cited.

    Reply
  4. Bob says

    December 1, 2008 at 6:12 pm

    Wow! I’m thinking that this might be kind of tough to eat, though. You’d probably need a knife to get through the lattice.

    I’d love to try it with the bacon cut up into little pieces and mixed in with the apples.

    Reply
  5. polloelastico says

    December 1, 2008 at 7:08 pm

    A nice, evenly cooked bacon lattice is the food equivalent of a rainbow or Natalie Portman.

    Reply
  6. Food Dude says

    December 1, 2008 at 10:21 pm

    Hmm… I was going to do some upgrading on the site tonight, but traffic has jumped so high, I think I’ll put it off for another night. ;>)

    Because I’m such a trooper, I volunteer to stop by Lincoln, eat dinner, and have the pie. I have to think of the right wine, of course.

    Reply
  7. Nathan says

    December 1, 2008 at 9:22 pm

    Am I the only one who finds this completely unappetizing?
    I like bacon just as much as the next fellow, but this is absurd as far as I’m concerned.
    Don’t get me wrong though, if it floats your boat…

    Reply
  8. Aaron Weiss says

    December 1, 2008 at 9:45 pm

    I saw this and had to give it a shout out on KGW’s Live @ 7 tonight.

    The newsroom really did go nuts over it, and FWIW, I’m in the camp that thinks it’s the greatest thing ever, and I’m going to attempt one tonight for the newsroom potluck tomorrow. I’m trying to figure out whether the pie is par-baked before the lattice goes on, or if the bacon goes in the oven for 45 minutes.

    Reply
  9. Food Dude says

    December 1, 2008 at 10:54 pm

    weknowpinot, you made me laugh. Thanks!

    Reply
  10. djonn says

    December 1, 2008 at 10:06 pm

    Synchronicity lives; I was just pointed yesterday at a possibly even more dangerously seductive recipe:
    baconed yams. (Nathan probably does not want to go here. The rest of the gallery, however….)

    Reply
  11. glainie says

    December 1, 2008 at 10:09 pm

    Although don’t find the idea of bacon and apples unappetizing, based on the photos, the raw bacon cooks off at the same time as the pie, which means that rendered bacon fat is soaking into the pie as it cooks; this I do find unappetizing. As another poster mentioned, mixing cooked bacon in with the apples prior to baking sounds considerably better. I might also add that a nice slice of sharp cheddar on top would really sell it!

    Reply
  12. linkmaxbub says

    December 2, 2008 at 5:08 am

    Fat man’s Nirvana!

    Reply
  13. Food Gems says

    December 2, 2008 at 9:29 am

    No thanks – that look nasty.

    Poor pig that gave its life for that.

    Reply
  14. veloveritas says

    December 2, 2008 at 4:47 pm

    Oh man!
    Dessert for after my Reggie Deluxe at Pine State!!!
    Everything IS better with bacon!

    Reply
  15. bb says

    December 2, 2008 at 5:18 pm

    “Poor pig that gave its life for that”? Are you kidding me?? If more pigs knew they would serve such a noble cause, they’d be lining up at the slaughterhouse. I think it is the pig equivalent of Islamists thinking they’re getting 99 virgins. I can see it now: “Give your life for this, dear pigs, and we will make 99 delicious pies from your martyred bodies!”
    One word: YUM!! Four more for FD: “Take me with you!!”

    Reply
  16. Flask Mama says

    December 2, 2008 at 9:55 pm

    oh my gawd. i want me one.

    Reply
  17. Chris says

    December 4, 2008 at 8:58 am

    What if the lattice was pre cooked, perhaps in a roasting pan in the oven. That would pull the oil content of the pie down to acceptable tolerances, insure both sides of the bacon were cooked, while still allowing you to mix the crunchy bacon goodness with apple cinnamon nirvana.

    mmmmmmmmm.

    Reply
  18. maria says

    December 4, 2008 at 10:08 am

    I don’t know about dessert, but this is definitely my kind of breakfast!!

    Reply
  19. Aaron Weiss says

    December 4, 2008 at 2:39 pm

    I’m sure Jenn figured this out long before I did, but there’s no pre-cooking or par-baking needed. A lattice of thick-cut bacon cooks perfectly along with the pie for about 75-80 minutes at 375 degrees. You do need to plan for quite a bit of shrinkage, so don’t trim the bacon as you lay it down.

    The bacon fat did make the pie filling a bit more liquid than I’d expected — next time I won’t drizzle any remaining liquid from the bowl into the pie. It wasn’t overly runny once it cooled, though, and the bacon drippings end up giving the apples an amazing creamy texture that’s unlike any apple pie you’ve ever had.

    Reply
  20. Jenn says

    December 4, 2008 at 7:21 pm

    I made this last night, using the Betty Crocker recipe circa 1978, 50 minutes at 425F. The bacon came out a little overly browned, but was still quite tasty. Sure, the bacon adds quite a bit of fat, but come on, any time you bake a normal apple pie, you always dot it with butter before putting that top crust on (don’t you? You should!). I trimmed my bacon so it overhung the dish by about 1/4 inch and then tucked the ends between the crust and apples, and didn’t experience any noticable shrinkage. It is somewhat difficult to cut the bacon, so I think next time I try this (there will be a next time), I’ll do a mock lattice, cutting shorter lengths of bacon and arranging them to look weaved, instead of actually weaving full strips, that should solve that problem. I didn’t find mine overly liquidy, but then, I like a somewhat gooey pie. My particular recipe does call for 1/4 cup flour in with the apples, so that amount of thickener likely helped the liquid situation, as well.

    Reply
  21. MRS.MOMMYY says

    December 4, 2008 at 8:46 pm

    yummy, its like eating a roll, baco and fruit together- looks tasty

    Reply
  22. Tim says

    December 4, 2008 at 9:28 pm

    @Jenn: thanks so much for following up with some cooking tips. I can’t wait to give this a try, either at the restaurant or at home.

    Reply
  23. Dante Amorphic says

    December 6, 2008 at 9:22 am

    Redefines the whole concept of Pie for breakfast!

    Reply
  24. Food Dude says

    December 6, 2008 at 1:34 pm

    Ok, I went to Lincoln and tried the pie.

    1. It comes in a two person serving; a fairly big dish with a large scoop of ice cream on top.
    2. My reaction after the first few bites, was “wow, this is good”
    3. Half way through, I was thinking, yes, it is interesting, but I don’t think I’d order it again.
    4. The problem is, it’s just too heavy, especially after just finishing a large dinner.
    5. All in all, I enjoyed the pie and am glad I ordered it, but I don’t know if I would want it more than once a year.

    I think they are going to have it available on Friday & Saturday nights until it runs out.

    Reply
  25. Spencer says

    December 8, 2008 at 12:47 am

    Sounds to me like the only problem is that it’s being served as a dessert. That looks kinda breakfasty to me right there. And awesome in so many ways.

    Ice cream might be a bit much, but then, I don’t often like ice cream on pie anyway.

    Reply
    • Food Dude says

      December 8, 2008 at 12:54 am

      Actually, the maple ice cream is absolutely necessary. The dairy does something to cut the fat, and of course the combo of maple/bacon/apple is a winner!

      Reply
  26. pdxbornfoodie says

    December 13, 2008 at 3:50 pm

    just add some cheddar cheese, please…

    sharp cheddar melted over apple pie (with or without the bacon) = heavenly

    Reply
  27. eldon says

    September 20, 2012 at 6:15 pm

    yummy

    Reply
  28. Charlie says

    January 28, 2016 at 6:46 pm

    This recipe omits the streusel that was shown on Food Network recently. I guess Chef Louis doesn’t share complete recipes. Disappointing.

    Reply
    • Deborah says

      February 12, 2016 at 1:06 pm

      That’s the one I am looking for too! With the strudel in the bottom and on top before the bacon lattice is added.

      Reply

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