I ask you: what could possibly be more all-american than apple pie? Nothing, except maybe bacon. So, why not combine them? That would be, like, super-american. Like, AMURRICAHN.
Seriously, though, as soon as I saw this intriguing bacon apple pie recipe from the Loveless Cafe on Pinterest, I knew we were destined to be joined together in culinary experimentation.
It’s Bacon Week Day Four, and it’s bacon apple pie recipe makin’ time! Teh noms are coming…
Bacon apple pie ingredients
First I peeled and sliced the apples, then assembled the spices together – though not with my fingers as the recipe suggested. I found a whisk to be quite sufficient.
Peeled apple slices. We used ranier apples and a CSA apple.
Apple pie spice mix.
Then I combined the slices and the pie mix. It’s kind of crazy how the mix became a thick, spiced syrup, considering that I added no fluids at all. The recipe’s next step called for “dumping” the apple slices into the pie crust (pre-made). I did this, and it was a bad idea. Perhaps I used too many apples. Anyway, I had to take the pieces back out and fit them all together like some multilayered, gooey puzzle.
Sliced and spiced apples, fitted into the crust.
Then it was time to assemble the bacon lattice. I put it together on a piece of wax paper, then flipped it on top of the pie filling and crust. I could have trimmed the bacon ends then, but I wasn’t sure how much the bacon would shrink, so I let them dangle.
The assembled uncooked bacon lattice.
Bacon lattice in place on the pie.
Then it was time to bake this patriotic little bundle of pork, pommes, sugar, and spices. Baked for one hour with foil on to protect the bacon, and 15 minutes with the foil off to cook the bacon.
Slightly cooked bacon lattice.
Then, ta-da! Pie time. The bacon dangling around the edges got way overcooked; the fat melted off and congealed into something awful, grease got everywhere, and my baking pan was most upset with me. But it was worth it.
The cooked bacon apple pie!
And this is what will happen to your pan if you make this
I hope I didn’t build up your excitement too much, because I have to say that this bacon apple pie was nothing to write home about. It tasted exactly like bacon on top of an apple pie. It was good, don’t get me wrong, I just think I was expecting it to become something else, something more than just the combination of its parts. Additionally, it did not hold up well as reheated leftovers; the bacon started to become quite limp and unappetizing. Oh well. It’s still worth trying once, especially for Bacon Week. I have no regrets!
That’s a slice o’ AMURRICAH.
emily
Nerd. Foodie. Gamer. Homecook. Perpetual planner. Gardener. Aspiring homesteader. Direct response graphic designer. I use too many damn commas.
I’m sorry it didn’t turn out tasting particularly good, but I gotta hand it to you – that lattice looks *beautiful*. Next time I make a pie, I’m just bringing you over to help me lattice things up. ^_^