Sohla Bakes an Apple Pie Recipe from 1796 America (& Medieval England!) | Ancient Recipes With Sohla
16,648It's a culinary reenactment of the American Revolution as Sohla makes two historic versions of apple pie, pitting the US vs. the UK. First up, Sohla recreates the oldest known recipe for apple pie from 1390 England, then bakes up a 1796 recipe for apple pie from the first ever American cookbook.
RECIPES:
1796 American Apple Pie (from American Cookery):
For the pie crust:
- 1-2 egg whites
- 8 ounces all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling
- 6 ounces cold, salted, European-style butter
For the filling:
- 5 to 6 pounds of small, mixed, market apples
- zest of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon rose water
- granulated sugar to taste
Steps:
1. For the pie crust: Whisk the egg white until just frothy. (This is just to break it up so it’s easier to add to the dough.)
2. Add the flour to a medium bowl. Cut the butter into thin slices and add to flour. Using your hands, rub the flour into the dough until you have peas sized pieces of butter running throughout the flour.
3. Drizzle in the egg white a little bit at a time, stirring with a spoon until the mixture mostly comes together. Gently knead to bring together into a ball, cover with a towel, and set aside in a cool place to rest for 30 minutes.
4. Roll the dough out to ⅛-inch thick, dusting the surface with flour as needed. Use the dough to line a pie pan, trimming any excess dough so 1-inch of the dough hangs off the rim of the pan. Crimp the dough, cover with a towel, and set aside in a cool place to rest.
5. For the filling: Cut the apples into quarters, keeping the seeds and skins intact. Add to a medium pot and add enough water to come ½-inch up the side of the pot. Cover, bring to a simmer, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the apples are completely tender. Cool slightly, then mash the apples through a coarse mesh strainer or colander. Add lemon zest, rose water, and sugar to taste. Set the filling aside to cool.
6. To bake: Scrape the filling into the prepared crust and bake at 375 until the crust is golden brown.
1390 English Apple Pie (from The Forme of Cury):
For the crust:
- 300 grams all-purpose flour
- 60 grams bread flour
- 150 grams lard, melted
- 150 mL boiling water
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
For the filling:
- 4 pounds of small, mixed, market apples
- 3 medium pears
- ½ cup roughly chopped dried figs
- ½ cup raisins
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
Steps:
1. For the crust: In a medium bowl, stir together the all-purpose and bread flour. Add the melted lard, boiling water & salt to the flour mixture. Use a wooden spoon to stir until combined.
2. Tip the dough onto the counter and knead until smooth.
3. Cut off about ⅓ of the dough, cover, and set aside. (This will be for the top) Form the remaining dough into a ball, then flatten slightly. Using a pie dolly, jam jar or your hands, mold the still warm dough into a pie shell with straight sides. Try to make sure the dough is the same thickness on the sides, that the dough on the base is not too thick and that there are no holes. Flatten the reserved dough into a thin disk slightly wider than the top of the pie shell. Chill for at least 30 minutes or until really firm.
4. For the filling: Peel, quarter, and core the apples and pears. Add the apples and pears to a food processor and pulse to roughly chop. Add the dried figs, raisins, cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg and process into a coarse puree. Or you can do it the medieval way & crush them all together in a large barrel.
5. Scrape the mixture into the chilled pie shell, top with crust and crimp. Use a dowel to poke a hole in the top of the dough to release steam while baking.
6. Bake at 400F until deeply browned.
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CREDITS
Host
Sohla El-Waylly
Created By
Brian Huffman
Executive Producers
Sarah Walker
Brian Huffman
Jon Erwin
Executive Producer
Sohla El-Waylly
Co-Producer
John Schlirf
Writer
Jon Erwin
Historian - Scripts
Ken Albala
Post-Production Supervisors
Jon Erwin
John Schlirf
Editor
Craig Brasen
Colorist
John Schlirf
Mixer
Tim Wagner
Manager, Rights & Clearances
Chris Kim
Executive Creative Director, A+E Networks
Tim Nolan
VP, Marketing Production, A+E Networks
Kate Leonard
VP, Brand Creative, History
Matt Neary
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