Martha Stewart Takes Apple Pie Up A Notch With Just 2 Ingredients

When apple season hits, nothing is better than making classic apple pie. That balance of warm, soft apples bathing in cinnamon and nutmeg and wrapped in a buttery, flaky pastry, is one of the ultimate comforts. Some would say it is perfect as is; however, for those looking to take this fruity pie up a notch, you might want to take note of how Martha Stewart makes her apple pies. Per her website, the domestic diva shares that she adds two ingredients to her pie to create an unbelievably delicious bite: brown butter or beurre noisette, if you want to be fancy, and vanilla beans. 

In a Facebook video, Stewart demonstrates the process. She makes brown butter — melting it until it turns golden brown and fragrant — and tosses it with the apples, along with some vanilla beans, which she scrapes out of the pod using what looks like a paring knife. This extra step allows the fruit filling to absorb both ingredients, which makes for a nutty, vanilla, almost caramel-tasting, forkful of pie. Brown butter and vanilla beans are not just window dressing. They are going to form layers of flavor that a typical apple pie may otherwise lack.  

Martha Stewart adds the vanilla beans to the apple filling before the brown butter makes its splash. In addition to allowing the apples to soak up all the spices, lemon juice, flour, and sugar, adding the vanilla bean at this stage infuses the apple slices with flavor. In fact, the edible pods' little black specks can be seen interspersed throughout. The brown butter is poured just before the filling is placed into the pie crust. Its top pastry layer is then added and given an egg wash. To ensure it is golden brown when it bakes, use Stewart's tip of adding some glossy sugar. It will also give the crust a nice added crunch.

But the pie doesn't go straight into the oven. Stewart reveals that besides using brown butter and vanilla beans, she makes the pie cold and bakes it hot. This means that when her pie is put together, it goes into the fridge to chill. Once it is nice and cool — this will take about an hour — take it out of the fridge and place it in a preheated oven, and let it bake. This will produce an apple pie that is visually appealing with a taste and nuance that reminds you of sweet caramel apples that have been baked. It's just that good.