Apple Pie

1 to 1.1	kg apples (about 6)
100	g sugar
15	ml cornstarch (1 tablespoon)
2.5	ml cinnamon (1/2 teaspoon)
0.5	ml salt (1/8 teaspoon)
0.5	ml nutmeg (1/8 teaspoon)
25	g butter (unsalted)

Procedure:

1. Preheat oven to 220° C (425° F).
2. Prepare a double pie crust, and line a 23 cm pie plate with the bottom crust.
3. Peel and core the apples, then slice thinly.
4. Taste a slice of apple and adjust ingredients as necessary (see notes, below.) Combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg, then pour over the apples. Toss the apples gently to coat them.
5. Pour apples into the bottom pie shell, and dot with butter. Sprinkle with fresh lemon juice if desired.
6. Cover pie with the top crust and flute the edges to seal them. Cut 2 or 3 slits in the top crust to vent.
7. Sprinkle top crust with sugar. Cover edges with aluminum foil and bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 180° C (350° F) for 30 to 40 minutes more. Remove foil about half way through cooking. If oven does not heat evenly, turn the pie about half way through baking.

Notes and variations:

• For bland apples, sprinkle with 15 ml of lemon juice before covering the pie with the top crust.
• For sour apples, increase sugar to 130 g.
• For juicy apples, increase the cornstarch to 20 ml.
• If your pie turns out a little too tart, serve it warm topped with vanilla ice cream.
• Cinnamon can be increased to up to 5 ml (1 teaspoon).
• Use brown sugar instead of white.
• In place of cornstarch, substitute 30 ml flour.