Colonial Times Apple-Cranberry Pie With Cornmeal Crust

I have made this many, many times over the years, especially as a dessert with our Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, but it's good any time of year. Sometimes I will just use the filling with a lattice-topped regular pie crust. When I do use the cornmeal crust, I like to use acorn and leaf cut-outs made with small cookie cutters for Thanksgiving and star or tree cut outs for Christmas- very impressive! Originally from a November 1993 issue of Bon Appetit. This is especially good with a scoop of rum raisin ice cream!

• Ready In: 2 hrs
• Serves: 8-10

Ingredients

• Crust

• 2  cups all-purpose flour
• 3⁄4 cup yellow cornmeal
• 5  tablespoons sugar
• 1 1⁄4 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 1⁄2 teaspoon salt
• 3⁄4 cup vegetable shortening, plus
• 2  teaspoons vegetable shortening
• 6  tablespoons buttermilk (about)

• Filling

• 1  cup fresh cranberries
• 1  cup sugar
• 2  tablespoons sugar
• 2  teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 3  lbs tart apples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1/2-inch thick slices (I like to use either Granny Smith or Braeburn)
• 1⁄2 cup dried currant
• 5  tablespoons all-purpose flour
•  buttermilk

Directions

1. For Crust:
2. Mix first 5 ingredients in a food processor.
3. Add shortening and cut in until mixture resembles coarse meal.
4. Blend in enough buttermilk by tablespoons to form dough that clumps together.
5. Gather dough into a ball;divide in half.
6. Flatten each half into a disk and wrap separately in plastic wrap; chill 45 minutes.
7. (Can make 1 day ahead).
8. For filling:
9. Position rack in lowest third of oven and preheat to 375 degrees.
10. Coarsely chop cranberries with sugar and pumpkin pie spice in food processor;transfer mixture to a large bowl.
11. Add apples.currants, and flour and toss well.
12. Roll out 1 dough disk between sheets of waxed paper to a 13 inch round, peel off top sheet of paper and invert dough into a 9 1/2 inch diameter deep-dish glass pie dish;peel off paper.
13. Fold under overhanging dough to form a double-thick edge;crimp edges.
14. Using acorn, leaf or shape of your choice cookie cutters, cut out shapes.
15. Using a knife, mark veins in leaves or add other decorative touches.
16. Slightly mound filling in pie dish.
17. Arrange dough shapes around edges of pie and all over top, overlapping decoratively.
18. Brush pastry all over with buttermilk.
19. Place pie on baking sheet (I line it with heavy-duty foil for ease in clean up).
20. Bake for 45 minutes.
21. Cover pie with foil and continue baking until juices bubble thickly and crust browns, about 35 minutes more.
22. Transfer pie to rack and cool 1 hour.
23. Serve warm or at room temperature.