Amazing No-Butter Apple Cranberry Pie

The filling for this apple pie is on the tart side—experiment with less lemon juice or sweeter apples for a balance that's right for you. Most pie crusts use butter, shortening or lard to get a flaky texture—this one uses heart-healthy canola oil. We found that when we simply substitute oil for butter the texture suffers. The trick is to freeze the oil and a bit of flour together before incorporating it into the dough. The result is a flaky crust without all the saturated fat.


Ingredients


Amazing No-Butter Apple Cranberry Pie

Crust

1/4 cup canola oil

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, divided

2 teaspoons granulated sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

4-5 tablespoons low-fat milk

Topping

1/3 cup “quick” or regular rolled oats

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons canola oil

1/2 tablespoon water

Filling

1/2 cup granulated sugar

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 pounds tart apples, such as Cortland or Granny Smith, peeled, cored and cut into chunks (about 6 cups)

1 cup dried cranberries

Grated zest and juice of 1 lemon
 
Preparation


1.To prepare crust: Stir oil and 1/4 cup flour in a small bowl until smooth; cover and chill in the freezer until partially frozen, about 40 minutes.

2.Whisk the remaining 1 cup flour, sugar, baking powder and salt in a mixing bowl. Using a pastry blender or 2 knives, cut the chilled oil-flour paste into the dry ingredients until crumbly. Stir in milk a tablespoon at a time just until a soft dough forms. Knead on a lightly floured surface 7 or 8 times. Press into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate.

3.Position rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 350°F. Coat a 9-inch pie pan with cooking spray.

4.to prepare topping: Work together oats, flour and brown sugar in a small bowl with a fork or your fingertips until there are no large lumps. Drizzle oil and water over the top and work together until the mixture forms small crumbs.

5.To prepare filling & assemble pie: Combine sugar and flour in a small bowl. Toss apples and cranberries with lemon zest and juice in a mixing bowl. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the apples and toss well.

6.Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to the prepared pie pan. Fold the edges under and crimp with a fork. Place the pan on a baking sheet. Mound the filling into the crust and cover with the topping.

7.Bake until the fruit is bubbling at the edges and is easily pierced with a skewer in the center, 55 to 70 minutes. Check toward the end of the baking time; if the crust or topping is becoming too dark, cover the pie loosely with foil