Hello Forest County Residents!
In honor of National Pie Day on January 23rd the Crandon Public Library will be raffling off a homemade cherry pie. For every dollar you donate your name is entered into a raffle and at the end of the day you could go home with a delicious dessert!
When I think of homemade pies my great grandmother Mildred Wendy Champine Kurth comes to mind. She made fabulous apple pies and I will share her recipe with you. I imagine that she perfected her baking abilities serving large crowds for most of her life. Mildred’s first husband, Harry Champine, managed lumber camps in Central Wisconsin as well as Alvin from at least 1910-1927. Mildred would travel with her husband and do the cooking for the entire logging camp. When Mildred was married a second time to Wallace Kurth and living in Crandon she spent many years as the head cook at The Hotel Crandon (Champine 2012). I have been told that she was very serious about her job and often frightened the waitresses with her strict running of the kitchen. To learn more about the history of The Hotel Crandon attend the Crandon Public Library fundraiser February 21st. You will step back in time to the day that The Hotel Crandon opened its doors in 1930 with authentic food, drinks, music, and tours of the basement. Tickets will be available soon.
Grandma Millie Kurth’s Apple Pie
Pie Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
7 tbsp lard
1/4 cup water
Mix lard with flour and salt with your hands than add water a little at a time. Press into pie pan. Makes a double crust.
Filling:
6 cups sliced, peeled apples (about 6 medium apples)
2 tbsp orange juice
1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
3 tbsp flour
1tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp nutmeg
2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp milk
Heat oven to 400 F. Toss apples and orange juice in large bowl. Combine brown sugar, sugar, flour, cinnamon, salt and nutmeg. Toss with apples until coated. Spoon into unbaked pie shell. Dot with butter. Brush top with milk. Sprinkle with sugar. Cover top with sheet of foil to present overbrowning. Bake for 40 minutes. Remove foil. Bake 10-20 minutes longer or until apples are tender. Cool pie at room temperature.
