Cinnamon Candy Apple Slab Pies

Rustic Slab Pie of Apples Laced with Cinnamon Imperials and Caramel Bites.

One slice of delicious with coffee on the side.

I have a basket of goodies I keep hidden away in a cold place full of yummy things to bake with.  Every time I get bored with the same old stuff I pull it out and dig through it and I think of some new twist to put on what ever I have banging around in my head.  Today's inspiration was for dessert using apples.  I wanted something a bit different from an apple pie or apple crisp.  When I came up with a bag of Cinnamon Imperials and a bag of Kraft caramel bits it became rustic flat pies laced with red cinnamon candies and bits of chewy caramel.  Here's how it went together:

8 cooking apples (I had Johnna gold's  about the size of a tennis ball) peeled and sliced into the lemon juice waiting in the bottom of my large bowl
1/2 C. granulated sugar
1/2 C. demura, raw, or brown sugar (adds to the caramel flavor)
pinch of salt
1/4 C. flour
juice of 1 lemon
1/2 t. vanilla
4 T. caramel bits (you could also use quartered caramel candy)
2 T. Cinnamon Imperials (otherwise known as red hots)
1/2 stick butter cut in dice

2, 9" pie crusts unbaked (see Cherry Pie and Crust for 4-5 Pies 7/7/10 or Pastry for Three Pie Crusts 10/29/10 or use your favorite recipe)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Prepare 2 sheets of Reynolds baking paper.  This is new and my first time to use it.  It has foil on one side and parchment on the other.  I rolled the crust on the parchment side and filled the slab and gathered it up around the filling while still on the paper and lifted the whole thing onto one end of a half sheet pan.   It worked out well.

Using a large bowl combine the lemon juice, apples, sugars, salt, flour, vanilla, caramel bits, and cinnamon candies stir well and set aside.  Roll out the pastry onto either parchment or the cooking paper as described.  You want at least a 9" circle.  Place the filling inside the pastry then gather the crust up around the fruit.  Dot the center opening with the butter.  Lift the paper onto the half sheet pan and repeat the process for the second pie.  Bake for 40-45 minutes until bubbling and golden.  Cool slightly before serving or serve at room temperature cut into wedges.