Gramma's Fried Apple Pies--Southern Style (Cooking from the Larder III)

Gramma could cook! Every kid in the family wanted to be there when she took the biscuits out of the oven. Her fried chicken was definitely scrumptious and totally Southern style. The gravy she made could not be matched. Which kind, you ask? Milk gravy, red eye gravy, ham gravy, or pot roast gravy--they were all beyond compare. Gramma's peach cobbler was not too cakey, or runny. No, it was just right and never in the kitchen too long either. Banana pudding made Uncle Jim crazy longing for it, if he didn't get it at least once a week.

      The most famous of Gramma's kitchen feats was the fried apple pies. These were made with dried apples rendered into a thick sauce after soaking them overnight, and then cooking them all day. I suppose in the old days she made the biscuit dough from scratch for the pies, but by the time I was around in the late 40's, thwack biscuits in a can had appeared on the scene. She and all her sisters now used the can of biscuits for the pie dough. Well, you'll see how they work in the pictures below. Anyway, I want you to know that since the can only had 10 biscuits, that's all that ever came off the griddle. Every time we came down to Gramma's house, she would have the sauce ready and on Saturday afternoon, she prepared to make the fried apple pies. My brother and I, plus the 5 cousins who had come over to see us, were standing in the kitchen for the entire process,. By the time the pies came off the griddle and cooled on the plate for 5 minutes, our eagerness could hardly be contained. There was never a time that those pies completely cooled. 7 kids--7 pies, 3 left, one for my mom, one for my dad and one for Uncle Jim. It never occurred to me that Gramma never ate one. Oh well, she probably made more after we went back north.  Oh well, she probably made more after we went back north.

 I made them last weekend, and shared them with my brother and sister-in-law and son Ben (Jessica Voigts' parents and brother)  Enjoy and try it yourself!

In August apples were peeled slices and dried on screens, and then stored in tins

Soak the apples overnight, add a little more liquid and cook slowly until soft. Mash the sauce smooth.

Roll the biscuit into a 7 inch round, using flour to prevent sticking.

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Add  a quarter cup sauce, fold over and seal with a fork.

Grease the griddle with Crisco, and fry on both sides until golden.

Be sure to brown the end too.

Try to cool them on a rack before serving to the family. But mark my word, they won't get very cool. They will disappear before then.