Ultimate Shoo Fly Pie And Apple Pandowdy Recipe

Last Updated on December 22, 2022

This Shoo Fly pie and apple pandowdy recipe combines the best of 2 famous and classic American desserts. It’s unique, flavorful, and a ton of fun!

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What You Need To Make This Shoo Fly Pie And Apple Pandowdy Recipe

Ingredients for the pie pastry

2 1/2 cups cake flour, sifted
1/2 teaspoon fine salt
6 tablespoons salted butter, chilled and cubed
2/3 cup vegetable shortening, chilled and cubed
1/2 cup ice water

Ingredients for the Shoofly syrup

1 cup molasses
3/4 cup water, boiling
3/4 teaspoon baking soda

Ingredients for the Shoofly crumble

1 1/2 cups cake flour
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 cup salted butter, chilled

Ingredients for the apple pandowdy filling

3 1/2 pounds of Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored, and quartered
1 1/2 tablespoons lemon juice
2/3 cup brown granulated sugar
1/2 cup cake flour
1 1/2 tablespoons granulated white sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
7 tablespoons salted butter, melted

Equipment

Measuring cups and spoons
Mixing bowls
Two forks or a palette knife
Plastic or saran wrap
Ruler or measuring tape
Sharp knife
9-inch pie dish
Pastry brush

Step by step instructions

Step 1: Make the pie pastry

To start, combine the cake flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Then, add the cold cubed butter and shortening. Using two forks or a palette knife, cut the fats into the dry ingredients.

Keep cutting the butter until the mixture resembles pea-sized bits. Then, add one tablespoon of ice water at a time while mixing the dough well between each addition.

You can stop adding water once the dough just starts coming together.

Step 2: Knead and store the dough

Once you have added the perfect amount of water, you can transfer it to a lightly dusted surface. The dough will be very sticky at this point.

Use floured hands to knead the ingredients together. Keep on working the dough until you have a uniform and smooth pastry.

Divide it into two equal portions and shape it into a ball. Then, flatten each piece into a 1-inch thick disc and wrap it tightly with plastic wrap.

Allow the pastry to rest inside the fridge for at least 2 hours.

Step 3: Make the shoofly syrup

While the pastry is resting, make the shoofly syrup. Combine all of the ingredients in a mixing bowl and whisk them together. If the molasses isn’t completely dissolved in the hot water, heat it in the microwave for a couple of seconds.

The syrup should be completely uniform. Once mixed, allow it to cool completely.

Step 4: Make the shoofly crumble

For the shoo fly crumble, combine the flour, sugar, and spices in a large bowl. Cut in the butter until you have a uniform fine crumble. Set it aside for later.

Step 5: Make the apple pandowdy filling

For the apple filling, combine the apples, lemon juice, sugar, flour, and spices in a large bowl. Mix them well so that the apples are completely coated.

Step 6: Roll out the pastry base

Once the dough has rested, remove it from the fridge and place one portion on a lightly floured surface. Roll it into a 12-inch disc.

Place the disc into the pie dish and press it into the edges. Trim the top neatly and edge the fluted sides.

Rest the base in the fridge until you need it.

Step 7: Roll out the pastry top

Remove the other piece of dough from the fridge and also put it on a lightly floured surface. Then, roll it out until it is about a 1/4-inch in thickness.

Cut it into as many squares as you can of about 1 to 1 1/2 inches in length. Transfer them to the fridge until they are needed.

Step 8: Assemble the Shoo Fly pie and apple pandowdy recipe

To start, preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC).

Take the pie dish out of the fridge. Add the shoofly syrup into the base and smooth it out. Then, add the shoofly crumble and spread it evenly throughout the dish.

Next, gently place the seasoned apples over the shoofly crumble. Don’t add too much moisture. Drizzle 5 tablespoons of melted butter over the top of the apples.

Finally, add the pastry squares on top of the apples and cover them completely. You can make a beautiful design using these blocks. Just ensure that there are minimal gaps.

Step 9: Bake the shoofly and apple pandowdy recipe

Finally, bake the pie for roughly 15 minutes. Then, brush the top with the remaining melted butter.

Lower the heat of the oven to 320ºF (160ºC) and continue baking the pie for another 30 minutes.

Once baked, allow it to cool slightly at room temperature before cutting and serving it warm.

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Expert Tips And Tricks

To save yourself some prep time, you can buy a premade pie pastry crust. Just make sure it is high in quality. Otherwise the rest of your flavors will suffer.
Dock the pastry base after you have lined the pastry dish. This technique will help the dough bake more evenly. You can use a fork or pie docker.
You can play around with the spices in this recipe as much as you’d like. You can also easily adjust the levels of granulated sugar in the crumble or apple filling.

Preparations Times And Servings

Preparation Times	Baking Times	Servings
2 hours	45 minutes	6-8

Wrapping Things Up

While this recipe certainly takes a while to make and has a lot of steps, it is well worth the effort. The flavor is out of this world and the texture combines the best of both of these dishes. So, give it a try and let us know what you think!

FAQs

Why is it called Apple Pan Dowdy?

The name apple pan dowdy, or apple pandowdy, refers to the bubbling juices oozing out of the pie crust as you break it open with the knife. The term "dowdy" means "unfashionable or without style". It perfectly described a juicy stuffed pie that is cut open. Overall, the term is used to describe a stuffed and extremely juicy apple pie

Why is it called Shoo Fly pie?

This pie is a gooey molasses-based baked pie that is extremely sweet. This pie was usually baked outdoors and left on windowsills to cool. Inevitably, it started attracting flies which would then be "shooed away". Hence, the unique origin of the name. Whether or not it's entirely true is another question. But, it's a fun story nevertheless.

What state is known for shoofly pie?

Shoofly pie is said to have originated in an American state called Pennsylvania. This pie came to life in the 19th century. Back then, the recipe was fairly simple. It was a coffee cake recipe made in a pie crust. Today, you get two different types and the recipe are much sweeter and stickier.

What does shoo fly pie taste like?

This pie has a very unique molasses-like flavor. It is extremely sweet and very rich in flavor. That's about all many people taste. But, if you really focus on the flavors, you can also pick up the buttery pie crust flavors in the background. Granted, the molasses tends to overwhelm the entire flavor profile. So, always enjoy this cake in moderation to enjoy all the flavors that are there.