Tips and recipe for Apple Pie SFM

One of my apple pies from last fall... this week, I’m making apple bars, but pie is on my schedule again for next week.  The variety of available apples is amazing, but it isn’t always easy to find just what I’d like.  I was taught these four apple basics and I don’t waver from them:  first, two heirloom varieties - Jonagold and Winesap - are still top choices for pie because, aside from their exceptional pie flavors and aromas,  they hold their “sliced” shape while still softening during baking; second, Granny Smith are readily available year round but not top choice for pie (even though they’re probably the most common); third, a pie with two (or even three) apple varieties will have a more complex flavor profile; and fourth, soft varieties like Cortland and McIntosh are best for apple sauce, not pie, because they “cook down”, softening enough to give up their shape for excellent sauces and apple butters (Cortlands will yield a snowy white sauce while McIntosh apples become a more subtle golden sauce).  I’m always thrilled when the Jonagolds appear in a few stores in the fall and they keep well, refrigerated, for months.  Even though we rarely see Winesaps in our area, they can be ordered!  🥰  The bottom line?  Different apples for different purposes, just like different flours for different purposes!