Five Spice Apple Pie

Finally.  The frost is on the pumpkin.  We've had the longest, latest Indian summer I remember.  And, now I'm finally ready for some fall foods.  Like pie.  That's the theme of our Blogger C.L.U.E. Society this month.  And I got assigned one of my all time favorite blogs.  By one of my favorite bloggers!  Deb and I got to be friends almost as soon as I started blogging.  She and her hubby are wonderfully adventurous eaters who love to travel and garden.  Two of our favorite things.  Her blog is named after her cat, Eliot.  Isn't that a purrfect name for a kitty?  For years I've poked around on her blog making yummy dishes.  Too many to count.   One of Deb's recipes that's on my list is her version of Bee's Knees.  It's a cocktail typically made with honey and either gin or vodka.  We've made some version eons ago and I can't remember which Connie used.  But, her version has lavender in the honey simple syrup.  I'm waiting for my lavender buds to dry a bit.  Keep checking the things weekly and they're just not cooperating.  Here's a link to the recipe in the event you've got lavender calling your name:  Bee's Knees.  I wish I'd listed recipes made by each blogger so I could give you a list of the recipes I've tried.  But, alas, they're part of a huge pile of recipes that I've printed, made and put in a pile to organize...  I've finally started a scanned file of recipes.  But, they too need to be organized.  The story of my life.  Too much information needing too much organization!

Speaking of cooperation...  Our local grocery just hasn't been cooperating.  They've been eliminating items that we regularly buy - like frozen chopped broccoli for Chicken Elegante.  And, it's been tougher to find things we don't buy regularly but we do on occasion.  Like Cornish Game Hens.  This time it's frozen sweet cherries.  They've not had them.  And, with our wacko crazy schedules heading out on a mission to find specialty items hasn't been possible.  So, I've changed menus or substituted.  This time, I had to totally change recipes.  You see, I had my heart set on Vanilla Cherry Pie with Almond Crumb Topping.  I know.  Doesn't the name alone make your mouth water?  Then, you read the recipe and swoon.  I so want some of that pie.  And, I've wanted it since the day I found out I was assigned Deb's blog and went pie hunting. 

No cherries meant I was on to a different pie recipe.  Connie was voting for the Frito Pies but I explained this was a pie for Thanksgiving dinner.  Evidently, he loves Frito Pie so much that he'd eat it for Thanksgiving dinner.  I really need to get those on the menu for some Sunday night football!  Then, there's onion pie.  Not quiche, Deb says, but true onion pie.  It's a bit like the famous French onion tart, pissaladiere.  There's one twist to it that I'm so going to try - mustard on the pie crust before you put the rest of the ingredients in.  Doesn't that sound fabulous!

But, I digress, Thanksgiving pie is the subject here.  There were several other choices:  wine and raspberry cream, stone fruit, nutella, pears and apples, and five spice apple.  Now, we've grown to love five spice powder.  It used to be one of those specialty spices rarely used.  Not these days.  I use it in all kinds of recipes.  So, I was intrigued.  And, I was running out of time...  Heading for a conference and my pie had to be made, photographed and blogged before I left town.  We had no time to bake over the weekend.  I thought I'd seen a box of pie crusts in the fridge.  It was a cold, rainy night and traffic was horrid.  So, I broke one of the cardinal rules of the Blogger C.L.U.E. Society.  I changed the recipe.  The box of pie crusts wasn't.  I didn't have shortening.  One of the things I used up before we moved and have never replaced.  Hunting, hunting, hunting.  Ahhh, graham crackers.  Maybe stale, maybe not.  But, something to make a pie crust out of.  What about a topping???  I kept picturing that wonderful vanilla almond topping for the cherry pie.  What if I made one of those and put some more five spice in???  Let me tell you...  This was the BEST apple pie I've ever had. Who would have ever thought that replacing cinnamon with five spice would make such a difference?  But, that's the kind of cooking Deb does.  Creative, inventive, fun.  And, it tastes so darned good!  Here's the link to her recipe and some more photos of mine...  Five Spice Apple Pie.  Please remember to head to the cherry pie recipe for the topping...

Now, here are links to the rest of my friends: 

• Aunt Orlean's Pie Dough by Stacy from Food Lust People Love
• Bacon and Leek Quiche by Sue from A Palatable Pastime
• Black Forest Fruit Pie by Stacy from Food Lust People Love
• Brownie Pecan Pie by Christiane from Taking on Magazines
• Cast Iron Apple Pie by Lisa from Suburban Gourmet
• Cauliflower and Leek Quiche by Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Chocolate Bourbon Pecan Pie by Aly from Cooking in Stilettos
• Classic Pumpkin Pie by Jean from Lemons and Anchovies
• Fig and Caramelized Onion Crostini by Christy from Confessions of a Culinary Diva
• Five Spice Apple Pie by Kate from Kate's Kitchen
• French Silk Pie with Frangelico by Christiane from Taking on Magazines
• Lemon Almond Cake by Azmina from Lawyer Loves Lunch
• Lemon Icebox Pie by Kathy from A Spoonful of Thyme
• Pumpkin Caramel Sea Salt Blondies by Heather from All Roads Lead to the Kitchen
• Pumpkin Cheesecake Pie by Kelli from Kelli's Kitchen
• Pumpkin Pie Ice Cream by Debra from Eliot's Eats
• Roasted Butternut Squash Dip by Anna from annaDishes
• Semisweet Chocolate Tart with Candied Pistachios by Liz from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
• Southern Buttermilk Pie by Lora from Cake Duchess
• Vegan Blueberry Cranberry Mini Cashew Icebox Cheesecakes by Kim from Liv Life