Mommy Mondays: Fun Fall Activities

Now that Cooper is a little older this year, we can do lots of fun activities with him.  Fall in New England is so nice and the weather is perfect, so it is the time of the year to be outside!  This weekend he seemed to be feeling a little better so we took him to Honey Pot Hill Orchard in Stowe, MA to go apple picking.  I know that this year the apples are supposed to be about 3-4 weeks ahead of schedule because of the warm summer, but I was shocked to see how picked over everything was already!

We went to this orchard last year as well and it was amazing.  Since we try to go earlier in the season, we have always had our pick of apples but this year we were scrapping  a little, but were eventually still able to fill a large bag.  Cooper, on the other hand, didn’t care at all if we filled the bag or not!  He was having a great time double fisting his apples and filling his belly with fresh deliciousness.

After we finished picking, we headed up to the farm store and saw the baby animals.  Cooper loved the pigs and we watched them for about twenty minutes while noshing on cider donuts.  Once Cooper finally was done with the piglets we headed home to make some delicious pie.

I only make apple pie once a year, after we have gone apple picking, so I always like to try out a new recipe.

This year I tried out Paula Deen’s Crunch Top Apple Pie and it was delicious!

Here is the link and the recipe I used:

Ingredients

Dough and Filling:

  • Dough for a double crust 9-inch pie (homemade, frozen, or refrigerated)
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • Dash salt
  • 3 1/2 cups peeled, chopped cooking apples
  • 1 (16-ounce) jar applesauce
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons butter, chopped into small pieces

Crunch Topping:

  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • Dash salt
  • 1 tablespoon butter, at room temperature

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Line a 9-inch pie pan with half of dough. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Stir in apples, applesauce, and lemon juice. Spoon apple mixture into pie pan and dot with butter. Cut remaining crust into strips; arrange in a lattice design over top of pie. For crunch topping, combine flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Using a fork, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over top of crust. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350 degrees F and continue to bake for about 45 minutes, or until crust and topping are golden brown

 

Seriously, if you have some apples to use up, make this pie.  It was sooo yummy (and a great once a year treat)!  Remember it is all about moderation!! We have more fun plans for the rest of fall, I am excited to take Cooper pumpkin picking in a couple of weeks and to go for some hikes in the fall foliage!

Question: What are some of your favorite fall activities?

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