Mock apple pie for MTB story(Don Carey/photo 7/9/03 A&L)
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By MARY THERESE BIEBEL [email protected]
Wednesday, July 16, 2003     Page: 1D

There must be something magic about lemon juice and cream of tartar. Or
sprinkles of cinnamon and dots of butter. Hmmm. Or maybe it’s that panful of
homemade syrup.

Mock apple pie for MTB story(Don Carey/photo 7/9/03 A&L)

Somehow these simple ingredients combine to trick your taste buds into
mistaking a pile of crushed crackers for fruit – as a dozen newsroom staffers
can attest.
“This is incredible,” one writer said, eyes widening with surprise as she
tasted Mock Apple Pie, the latest offering from the Times Leader test kitchen.
“It’s delicious.”

“It tastes just like apple pie. It looks just like apple pie,” an editor
added, poking the golden filling with a fork. “What’s in it?”

“Well, first you crumble 36 Ritz Crackers …”

Aha. Comprehension dawns, and the group gathered around the pie plate on a
recent Wednesday afternoon is caught up in a collective memory. Suddenly
they’re little kids of the ’60s and ’70s again, sitting at kitchen tables and
eating crackers slathered with peanut butter as they peruse the back of the
Ritz box, where Nabisco for years provided a recipe for Mock Apple Pie.

Mock apple pie for MTB story(Don Carey/photo 7/9/03 A&L)

According to Web sites maintained by fans of the unusual dessert, fresh
apples were scarce and difficult to afford during the Great Depression, so the
baking company came to the rescue with this recipe, which remained on the box
for decades.

But, back in the 1930s, wouldn’t apples have been plentiful on backyard
trees? Shouldn’t buttery crackers have been more expensive rather than less?

The concept is confusing to modern minds, and contacting the Glenview,
Ill., office of Kraft Foods, parent company of Nabisco, is not much help.
Three people who answered the phone there never heard of Mock Apple Pie.

Yet, decades ago, before imports and long-distance trucking made most foods
available year round, cookbooks were filled with “mock” recipes. A 1950
Betty Crocker cookbook, for example, suggested using cranberries and raisins
in “mock cherry pie” and white sauce and tuna in “mock chicken pie.”

Mock apple pie for MTB story(Don Carey/photo 7/9/03 A&L)

On the surface, those recipes make more sense. Cranberries and cherries
have certain similarities. As do tuna and chicken. But crackers and apples?
You almost have to try it to believe it.

If you do attempt this quirky creation, here’s a word of caution. The
instructions call keeping the oven at 425 degrees the entire time the pie is
in the oven. That’s pretty high, and indeed, the crust on the Times Leader
test pie started to burn around the edges after about 15 minutes at that high
heat. We recommend using your judgment and checking the pie frequently,
perhaps turning the oven down to 375 or 350 after the first 10 minutes.

Here’s the recipe:

Mock Apple Pie

Pastry for two 9-inch crusts

36 Ritz Crackers, coarsely broken

1 3/4 cups water

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons cream of tartar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

grated peel of one lemon

2 tablespoons butter or margarine

teaspoon ground cinnamon

Roll out half the pastry and line a 9-inch pie plate. Place broken cracker
crumbs in prepared crust and set aside. Heat water, sugar and cream of tartar
to a boil in saucepan over high heat. Simmer for 15 minutes. Add lemon juice
and peel. Cool. Pour syrup over cracker crumbs and dot with butter or
margarine. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Roll out remaining pastry and place over
top. Trim, seal and flute edges. Slit top crust to allow steam to escape.

Bake at 425 for 30 to 35 minutes until crust is golden brown. (Check
frequently. If it starts to burn, turn down the oven.) Cool completely before
eating.

EDITOR’S NOTE: While we’re talking about recipes found on name-brand
packages, we invite readers to recommend their favorites. Let us know how that
bean salad or tomato surprise turned out. Has it become a family tradition?
Have you added your own secret ingredient? Or did you try something that ended
up a dinner-table disaster? If you have a story to share, send it to Mary
Therese Biebel at the Times Leader, 15 N. Main St., Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711.
Phone is 829-7283 and e-mail is [email protected].

USEFUL TO YOU

If you’re interested in other recipes from packages, check out
www.backofthebox.com.

Worried about calories? The Web site mentioned above says Mock Apple Pie
has 413 calories per serving. There are 10 servings in a pie, so the total pie
has 4,130 calories.

A serving of real apple pie also may have 400 calories, but there are
usually 8 servings per pie so the total pie has 3,200 calories.