Recipe of the Month

Bavarian inn apple kuchen 

By Dorothy Zehnder     

½ cup butter or margarine

¼ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon vanilla

1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour

2 3-ounce packages cream cheese, softened

¼ cup sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 egg

1 ½ cups peeled and chopped apples

1 ½ cups peeled and thinly sliced apples

2 Tablespoons apple juice

¼ cup sugar

2 Tablespoons brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon lemon juice

½ cup rolled oats, old fashioned

⅓ cup all-purpose flour

⅓ cup packed brown sugar

¼ cup butter or margarine (softened, not melted)

Crust: In a bowl, combine 1/2 cup butter, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/4 teaspoon vanilla.  Gradually beat in 1 1/4 cups flour.  Press crumbly mixture onto bottom and up sides of a 9-inch pie plate.  Bake in a preheated 350-degree oven for 5 minutes.  Cool.

Filling: Beat cream cheese, 1/4 cup sugar and 1/2 teaspoon vanilla until combined.  Beat in egg.  Pour and spread over cooled crust.

Mix apples, juice, 1/4 cup sugar, 2 Tablespoons brown sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice.  Spoon over cheese.  Bake in a 350-degree oven for 45 minutes.

Topping: Prepare streusel topping and set aside to dry slightly. Combine oats, 1/3 cup flour and 1/3 cup brown sugar.  Cut in 1/4 cup butter or margarine to resemble coarse crumbs.  Sprinkle streusel topping over pie.  Bake for 15 to 25 minutes more until golden brown.  Makes 1 pie.

**Note from Dorothy – Kuchen is the German word for cake.  You can order this scrumptious pie from our Bavarian Inn Castle Shop and now you can make it at home using my own recipe.