The scent of a warm apple pie does more than fill a room; it tells a story. For Alexandra Helm, that story began in her grandmother’s kitchen. Before Helm became a dedicated culinary arts teacher at Raymond S. Kellis High School (RSK) in Glendale, she was a student. Alongside her grandmother, she was learning the art of baking, thoughtfully following and adapting their family’s classic apple pie recipe.

When her grandmother passed away, Helm knew she wanted to honor her legacy the best way she knew how: through baking. In 2007, she entered her grandmother’s apple pie recipe into a school competition, and it changed her life. The pie earned her a scholarship to Le Cordon Bleu, the world-renowned French culinary institute. After graduating, Helm continued to gain experience in the culinary industry by working in hotels, bakeries, restaurants and retirement homes.

Helm recently found a new calling in education, bringing her passion to the classroom. Now in her first year at RSK, she leads and inspires the next generation of culinary professionals. From running the campus cafe to catering events that unite the RSK community, Helm is challenging her students to demonstrate classroom learning through real-world applications.

At a young age, her grandmother’s apple pie recipe planted a seed that would grow into a lifetime of cooking, learning and teaching — one that continues to shape Peoria Unified students.

Read the latest edition of unifiED magazine at www.peoriaunified.org/unified.

Recipe

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes plus three hours to cool
Yield: One pie

Ingredients

Filling:

• 1 pie crust (store bought or homemade)

• 8 medium green apples, cored, peeled and sliced

• 1/2 cup granulated sugar

• 2 tbsp. brown sugar

• 1/4 cup corn starch

• 1 tbsp. cinnamon

• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg

• 1/4 tsp. salt

• 2 tbsp. lemon juice

Topping

• 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened

• 1 cup all-purpose flour

• 3/4 cup brown sugar

• 1 tsp. cinnamon

• 1/2 cup caramel sauce

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 325° F. On a well-floured surface, roll out pie crust and transfer to glass or ceramic pie plate. Press crust into bottom and sides of pie plate, then trim excess crust to within one inch of pie plate. Fold over pie crust to line up with the edge of the pie plate; press and flute as desired.

2. For the filling: In a large bowl, stir together sliced apples, granulated sugar, brown sugar, corn starch, cinnamon, nutmeg, salt and lemon juice. Pour apple filling into pie plate, mounding apples in the center.

3. For the topping: In a medium bowl, using a pastry blender or your fingers, mix butter, flour, brown sugar and cinnamon until crumbs form. Sprinkle mixture over apple filling in pie plate, covering apples completely.

4. Bake the pie for 45 to 55 minutes or until crumb topping is a deep golden brown and apple filling is bubbly. Pie crust can be covered with foil halfway through baking if it browns too quickly.

5. Place pie on a cooling rack for three hours or until completely cooled.

6. Drizzle caramel sauce over pie just before serving. Cover leftovers and refrigerate for up to two days.