When you find yourself baking the same pie three times in a two-week period, and serving it to over 30 friends, it's safe to assume this is one special pie.

But first, I really want to thank all of you who reached out, whether in person, over email, or here on the blog. The amount of support flooding in has been incredible. I'm really glad to be part of this blogging community; as one food blogging friend wrote, that it's kind of inevitable that "we’ve been blogging for so long, our personal lives bleed over to our posts about food." So thank you also for giving me a forum to not only share recipes and trade cooking tips but also write about the the other important things in life. I've been told, and it seems accurate, that you never heal from losing someone close, but maybe just continuing on with daily tasks with your head held high is a good step forward.

I've always thought baking to be therapeutic, but over the past couple of weeks it has become so much more. When I find myself unable to concentrate on work at the computer, or otherwise making a serious dent on the Kleenex box, I sometimes get up and gravitate toward the kitchen. And flip open the Joy of Cooking or New York Times Cookbook to the baking sections. Following exact instructions, making precise measurements, and kneading dough, with Johnny Cash or Postal Service or Springsteen or whoever playing in the background, all of that combined, has a potent uplifting effect. So too, does the smell is pie bubbling in the oven.

This pie was first recommended by a fellow food fanatic who was at a supper club dinner I attended several weeks ago. "If you're looking for a dessert for Thanksgiving, try the apple-cranberry pie from Martha Stewart. It's the best pie ever," she noted confidently. The pie, she added, has apples, fresh cranberries, dried cranberries, and a little orange zest to brighten the whole thing up. With a crust and crumbly oat topping. I was sold.

I made it for the first time for Thanksgiving, when I was still having a hard time digesting the events of the week. Assembling this pie and a variation with a lattice top, and serving it to a room full of wonderful people, as cliché as this may sound, really did make everything seem normal again.

I made this pie for a second time a week later, for a post-Thanksgiving party ("Thankstaking") hosted by two friends in Park Slope. And then for a third time yesterday, when my friend Elizabeth came over fora rainy-night dinner.

I liked the familiarity that came from creating a pie this good good multiple times, and adapting to the tricks of rolling out the pie dough, even though it was from Trader Joe's (it always comes out of the box crumbly; just be patient and reroll.) I liked how festive it looked straight out of the oven, with spots of bright red and an oat topping that tasted like candy. I liked how comforting it was to eat, reheated in the microwave, at 2am when I had trouble falling asleep.

The recipe that follows has been somewhat adapted over time. The original called for 5 apples, which made way too much filling. Two or three would suffice. I doubled the ingredients for the topping, since having more sweet crunchy oats helped balance the tartness of the fresh cranberries. For my third pie, I substituted a splash of brandy for the orange juice; you can go with dark rum as well.

If you're spending the Christmas with pie-lovers, as I am, I hope you try this recipe for them.

________________________________

Apple-Cranberry Pie

Filling:

Zest of 1 orange
Juice of 1 orange, or substitute splash of brandy or dark rum
2 to 3 peeled, sliced apples (I used Granny Smith)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup fresh or frozen cranberries, left whole
1/2 cup dried cranberries
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Topping:

1/4 cup melted butter (1/2 stick)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup old-fashioned oats
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Store-bought pie crust

If your pie crust isn't already in a pie pan, roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface to a 12-inch circle. Transfer the dough to a 9-inch pie pan and lightly press the sides down. Roll over any overhang to form the pie edge. Refrigerate while you make the filling and topping.
Preheat the oven to 400ºF.
Mix together the filling in a large bowl and set aside.
Make the topping: Stir together the melted butter and sugar. Add the oats, flour, and cinnamon. Stir until well-combined and set aside.
Add the filling to the pie crust, making sure the cranberries are somewhat evenly distributed, and scatter the topping over the filling. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, until the juices are bubbling and the crust is golden brown. If the crust or topping becomes too dark, cover the pie loosely with foil.
Transfer the pie (still in the pan) to a cooling rack and wait at least 15 minutes before serving.

Adapted from Martha Stewart Whole Living

________________________________

More variations on apple pie:

Apple Pie Ice Cream

Apple Pie Bars from My Baking Addiction

Deep Dish Spiced Caramel Apple Pie from The Noshery

Sour Cream Apple Pie with Streusel Topping from Simply Recipes

Brown Butter and Cheddar Apple Pie from Food52

Apple Pie with Dulce de Leche from Sassy Radish