Make it Macs for me in MA, too! I have never enjoyed the taste of other sorts of apple pies, nor the texture of overly firm or rubbery apples in pies. Apple pies not containing Macs just seem to be missing something critical, and it also mainly depends on how ripe or thickly sliced the Macs are, as to whether they become as soft or mushy as Apple sauce or not. It doesn't matter to me whether the Mac apples are just soft enough in texture or downright mushy, as long as that wonderful Mac flavor dominates in a pie. Macs seem to go particularly well with slices of cheddar (and/or a cheddar crust) compared to other apples too, but are delicious with ice cream, also. As are simple Baked Macs and Mac Dumplings, too! There has never been a commercial Apple pie that had appealed to anyone in 3 generations of our extended family lines for that reason, since after growing up with Mac pies at home none could tolerate the bland and rubbery apples in commercial pies, but many will eat commercial blueberry or pumpkin pies with less than exciting commercial crusts. There are plenty of Apple farms in New England that will ship Macs to regional natives who have relocated to places where Macs are not readily available, which might be a great option to explore by anyone needing a Mac "fix" at this time of year, especially.

• Reply