To make crust:
Place butter, cream cheese, vanilla, sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. Cream together on medium speed until smooth.

Add in flour, and mix until it forms a dough ball. Cover, and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Roll dough out to fit in a 9-inch pie pan. Place in pan, and refrigerate again until ready to fill with apple mixture.

To make streusel topping:
Place all ingredients in bowl and cut the butter into the flour and sugar, using a pastry cutter or two knives, until it is the size of coarse crumbs. Set aside.

To make filling:
Cut apples into ¼-inch slices, and place in medium size mixing bowl. Add remaining ingredients to apples slices. Toss together until apple slices are coated in the mixture.

Pile apples loosely into chilled pie crust. Cover apples with streusel topping.   

Bake at 350ºF for 15 minutes. Reduce temp to 325ºF, and bake for an additional 1 hour and 10 minutes.

Chef’s note: “We make our pies with Dawson’s Orchards’ Ginger Gold apples and will do those through the season, switching to their Granny Smiths later in the fall,” says owner Omar Abuhejleh.