Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

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What’s better than traditional apple pie? Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie! Tips for making the best apple pie cinnamon roll crust.

Nothing says fall like apple pie! I always associate the end of the summer with apple pie, although we often have it for Christmas or even Easter. It’s good anytime really. And did you know National Apple Pie Day is actually May 13?

With mini apple pies and apple pie bars, we’ve got you covered in the way of apple pies.

A close up of an apple pie

A few years ago we made apple butter cinnamon rolls. That combo of apples and cinnamon rolls forever changed my view apples. The two just go together!

Although sometimes we like simple fried apples with no crust, nothing beats a homemade crust. Today we’re sharing how to take your apple pie to the next level, with a cinnamon roll crust.

What apple makes the best pie?

This apple pie recipe is loaded with over 4 pounds of apples. How do you know which kind to buy? You want an apple that is not overly sweet and won’t turn to mush when baking.

Granny Smiths are a classic apple pie apple. They are tart and have a firm flesh. Honeycrisp add a little sweetness to pie. Jonathan, Winesap and Braeburn are also great choices that you should be able to find in your grocery store.

cinnamon apples in a saucepan

Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie Filling

Soft apples are a must for us in apple pie. Because of this, we like to soften our apples first in a saucepan on the stovetop. Combine the apples, flour (for thickening), sugar, cinnamon and lemon juice.

Cook these over medium low heat until the apples start to soften which will be about 10-15 minutes. Stir the apples often so that the sugar doesn’t burn on the bottom of the pan.

This will create a nice, syrupy apple mixture that you can pour into your pie shell. And your apple pie won’t have crunchy apples.

**Pro Tip: Read about our key ingredients for apple pie filling in our traditional apple pie post.**

pie dough with cinnamon and sugar

How to Make Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie Crust

There are important hints in our post about making homemade pie dough you’ll want to read through to get the perfect textured crust. One hint? Keep ingredients as cold as possible for the flakiest crust.

One you get the pie dough mixed up, here’s what you do:

  • Roll out one piece of dough on a floured surface into a rectangle. The dough should be about the thickness of a regular pie dough.
  • Spread a light coating of butter all over the pie crust. Then sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
  • Starting with the long end, roll up the dough jelly roll style, as if you were making cinnamon rolls. Roll the dough tightly.
how to roll Cinnamon Roll Pie Crust
  • Once the dough is rolled, use a sharp knife or pastry cutter to cut the dough into slices about 1/4-1/2″ thick.
  • Press the cinnamon rolls flat side down into the bottom and up the sides of a 9″ pie plate. Overlap and press the edges together to seal the crust.
Cinnamon Roll Pie Crust

Putting the Pie Together

Fill the bottom crust with the warm apple filling.

pouring apples into a pie plate

Pack the apple slices down so the pie is nice and thick. Dot the top of the pie with butter. Then lay the cinnamon roll dough slices over the top of the pie. No need to roll them out, just place them on in a pretty pattern.

placing cinnamon rolls on top of a pie

How Long To Bake Apple Pie

This pie will take about 40 minutes to bake at 425º F. Place foil over the edges of the pie if they are getting too brown during baking.

See notes below for baking frozen pie or rewarming pre-baked pie.

overhead view of cinnamon roll pie

What is apple pie a la mode?

Apple pie a la mode is a fancy way of saying apple pie with ice cream! We like to serve our pie warm so the ice cream melts in a little bit. Delicious!

Does apple pie need to be refrigerated?

You can store apple pie at room temperature for 2 days. After you cut it, be sure you cover it loosely with foil or plastic wrap. Or keep it in a pie storage container. This one actually holds 2 pies!

After two days, refrigerate the covered pie.

apple pie on a plate with ice cream and caramel

How far in advance can you make apple pie?

You can make your pie up to 4 days in advance. If you make it that far in advance, you’ll want to keep it cool in the refrigerator.

If you only make it two days in advance, you can store it at room temperature.

Can you freeze apple pie?

Yes! You can freeze apple pie either baked or unbaked. Here are a few hints:

  • Wrap your pie in several layers of plastic wrap, then wrap in foil wrap on the outside.
  • Freeze for up to 3 months.
  • Bake a frozen pie as the original recipe calls for, but you’ll have to add 30-40 minutes extra time to bake through since it is frozen. (Be sure to remove freezer wrappings first!)
  • If your frozen pie is already baked, defrost it in the fridge overnight or on your counter for about 3 hours. Then warm it in a 375º oven until it is the temperature you’d like it. This will take anywhere from 15-25 minutes. If you want to be sure the crust doesn’t get any more brown, place a piece of foil over the top of the pie while warming.
A close up of a plate of food, with Apple pie

Other Pie Recipes

Favorite Cinnamon Roll Recipes

Tools To Make Pie

Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie
Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie

4.66 from 49 votes
What's better than traditional apple pie? Cinnamon Roll Apple Pie! Tips for making the best apple pie cinnamon roll crust.
Servings 8
Prep Time 35 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes

Ingredients
 

For the dough:

  • 3 cups pastry flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 cup shortening
  • 1/2 cup cold butter
  • 1/2 cup ice cold water
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar

For the cinnamon filling:

  • butter
  • cinnamon
  • sugar

For the apple filling:

  • 8 large apples (about 8-10 cups of apple slices or at least 4 pounds)
  • ¼ cup all-purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 2 teaspoons Saigon cinnamon
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • Juice of half a lemon
  • 2 tablespoons butter

For the top of the pie:

  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • 2 tablespoons coarse sugar

Instructions
 

Make the pie dough:

  • Sift the flour and salt into a large bowl. Cut in the shortening and the butter until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  • Mix the water and vinegar together in a cup. Add the mixture to the crumbs. Mix together just until the dough is combined and handles well.
  • Sprinkle flour on the counter before rolling out the dough. Split the dough into two chunks.
  • Roll out one piece of dough on a floured surface into a rectangle. The dough should be about the thickness of a regular pie dough.
  • Spread a light coating of butter all over the pie crust. Then sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar.
  • Starting with the long end, roll up the dough jelly roll style, as if you were making cinnamon rolls. Roll the dough tightly.
  • Once the dough is rolled, use a sharp knife or pastry cutter to cut the dough into slices about 1/4-1/2″ thick.
  • Press the cinnamon rolls flat side down into the bottom and up the sides of a 9″ pie plate. Overlap and press the edges together to seal the crust.
  • Roll out the other half of the dough, spread it with butter, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar, rollup jelly roll style and slice into 1/4" thick slices just as with the other crust. Set aside while you make the apple pie filling.

Make the pie filling:

  • Peel, core and slice the apples thinly.
  • Place them in a large saucepan. Sprinkle the flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon juice over the apples. Cook over medium low heat just until the apples start to soften, about 10-15 minutes. Stir several times during cooking.
  • Pour the warm apple mixture into the pie plate. Press down on the apples so that they lay flat and don’t have much space between them. This gives a nice, thick pie!
  • Dot the top of the apples with the butter.
  • Place the cinnamon roll slices overtop the fruit filling. Don't worry about sealing the crust, but simply place the slices overtop in a pretty arrangement.
  • Use a pastry brush to brush milk overtop the pie crust, which will give the crust a shine. (optional)
  • Sprinkle coarse sugar on top of the pie crust. (optional)
  • Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 40 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the apples are soft. If the crust is browning before you think the apples are softened, cover the edges with foil.
  • Allow to cool to room temperature before slicing.

Notes

The calories shown are based on the pie being cut into 8 pieces, with 1 serving being 1 slice of pie. Since different brands of ingredients have different nutritional information, the calories shown are just an estimate. **We are not dietitians and recommend you seek a nutritionist for exact nutritional information.**

Nutrition

Calories: 589kcal | Carbohydrates: 82g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 29g | Saturated Fat: 13g | Cholesterol: 38mg | Sodium: 422mg | Potassium: 363mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 41g | Vitamin A: 540IU | Vitamin C: 8mg | Calcium: 34mg | Iron: 2mg
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Calories 589
Keyword apple pie, crust for apple pie, pie recipe
apple pie in a pie plate

About Julie Clark

I'm Julie Clark, CEO and recipe developer of Tastes of Lizzy T. With my B.A. in Education and over 30 years of cooking and baking, I want to teach YOU the best of our family recipes.

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Kathleen
2 years ago

5 stars
Thank you Lizzy for sharing this recipe!!!!
The pie was so delicious and loved by my friends. The filling was just right and saucy which i like. This is definitely a keeper!

Sheila
2 years ago

5 stars
This is a KEEPER! When I made it, I didn’t use the full 2 teaspoons of cinnamon–thought that might be too much–but then when my adult daughter was eating her slice, she commented, “next time, add more cinnamon” so I think you were right in the first place! My family didn’t want to wait until it cooled and thought it was a bit runny, but then when the rest of the pie cooled, the texture was perfect, so again, I think you were right in the first place when you said to let it completely cool first.

Judy
2 years ago

5 stars
Turned out great!! Love this recipe!

Sharon
3 years ago

Can u please tell me if u have a cookbook with all the Amish recipes please or any cookbook and what is the name of them please. Thank you. Sharon

Monica H Dible
3 months ago

What a beautiful Presentation!

Carla Santorno
6 months ago

5 stars
Great recipe! I love it because it looks so difficult so my guests are impressed! But, it is easy peasy and my 3 year old grandson says, Gammy, “It’s delisssious!”

Barbara
6 months ago

5 stars
This is a joy to make. A lot of hard work. But everyone loves it and it looks divine. Thank you for sharing this recipe

Angela
6 months ago

5 stars
This was great. Thank you for the recipe. I wish I would’ve paid the bottom for just a little bit before I put on the apple slices to make the bottom a little crispy. I also think I used a little too much butter because it was a bit runny. This would be great with a little drizzle of icing on top! Thank you so much!

Barbara
1 year ago

5 stars
Super delicious and end result looks impressive! I was probably a little too generous with the cinnamon and soft brown sugar in the cinnamon roll which leaked a little but the taste was absolutely yummy!

Joyell Gutshall
2 years ago

It says 2 tbsp butter for the apple filling but I cant see where it is used?