Julie Clark
Posted: Updated:
Homemade Apple Pie
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Saigon cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg are the keys to making this the best homemade apple pie around.
Table of Contents
- About this Homemade Apple Pie Recipe:
- What are the best apples for pie?
- Ingredients Needed
- How do you prepare apples for apple pie?
- How do you make apple pie filling?
- Best Pie Crust
- Does apple pie need to be refrigerated?
- What is apple pie a la mode?
- Homemade Apple Pie Recipe
- Apple Recipes You’ll Love
- Helpful tools for making pie:
How have I had this website for over 5 years and not shared our classic apple pie recipe? Today is your lucky day! A good friend from my kids school shared with us her apple pie recipe several years ago. She is an amazing baker with so much knowledge. I was so thankful to her for writing out the steps to making a delicious pie, including 2 key ingredients that we’ll talk about below.
About this Homemade Apple Pie Recipe:
- Flavor: This pie is loaded with apple flavor. The complex flavors of cinnamon and a hint of nutmeg complement the apples in a deliciously warm way. It’s not overly sweet, although it could taste sweeter based on which apples you choose. (See below.)
- Texture: I don’t like crunchy apples in my apple pie. For that reason, I cook the apples on the stovetop until the soften. This ensures that by the time the pie is done baking, the apples will be perfectly soft.
What are the best apples for pie?
This apple pie recipe is loaded with over 4 pounds of apples. So what is the best type of apple for baking? You want an apple that is not overly sweet and won’t turn to mush when baking.
Granny Smith apples are a classic apple pie apple. They are tart and have a firm flesh. Honeycrisp add a little sweetness to pie. Jonathan, Pink Lady, Fuji, Winesap and Braeburn are also great choices that you should be able to find in your grocery store. Just a note that I don’t prefer Golden Delicious apples because the tend to get too soft during baking.
Ingredients Needed
There are a couple of key ingredients for our homemade apple pie. The first two are key to making the best apple pie:
- Saigon Cinnamon. You’ll want to look for a cinnamon that is labeled Saigon cinnamon. This cinnamon has a higher essential oil content and has a stronger flavor than most cinnamon spices. You’ll pay just a little more for this cinnamon, but the difference it makes in baked goods is worth it!
- Freshly Grated Nutmeg. Yes, you can buy nutmeg already ground, but if you’re looking to add a unique flavor to your pies, try freshly grated nutmeg. You buy nutmeg “nuts” and a small grater. Simply grate the nut on the grater and watch that freshly grated nutmeg fall into your apple mixture. It’s so, so good!
- Lemon Juice. Don’t worry. You won’t taste the lemon in this pie. You can actually leave the lemon out if you’d like, but we feel it helps add to the fresh flavor of the pie.
- Flour. Flour thickens up the filling slightly so your pie is not runny.
- Sugar. Use white sugar, but we have made it with brown sugar too!
- Butter. Before putting the top pie crust on, dot the top of our pie with butter. Butter adds flavor and richness to fruit desserts. (Remember our raspberry sauce and strawberry sauce? Don’t skip the butter!) I use salted butter, but if all you have is unsalted butter, add a dash of salt.
How do you prepare apples for apple pie?
- Do you have to peel apples for apple pie? I say yes. I’ve had pies with unpeeled apples in them. As the apples bake, the skin tends to pull away from the flesh of the apple creating a weird texture. Take the time to peel the apples.
- How do I easily cut apples for pie? It’s important to have apple slices that are all about the same thickness so that the pie cooks evenly. Crunchy apples amidst soft apples isn’t the best pie eating experience. To make quick work of preparing apples for pie, we use our apple peeler/slicer/corer. It’s AMAZING. Peels, cores and evenly slices the apples. Hardly any work on your part! You can find one here.
How do you make apple pie filling?
Should you cook apples before putting them in pie? 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. (Secret hint…we make apples like this and serve them over ice cream. So good and no need to bake anything!)
You can also try our canned apple pie filling.
A note on the sugar.
You can try lowering the sugar if you’d like. We’ve gone down to ½ a cup of sugar at different times. It’s really a matter of taste…and even what apples you choose. If your apples are more tart, then you might want the full ¾ cup sugar. If they are sweeter apples, try lowering the sugar.
Best Pie Crust
I recommend making a homemade double pie crust for our apple pie. You can use my grandma’s pie crust recipe. Or you use your own favorite homemade pie crust. Everyone needs a shortcut at times, though.
If you don’t have time to make your own pie dough from scratch, Pillsbury refrigerated pie crust is very good. No mess and a soft, flaky crust. Either way, this pie looks amazing if you make a lattice crust.
Does apple pie need to be refrigerated?
You can keep pies at room temperature for 2 days. If you’re going to keep it longer than that, place it in the refrigerator. Pies are generally best eaten within 4 days of baking. Be sure to cover your pies with plastic wrap or foil once they are cut into.
You can also freeze the pie for up to 6 weeks. Allow the pie to thaw in the fridge completely before opening the container and serving.
What is apple pie a la mode?
Apple pie a la mode is a fancy way of saying apple pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. We like to serve our pie warm so the ice cream melts in a little bit. It’s the best apple pie recipe around.
Homemade Apple Pie
Saigon cinnamon and freshly grated nutmeg are the keys to making this the best homemade apple pie around.
Servings 8
Prep Time 25 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Ingredients
- Pastry for double pie crust
- 8 large Granny Smith apples (about 8-10 cups of apple slices)
- ¼ cup all-purpose flour 33 grams
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar 150 grams
- 2 teaspoons Saigon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- Juice of half a lemon
- 2 tablespoons salted butter
- 2 tablespoons milk
- 2 tablespoons coarse sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF. Spray a deep dish 9” pie dish with cooking spray.
- 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.
- Roll one pie dough ball on a lightly floured surface using a rolling pin. Roll into about a 12-inch circle. Place the rolled pastry dough on the bottom of the pie plate. Trim any excess dough, keeping the dough even with the edge of the pie plate.
- 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 second rolled pastry that over the apples. Use a knife to trim any excess pie crust, leaving enough dough to tuck the top crust under the bottom crust. Flute the edges of the pie crust to seal.
- Cut slits in the top of the pie crust or use the tins of a fork to make the letter “A” on top.
- Use a pastry brush to brush milk overtop the pie crust, which will give the crust a shine.
- Sprinkle coarse sugar on top of the pie crust.
- Place the pie plate on a baking sheet with edges just in case the juices run over. Bake 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 the pie to cool on a wire rack before slicing.
- Store in an airtight container. You can also store the pie in the freezer for up to 6 weeks.
Video
Notes
*To get a golden brown crust, brush the top of the unbaked pie with an egg wash. Whisk together 1 large egg and 1 tablespoon of water, then use a pastry brush to brush the top of the pie.
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: 506kcal | Carbohydrates: 82g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 19g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Cholesterol: 7mg | Sodium: 228mg | Potassium: 294mg | Fiber: 6g | Sugar: 45g | Vitamin A: 210IU | Vitamin C: 10.2mg | Calcium: 29mg | Iron: 1.7mg
Apple Recipes You’ll Love
During apple season, you might find you want a new apple recipe to enjoy. Here’s a few we love!
Helpful tools for making pie:
- Pastry Cutter: I use this tool all the time. It cuts butter into flour perfectly for streusels, crusts and other pastries.
- Pastry Mat: This silicone mat keeps your cupboard clean and makes rolling out pastries so easy.
- Cute Pie Plate: Because if you’re taking the time to make pie, serve it up in style!
- Pie Crust Decorator Wheel: Makes beautiful edges to your pie!
- Saigon Cinnamon: This is our favorite cinnamon. You can’t beat its flavor!
- Whole Nutmeg: Use freshly grated nutmeg for an amazing taste!
This is it! Your search for the best apple pie is over!
It was delicious! I strongly suggest you to use a 9in baking dish. I had a 9.5 and I couldn’t seal the pie very well. Definitely buying a 9inch dish just for this pie!
I made this pie today. It’s good, but I thought it was a bit on the dry side. Next time may add a little water to apples when cooking. I used Granny Smith apples and it’s just a tad tart. Will probably add more sugar as well. My husband loved it, so that’s all that matters!😉
This recipe is simple and delicious! It was my first time making apple pie. I loved the easy to follow recipe. Will definitely be making this pie again. The family greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Can I use a regular 9” pie dish instead of a deep pie dish?
If this was made into 4 5” mini pies, is the amount of ingredients the same?
I am going to use your filling for my apple pie, and I was wondering if it was possible to lattice the pie crust with this filling instead of just laying it on top. So excited to make this!
Delicious apple pie. Everyone was raving about it!
I think 4 lbs of apples must be a typo. I have a food scale and weighed my apples. The pie was ridiculously high. It was tasty but an absurd amount of apples if weighing 4 lbs. I should have paid attention to the cup measurement because that would have been accurate.
I have made two pies since I found your recipe. Best crust recipe ever. And the pie recipe is awesome. Thank you so much for sharing.
I have had the recipe bookmarked since 2019ish. Has it changed? This is not the recipe I remember making and loving SO much. I have the best memories tied to this apple pie. If you have changed the recipe, is there any way to get the old one to me? Thanks!