This Apple Pie is the dessert of the fall season in our house. All the delicious flavors of the apples mixed with the spices makes this the best apple pie recipe you will ever make!
Apple pie is one of the best desserts of the fall season. This one uses a crumb topping instead of placing another pie crust on top. My family loves apple pie made this way because the crumb topping just takes it over the top. If you haven’t made it this way, give it a try! I am pretty sure you will love it!
This Apple Pie recipe was handed down from my mother-in-law. It seriously is so easy to make! Believe me. And it is so delicious! My husband requests me to make this rather than cake for his birthday.
One funny story and a good tip…if you make this for someone’s birthday, make sure you let it cool before putting in the candles. One year we didn’t let it cool down enough and as we were singing “Happy Birthday” to my husband, the candles were slowly melting! Ahhh…we sang pretty fast that year! Not only do we make this pie for my husband’s birthday, but it is a standard Thanksgiving dessert.
How to make Apple Pie:
First of all, get your pie crust ready and place it in your pie dish. Once you have your apples washed, peel them and slice them into thin slices (about ¼” thickness).
See below for how we slice our apples to give you an idea of the size to cut the apples. Try to have them all about the same size. It is a good idea to have them smaller and equal in size because they will cook down better.
Place all the sliced apples in the pie crust. Make sure you fill the pie crust up with a heaping amount of sliced apples. Once baked, the apples cook down and the pie will sink down if there are not enough apples in there.
One of the best (and easiest) steps in this recipe is that you don’t need to mix anything with the apples. Once you have the apples in the pie crust, you just sprinkle the sugar and spices evenly over the apples.
For the spices, you can use either apple pie spice or cinnamon. Apple Pie Spice is a mix of cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice. Dot the pie with butter by placing 4-5 small slices of butter evenly placed over the apples and spices.
To make the crumbs, place the flour, sugar and softened butter in a large bowl. Using a pastry blender or the back of a fork, blend the ingredients together until you form the crumbs.
Then, using a spoon, carefully place the crumbs over the apples and spices. When doing this, hold the spoon towards the middle of the pie so less crumbs fall off the pie (see photo below). You might want to place a piece of parchment paper or foil under the pie dish while adding the crumbs. This part can be a fun job for your kids to help out with!
Tip: Place you pie dish on a pie drip catcher. It catches any overflowing pie filling while it also elevates your pie so it can cook evenly. Perfectly cooked pie, clean oven…happy baker.
Finally, place it on the middle rack of your oven and bake it at 425 degrees for 50-55 minutes. I would suggest gently placing a foil tent over the pie for the last 20 minutes of baking to keep the top of the pie from burning.
The pie is done when it is golden brown. Remove the pie to a cooling rack. Let the pie cool a little before serving it.
Tips for making this recipe:
- Use a variety of apples. Someone once told me this tip and it really does make a difference. I usually buy some red and green apples and mix up the varieties as well. It gives it so much flavor!
- Slice the apples 1/4″ or so in size. And keep them as equal in size as possible. By slicing the apples thinner, the apples cook down better.
- Using a store bought pie crust saves on time. If you prefer a homemade pie crust, check out this post from Sally’s Baking Addiction. She has a detailed post on making an amazing pie crust.
- When making the crumbs, let the butter soften up a little bit. This way it will be easier to blend in with the flour and sugar.
- If you forget to take out the butter to soften, dice up the butter into small pieces. That will help it blend with the other ingredients.
- Place you pie dish on a pie drip catcher. It catches any overflowing pie filling while it also elevates your pie so it can cook evenly. Perfectly cooked pie, clean oven…happy baker.
Serve the pie warm or at room temperature. It always is hard getting that first piece of pie out of the pan, isn’t it? I use this pie server
If you are on Pinterest, follow me there for all of my recipes. Here is a comment from someone Pinterest who made this pie recipe:
“I’m not typically a big fan of apple pie, but this recipe is amazing! Finally an apple pie I can make! This recipe has become a favorite during the holidays and family functions.”
Apple Pie
This Apple Pie is made with a delicious crumb topping. The quick and easy recipe makes a great fall dessert and is perfect for a holiday dessert.
Ingredients
- 1 pie crust
- 7-8 medium sized apples mix of red and green is best
- 3/4 cup granulated sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon apple pie spice (or cinnamon)
- butter, to dot the pie with (4-5 small pieces of butter)
For the crumbs:
- 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup softened butter
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
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Prepare your pie crust and place in 9” pie dish.
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Peel and slice your apples into small slices, about ¼” thick
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Place the apples into the pie crust., filling the pie crust with a heaping amount of apple slices.
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Sprinkle the sugar over the apples.
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Sprinkle the apple pie spice (or cinnamon) over the sugar.
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Dot with butter (4-5 small pieces of butter).
To make the crumb topping:
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Place the softened butter, flour and sugar into a medium sized bowl. Use the back of the fork or pastry blender to mix the ingredients to form crumbs.
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Carefully place the crumbs over the pie.
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Place the pie on the middle rack of the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes.
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Pie is done when it is golden brown.
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Remove from the oven and place on a cooking rack.
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Serve warm or once cooled.
Recipe Notes
Tips:
Use a variety of apples for the best flavor (mix green and red).
Make sure your butter is softened for the crumbs. If you forget to take the butter out to soften, dice the butter into small pieces to blend in easier.
Make a tent with foil and place that over the pie after baking for 20 minutes. This keeps the pie from browning too much.
your pie looks beautiful… and yum!!
Thanks Erin!
I’m totally digging the crumb top to this pie! What a nice change! It certainly looks beautiful and delicious. I love how you just add everything in the pan and that’s a great tip to mix the apple varieties!
Thanks Rachelle!
Great idea to use different varieties of apples and I love how you just throw it all in the dish! Looks yummy!
Thanks Karla!
Looks good!
Thanks Suzette!
I remember Martha Stewart saying to use a variety of apples, too! I don’t make pie often but when I do the apples come from my tree so I’ve never used any but those apples. Maybe I’ll add in a few store bought apples next time!
Yes, give it a try. I am curious if you notice a difference!
i made this pie for Easter dinner. I followed the recipe exactly. The pie turned out fabulous and was a hit with everyone. I used Jazz apples and needed to increase the cook time to 80 min.
Thanks for passing this recipe on to us!
Joanne,
I am so happy that you made it and it was a hit! It is a favorite with my family too! Thanks for taking the time to let me know you enjoyed it!
Jeannie
Looks so yummy! Stupid question: should I bake the pie crust prior to adding the filling… like I would for pumpkin pie!
Hi Glenda!
There is never a dumb question! :o) No need to bake the crust before adding the filling. Just fill up the pie crust and bake. Let me know how you like it!
It’s in the oven now…can’t wait to see how it turns out!
Great Tonya! Let me know how you liked it.
Have you ever frozen this pie? If so, did you frreze before or after baking?
Hi Joan,
I have never frozen this pie so I cannot speak from experience, but if I was to freeze it, I would do it before.
Jeannie
Hi! If bake the pie today but eating it tomorrow, how is the best way to storage, in the fridge or room temperature?
Thanks!
Hi Diane!
The best way to store it is at room temperature. Happy Holidays!
Made this last night! Just as easy to make and as delicious as you said it would be.
Hi Kari,
So glad you liked it! Thanks for letting me know. :o)
Jeannie
I made this pie a couple weeks ago. I used store bought pie crust and a variety of apples. It was amazing. I was sceptical about putting the sugar/spice on top instead of mixing with the apples but it worked beautifully. I will definitely make it again. Thank you!
Cindy,
So glad to hear you made it and loved the pie! Thanks for letting me know!
Jeannie
I love the simplicity of this pie. I have it in the oven now baking. Lots of juice is spilling over, but that’s ok! I used a store bought crust in the aluminum pan. The house smells heavenly! Can’t wait to taste it!
Sonya,
I am so glad you love how the pie is made! Let me know how it turned out for you! Thanks so much for letting me know!
Jeannie
I made this back in July, and it was amazing! I have two in the oven right now (one to give away and one to keep). Thanks for the great recipe! 😀
Stephanie,
So happy to hear that you loved the pie! Thanks for letting me know. Have a great day!
Jeannie
I am wondering is there a certain way if I am premaking the pie should i still cook it the night before then just reheat or do i put all ingredience together and wait for the day i need to back t for?
Hi Katelynn,
I would suggest baking the pie the day of or the night before. I have never reheated the pie. We just have it served it right after baking it or served it cool. I hope this helps.
Jeannie
Made this for our Thanksgiving family dinner and it was delicious. Very easy to make! Yummy! It’s a keeper!
Hi Sue,
So glad to hear this! Thanks for taking the time to let me know! Hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving.
Jeannie
I made this for Thanksgiving dinner. We love cinnamon so I added a little (not sure how much as I just sprinkled it on) to the crumb topping before mixing it up. It was a huge hit. I even made 2 and I am glad I did because the first one was gone in no time and I had an extra to enjoy at ime
Hi Angie,
That is great to hear that it was a hit for your Thanksgiving dessert! Good idea to make extra! Thanks for letting me know!
Jeannie
This looks so delicious!
Thanks so much Brian!