Apple Pie

An apple pie should smell like autumn before you even cut it, all warm cinnamon and nutmeg and Granny Smith apples softening under a golden crust. This one is a double-crust apple pie built on tart Granny Smith apples, brown sugar, and a proper two-hour cool so every slice holds its shape instead of sliding across the plate.

I use Granny Smith apples here for a reason. They stay firm for a full hour in the oven, and their tartness keeps the filling from turning into sweet mush, which is what happens with a softer apple. The lemon juice and the flour tossed through the apples do the quiet work: one keeps the color bright, the other thickens the juices as the pie bakes.

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Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The tart Granny Smith apples hold their shape through a full hour of baking, so you get distinct slices of apple rather than a collapsed, jammy filling.
• The filling thickens itself with a little flour tossed through the apples, so there’s no separate slurry to make.
• It’s a genuine make-ahead: bake it a day or two before a holiday meal, and it slices even more cleanly cold.
• A double crust with vented slits gives you the classic look without any lattice weaving, which is fiddlier than it’s worth on a busy day.

Ingredients You’ll Need

You’ll need all the ingredients shown in the photograph below.

• Granny Smith apples. The variety matters more than anything else here. Their firmness and tartness are what carry the pie. Softer apples like Gala or Red Delicious break down and go watery. Peel and slice them thinly so they cook evenly.
• Pie crust dough. The recipe uses ready dough to keep things quick, chilled well before rolling. If you’d rather make crust from scratch, the one in my homemade pumpkin pie works here too; just keep it cold so the fat stays solid.
• Brown sugar and white sugar together. The brown sugar brings a little molasses depth the white sugar can’t, so using both gives a rounder sweetness than either alone.
• Flour. A quarter cup tossed through the apples thickens the juices as they release, so the filling sets rather than pools.
• Cinnamon and nutmeg. Ground, and worth being fresh. Nutmeg fades fast once it’s pre-ground, so if yours has been open a while, it’s doing less than you think.
• Lemon juice. Keeps the sliced apples from browning and brightens the filling against all that sugar.
• Egg, for the wash. Beaten and brushed over the top crust for the deep golden color. The optional turbinado sugar on top adds a bit of crunch.

How to Make Apple Pie

A complete printable recipe and the measurements in both US customary and metric are available in the recipe card below.

Chill the Bottom Crust

Heat your oven to 375°F. Roll half the dough into a ⅛ inch circle on a floured surface, lay it into a 9-inch pie plate, and put the whole thing in the fridge to chill while you make the filling. Cold dough is what gives you a flaky bottom rather than a tough one.

Make the Filling

Combine the flour, both sugars, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a small bowl. In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with the lemon juice, then add the dry mixture and toss again to coat.

Layer the apples into the chilled crust, leaving behind any juices pooled in the bowl, and dot the top with the cubed butter. Layering rather than dumping packs the apples in tightly, which stops a big gap from forming under the top crust as the pie bakes down.

Top and Vent

Roll the remaining dough into a ⅛ inch circle and lay it over the filling so it’s fully covered. Trim the excess, seal the edges, and flute them with your fingers. Cut 4 slits in the top so steam can escape, then set the pie on a baking sheet.

Egg Wash and Shield

Brush the top with the beaten egg, and sprinkle over turbinado sugar and a little cinnamon if you want the extra crunch. Cover the edges with a pie shield or a strip of kitchen foil to keep them from browning too fast in the first 25 minutes.

Bake and Cool

Bake for 25 minutes, then take the shield off and bake another 35 minutes, until the top is golden and the filling is bubbling through the slits. Move it to a wire rack and let it cool for at least 2 hours. This is what decides whether your slices hold.

Recipe Notes and Expert Tips

• Keep the dough cold. Chill it before rolling and again on the plate. Warm fat melts into the flour, and you lose the flaky layers.
• Leave the juices behind. When you spoon in the filling, don’t tip in the liquid pooled at the bottom of the bowl. That’s what soaks the bottom crust.
• Shield the edges; don’t skip it. Twenty-five minutes covered keeps the rim from scorching before the middle catches up. Foil works if you don’t own a shield.
• For clean slices, chill it. The full two-hour cool is the minimum. If you want picture-perfect wedges, refrigerate the cooled pie first, the same trick I use for my Southern sweet potato pie. Cold pie cuts far more cleanly than warm.

Recipe Variations

• Chopped pecans stirred through the filling add crunch and a little richness against the tart apples. Tested, and one I go back to.
• For a less sharp filling, use half Granny Smith and half of a sweeter firm apple like Honeycrisp. I’ve tested this as well, and the texture holds as long as both apples stay firm.
• Swap the top crust for a streusel crumb, and you’re into Dutch-style territory. I’d call that its own recipe rather than a variation on this one, so treat it as untested here.

How to Store Leftovers

Let the baked pie cool completely to room temperature first. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for up to 4 days; the filling firms up further in the fridge and slices even more cleanly on day two.

To freeze, wrap the cooled pie in a layer of plastic wrap and then foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw it overnight in the fridge before serving, and a few minutes in a warm oven brings the crust back.

What to Serve With Apple Pie

I put this out warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream melting into the slits, which is how most people at my table want it. If you want the same apple-and-cinnamon flavor in a richer form, the apple pie stuffed cheesecake is the one I make; it carries the pie’s flavor into a cream cheese dessert.

When I’m feeding a bigger group and want one showpiece to slice alongside the pie, I set out a pumpkin cheesecake for the spiced-dessert crowd.

FAQs

More Easy Desserts to Try

If this one’s in your rotation, here’s where I’d point you next.

• Mini Cheesecakes. When I want individual portions for a party rather than one pie everyone crowds around.
• No-Bake Banana Pudding. The one I make when the oven is already full, and I still want a second dessert.
• Pumpkin Banana Bread. For when I want the same fall spice in something I can slice for breakfast the next morning.
• No-Bake Oreo Cheesecake. When I want a no-oven option next to the pie, this is the one.