Apple Pie: the best-ever recipe for the classic American dessert

There's nothing like homemade apple pie. If you're looking to make the most of apple season this fall, this apple pie recipe is perfect for you. Made with perfectly sweet-tart Granny Smith apples tossed in sugar and cinnamon and baked in a homemade flaky pastry, this is one of the best apple pie recipes you'll ever try.

It's a phenomenal, cozy dessert to serve on Thanksgiving, for holiday parties, or any time you feel like baking this fall.

How to Make Apple Pie From Scratch

To make this gorgeous apple pie from scratch, start by making the pastry dough. Combine flour and salt in a medium bowl, then chop in the vegetable shortening until it forms pea-sized crumbs. You can use a pastry blender to do this. Add enough water to form a dough. Cut the dough into two equal pieces, then roll them out into discs and pop them in the fridge to firm up. Once firm, roll out one disc and place it in a pie pan.

Grab a large bowl and combine the dry ingredients, then add in the apples and toss to coat them well. Put the apples into the pastry, and add pieces of butter over the apples. Roll out the second piece of pastry and gently lay it over the filling.

Make four small slits in the top to let the steam escape while the pie is baking. Tent foil over the pie, and bake it for 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the foil, and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes so the pie can brown. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before serving it with a dollop of vanilla ice cream or some whipped cream.

What Are the Best Apples for Apple Pie

Because apple pie is sweet, tart apples are best because their sharp flavor helps to balance out the sugar in the dessert. Granny Smith is the tartest and the classic choice for apple pie.

Other excellent varieties you can use include Honey Crisp, Jonagold, Gala, and Pink Lady. These types of apples are better if you prefer a sweeter apple pie. About eight medium-sized apples should be enough for your pie.

How to Tell When Apple Pie is Done

Your apple pie is finished cooking when the crust turns golden brown, and the juice from the apples begins bubbling through the slits in the top pie crust. This means that baking apple pie can take from 40 to 50 minutes, depending on your oven.

Tips for Making Homemade Apple Pie

Want to ease up your workload? Buy pastry from the store and use it for your pie crust instead of making it from scratch.

You can also try to make a crumb biscuit base for your apple pie. Use Marie biscuits, shortbread cookies, or even Graham crackers.

Don't forget to cut slits into the top of the pie before putting it in the oven. This will help the steam to escape.

If you want to keep your apple pie crust from getting soggy, you can blind bake the crust for 8 to 10 minutes at 350F. Just let it cool before adding in the apple filling.

To jazz up your pie and make it that extra bit more impressive, you can add caramel to the filling.

Using tart apples and adding flour to the apple pie filling should prevent it from becoming watery. You can use cornstarch instead.

How to Store Apple Pie

Let your apple pie cool to room temperature, then cover it with foil or cling film and place it in the fridge for up to 4 days.

Can You Freeze Homemade Apple Pie?

Absolutely! Apple pie freezes well compared to other types of pie. Apple pie freezes best before you bake it (and will last up to 2 months), but if you want to freeze a baked apple pie, simply cover it and pop it in your freeze. Baked apple pie lasts up to 4 months when frozen.

More Recipes You'll Like

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Apple crisp

Apple pie cupcakes

Apple crumble cheesecake

Instructions

Combine flour and salt in a medium bowl. Chop in the vegetable shortening until it forms pea-sized crumbs. Add 1 tablespoon of water into the mixture at a time until a dough forms. Shape the pastry into a ball. Cut it in half then roll out each side.

Wrap the pastry rounds in cling film and refrigerate for 1 hour, until firm.

Preheat your oven to 425F. Roll out one pastry disc so that it's slightly larger than your pie pan.

Place the pastry in the pie dish, pressing it firmly into the bottom and sides.

In a bowl, whisk flour, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to combine. Add in the apples and toss to coat.

Place the apple mixture into the pastry.

Sprinkle pieces of butter over the apples. Cut off excess pastry.

Roll out the remaining pastry, folding it in half first.

Fold it again to a quarter, the roll it out.

Lay it over the filling and cut four small slits into the top.

Trim away excess pastry, then crimp the sides to seal the pie. Tent foil over the pie and bake for 30 to 40 minutes. Remove the foil, and cook for another 10 to 15 minutes.

Remove from oven and let cool slightly before serving.

Notes

Don't use too much water to make the pastry, only just enough to form the dough.