Our classic Apple Pie Recipe with an irresistible homemade apple pie filling always gets glowing reviews from everyone who takes a bite. From the best flaky pie crust to the generous saucy center, this is the pie everyone has to make for Thanksgiving!
Homemade apple pie is easier than you think. This crust comes together fast and requires basic ingredients, and the filling is scrumptious and equally simple to make.
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We love apple recipes, from Baked Apples to Apple Turnovers, and let’s not forget Sharlotka Apple Cake. If you love apples, this easy apple pie is a must-try! Imagine saucy apples bubbling through that flaky lattice crust – irresistibly good!
Apple Pie Video Tutorial
Watch me make the best apple pie recipe, and we know you’ll crave it until you make it. This easy Apple Pie is a treasured recipe with hundreds of glowing reviews. It’s simple to make but looks just like a professional baker spent hours in the kitchen to make it, and it tastes that way too. It’s buttery, flakey, gooey, and sweet, just perfect.
Apple Pie Recipe
You’ll love the homemade flakey pie crust – we use this same crust for Blueberry Pie and Cherry Pie. It’s also perfect for savory pies like Chicken Pot Pie. It’s a keeper!
The homemade apple pie filling is adapted slightly from the famous Grandma Ople apple pie. The method for this filling is surprising, but it will win you over. It’s well worth the extra 5 minutes and you’ll never want canned apple pie filling again.
Ingredients for Apple Pie
You may be surprised to hear you only need pantry staples and some fresh apples to make this apple pie recipe.
- Pie crusts – you’ll need two disks of homemade pie crust. We love this apple pie crust just as much as the filling. Since it’s an all-butter homemade pie crust (no shortening), it’s flaky and tender. The bottom is never soggy but forms a crispness at the edges. You can use storebought, but homemade is best.
- Apples – We use Granny Smith in this pie recipe for the best flavor and texture. Avoid overripe or mushy apples. See my notes on apple substitutions below.
- Butter – use unsalted to add richness to the saucy filling.
- Flour – helps to thicken up the filling.
- Cinnamon – adds a warm, spiced flavor to the apples. You could also add a pinch of nutmeg.
- Sugar – add sugar to taste depending on the types of apples used (see apple options below).
- Egg Wash – combine egg and water gives the crust a golden brown, shiny finish.
The Best Apples for Apple Pie
Granny Smith apples are tart and crisp and the gold standard for baking, but any sweet/tart and crisp apples or even a mix of apples will do, and you can adjust the sugar accordingly. We use a full cup of sugar for tart Granny Smith and slightly less when substituting sweeter apples such as Golden Delicious, Jonagold, Honeycrisp, fuji, Braeburn, or Pink Lady.
Our Favorite Tools to Make Pie
You don’t need fancy equipment to make an apple pie from scratch, and once you have the right recipe for pie dough, it’s as easy as pie!
- Food processor or pastry blender
- Rolling Pin
- Pizza Cutter, or a knife
- Pie Plate – 9″ wide, deep dish
- Apple Slicer – I highly recommend this time-saving tool. I even bought one for my Mom!
How to Make Apple Pie
- Prepare the pie crust recipe and chill in the refrigerator as instructed. When ready to assemble your pie, preheat the oven to 425˚F with a rack in the center of the oven.
- Make the Filling Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat then whisk in 3 Tbsp flour and continue whisking constantly for 1 minute. Whisk in 1/4 cup water and 1 cup sugar (if using a sweeter apple, adjust the sugar). Bring to a boil, reduce heat to a simmer and continue whisking for 3 minutes, then remove from heat. Do not overcook.
- Prepare apples – peel core and slice apples into about 1/4″ thick slices. Sprinkle with 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon and toss to combine, then pour on the filling mixture and stir to coat the apples.
- Roll the Crust – Over a floured surface, roll the first chilled pie disk into a 12-inch diameter disk then transfer to a 9-inch, deep pie pan. Add the apples over the crust, mounding in the center (avoid getting apple filling on the edges of the pie crust, which will make it difficult to seal).
- Lattice Top – Roll the second disk into an 11-inch diameter circle and cut into 10 strips. Arrange half of the strips over the pie and weave in the second layer of strips. See my easy tutorial on how to make a lattice crust. Finish the pie by crimping the edges. In a separate dish, beat together the egg and water and brush over the lattice crust (you will have some eggwash left over).
- Bake at 425˚F for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350˚F and continue baking for another 45 minutes until you see thick juices bubbling through the lattice crust.
How to Keep Pie From Browning Too Fast
If you find the edges of your pie are browning too quickly, you can use a pie shield or simply cut a 3″ circle out of the center of a square sheet of foil and loosely place it with the dull side down over the top of your pie.
Tips for the Best Apple Pie
- Don’t overheat the filling – Avoid overheating the sauce or cooking for too long, which can cause it to separate or get too thick. If this happens, don’t panic, you can still toss the apples together with the sauce, and it will come together in the oven.
- Chill the crust – make sure to chill the pie crust according to the instructions or the butter will melt out of the crust and it will go flat.
- Let it cool – allow the pie to cool and set for at least an hour before slicing. If you serve it hot, it will slide apart.
Make-Ahead & Storage
With all the bustle of the holidays , it’s nice to know you can check this pie off your list early. Be sure to cool completely to room temperature before covering and storing.
- Storing at Room Temperature: The pie keeps well covered on the counter for up to 2 days.
- To Refrigerate: Cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freezing: store in a freezer-friendly airtight container for up to 6 months
- To Reheat: thaw in the fridge or on the counter and then reheat in a 350°F oven until warm
Everything about this apple pie is good, from the flaky buttery homemade crust to the unbeatable apple pie filling. Let me know if it graces your holiday table.
More Fall Baking Recipes
Fall always puts me in the mood for baking. All of these recipes are on our regular rotation. These recipes are easy to make and are so good, they are our go-to Thanksgiving recipes!
- Pumpkin Cake
- Cinnamon Rolls
- Baklava
- Pumpkin Cheesecake
- Banana Bread
- Pumpkin Bread with honey butter
- Dutch Apple Pie
- Apple Crisp
The BEST Apple Pie Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 recipe for double pie crust
- 2 1/4 lbs Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored 6-7 apples (7 cups thinly sliced)
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 8 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup water
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1 egg , + 1 Tbsp water, for egg wash
Instructions
- Make the pie crust recipe and chill per instructions while preparing the filling. Preheat oven to 425˚F.
- Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in 3 Tbsp flour then simmer for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Whisk in 1/4 cup water and 1 cup sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and continue simmering for 3 minutes, whisking frequently then remove from heat.
- Peel, remove cores, and thinly slice 7 cups of apples and place them in a large bowl. Sprinkle the top with 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon and toss to combine. Pour the sauce over the apples and stir to coat the apple slices.
- Sprinkle your work surface with flour and roll out the bottom pie crust to a 12" diameter circle. Wrap it around your rolling pin to transfer it to the 9" pie plate. Add apple mixture, mounding slightly in the center and being careful not to get the filling on the edges which would make it difficult to seal.
- Roll the second crust into an 11" round and cut into 10 even-thickness strips using a pizza cutter. Arrange strips in a woven lattice pattern over the top (see video tutorial). Beat together 1 egg and 1 Tbsp water and brush the top with egg mixture.
- Bake at 425˚F in the center of the oven for 15 minutes. Reduce the heat to 350˚F and continue baking for another 45 minutes or until the apples are soft and the filling is bubbling through the vents.* Rest at room temp 1 hour before serving.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hi Natasha!! I made this pie last week as a test run for thanksgiving for my family – it was a HIT! My elderly parents requested a pie with less sugar and I tried making the filling today with less sugar (1/4 cup) and less flour (1tbsp)..but the filling came out goopy and looked separated from the butter. What do you recommend I do if I would like the stove-top filling to be less sweet? Thank you!
Hi Suzzy, if you’ve already made the filling and it seems too sweet or if you are using sweeter apples and want to tone down the sweetness, I suggest tossing the apples in a little lemon juice to balance the sweetness.
Giiiirl, the pie is still baking in the oven, but I can’t get over how AMAZING that filling was!!! I was literally licking the bowl. AND your pie crust recipe has been my first successful homemade crust. Yay!
I can’t wait to try everything all together!
I bet it smells so good in your home right now! I hope you love this recipe!
I can’t wait to make this, apple pie is my daughters favorite, i was wondering what will be the best pre made pie crust. or can i use frozen one.
Hi Connie, I personally feel a homemade crust will look and taste best, but a pre-made crust will absolutely work for this apple pie recipe. Happy Thanksgiving!
Would it be alright if I thinly sliced the apples and then diced the slices in this recipe. I always like to dice my apples because they usually cook about the same and it’s a little easier to eat. I wanted to try a new recipe for Thanksgiving this year but I don’t want to mess it up.
Hi Allyson, I haven’t tested this, but I imagine that should work! If you experiment, I would love to know how you like that!
Such amazing results! Best Thanksgiving pie I’ve made! I got so many compliments yesterday. Thank you for this recipe; I will definitely use it in the future. Dicing the apples worked just fine as usual as well. Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving 😘
Thank you so much for sharing that with me, Allyson! I’m so glad you enjoyed that!
Hi Natacha, this is my third time making this pie and my oh my is it delicious. I have a question, though. The first time I made the filling it came out perfect. But the second and third time, after I let the filling cool it becomes very crumbly and is difficult to mix with the apples. I am not sure what I am doing wrong. Any tips or tricks? Thanks!
Hi Desiree, that can happen if you put warm filling on cold apples but not to worry – it will turn out beautifully after it bakes. That has happened to me before and it’s nothing to worry about.
Hi Natashas
I just made your apple pie…
Question..
Your egg wash on recipe says 1 beaten egg and and 1 Tbsp of water..
In your video you say 1 beaten egg and 1 Tbsp of sugar
Just wondering which one to use
Thanks
Hi Teresa, I have no idea why I said sugar on the video – definitely an oops, but it’s definitely 1 egg with 1 Tbsp of water.
Oh no! I used tbsp of sugar!
lol I caught that too–and wasn’t sure what to do—I went with the sweet and used the 1 tbsp sugar—no harm. I will correct my recipe. This is an excellent pie and you make it so easy to follow. Love that I found your blog.
Hi Natasha,
Just made your recipe. I made the sauce, it came out fine, however, i put it asside to cut up the apples and when it came time to mix in the sauce it was hard. i attempted to reheat it, but it appeared to separate. What did I wrong?
Thank you,
Donna
Hi Donna, that can happen if the apples were cold, but it’s no problem – it will come together beautifully as it bakes.
My sauce also separated as well so I broke it into small clumps. I hope it doesn’t ruin my pie …
Hi Diana, nothing to worry about there. It will come together nicely in the oven.
Thank you for responding back! It actually came out perfect despite my mistake with the sauce ^_^ so happy!!! My favorite part is your homemade crust!!!
Yay, so awesome!
Hi, Natasha! This makes the absolute best Apple pie! I’ve made it a few times and it was great.
BUT! The last few times I made it the sauce turned out really grainy and ruined the pie. Any tips??
Hi Rebecca, I haven’t had that experience, but it sounds like the sugar wasn’t fully melted? I imagine that to be the culprit.
Hi, this sounds amazing!! You don’t blind bake your bottom crust though? What keeps it from getting soggy? Thank you!
I’m planning on making this pie tomorrow! Thank you for this recipe. This will be my first apple pie! Love watching your videos!:)
I hope it becomes your favorite! Please let us know how you liked the recipe.
Hello to a fellow Slavic sister! If I were to use a 10in pie dish instead of a 9in, would I need to change any part of this recipe?
Hi Natalie, it would be a shorter pie in a 10″ pie dish, but that should still work. I have done this in a 9 1/2″ pie dish and it worked well.
Hi, I was just curious if I had to do the egg wash at the end because my family and I don’t eat egg. By the way thank you for this recipe I will try to make it tomorrow for thanksgiving, I have never had apple pie before it’s my first time, so exited. Thanks again 🙂
Hi Jasman, the egg wash can be substituted. I found a great article that may be helpful for egg wash substitutes.
Just wow!!! This was my first time making apple pie from scratch… and it exceeded all expectations!!! It’s to die for! I also used dairy free butter ‘earth balance’ since husband has dairy allergy. Everyone was impressed, I don’t think we can ever eat a store bought apple pie again. Thank you Natasha for all your recipes!
That is so nice of you, Flora. Thank you so much for your wonderful comments and feedback. We appreciate it!
Hi Natasha, my pie dish is a dark tin(as opposed to your glass or ceramic dish Ive seen you use in your videos). Will this affect the baking time?
Thank you!
Hi Alyssa, it may affect the bake time slightly and you may end up with a little darker crust but the center still needs the same amount of time to soften the apples and thicken the filling adequately. As I wrote above, “Pectin breaks down and softens the apples at 175˚ so you want your pie filling to reach 175˚F.”
Hi Natasha! I was wondering if you have try putting brown sugar in your pie yet? I want to try putting brown sugar in the apple pie but I’m afraid it might come out wrong or soggy. I was thinking half a cup of white sugar and half a cup of brown sugar.
Hi Michelle, I have not tried this yet but others shared that they used 1/2 brown sugar and 1/2 white sugar and that works.
Hi Natasha! My wife and I made this pie a few weeks ago and it came out great and looked delicious. We made it again today and as it baked the filling got very wet/juicy and it came out the top and sides of the pie. We’re not sure what we did wrong. The only thing different we did was cover the edge of the pie with a silicone pie protector with 15 minutes left to bake. Could the pie protector have caused it?
Hi, the pie protector should not have caused that. My guess is that there were apples used in the pie which would cause it to bubble through the top and drip.
I also just made this and the filling oozed out the top and over the sides of the dish during the last 15 minutes of baking. Thinking maybe my crust wasn’t tall enough, but any other thoughts? Other than that it was DELICIOUS!!
Hi, I made this last year but forgot how much sugar I put! I use half Honeycrisp apples and half granny smith. Should I cut down the sugar a bit (because of the Honeycrisp apples) or leave it as it is? Thank you!
Hi Carolina, I made this with a sweeter apple one year and cut the sugar in half. If using half of each, you might cut down the sugar by 1/4 cup or 1/3 cup.
Thank you very much! I’ll try it out. 🙂
Hi Natasha, I was wondering if I could prep the pie a day before, put it in the fridge overnight and then bake it the next morning, would that work?
Hi Linda, this recipe can be made ahead. You can store it in the fridge already baked and cover it loosely with plastic wrap and reheat it the next day in the oven. I imagine that process will work too.
Hey! I haven’t tried the recipe, but how many days in advance can you make it and how can we store it?! I also commented this on your crust thinking it was the whole apple pie recipe 🙁 but when is the earliest i can make the pie? How many days advance? Thank youu
Hello there, this recipe can be made ahead. You can store it in the fridge already baked and cover it loosely with plastic wrap and reheat it the next day in the oven. I haven’t tried freezing this or making it ahead for a long time.
Could I use golden delicious instead?
Yes, that will surely work!
I made the double pie crust recipe & love it but was not able to complete my baking the pies is the dough better to refrigerate or leave at room temp
Hi Barbara, I would refrigerate the pie dough and then let it rest at room temp for a bit just until it’s easier to roll out, but definitely refrigerate if not using right away.
I made the apple pie recipe, the crust was easy and had an awesome taste, but my apples were still crunchy. What could I have done differently ?
Hi Hayley, that can happen if the pie is not baked long enough (or if the oven runs cool then bake a little longer). Also, make sure to thinly slice apples.
Hi Natasha can I make the apple pie ahead of time and freeze it?
Hi Carmen, I haven’t tested freezing that but I think it could work. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe.
My family loved this apple pie…it’s a keeper! Thank you. I only wish their was a way to save favorite recipes on your web site!
Thanks for sharing that with us, Maureen. We don’t have a feature like that on our website yet but thanks for the suggestion.
Hi! Have you tried bookmarking it? I do this all the time for my favorites. You can usually do it with every website