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.
This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
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
I just made this for the first time and it was such a hit with everyone, you’ll be seeing a lot more people coming to watch and learn. So tasty, and with a dollop of vanilla ice cream or pouring cream, so divine.
So great to hear that it was a success on your first time. Good job!
From an extremely novice baker-this pie is great and directions are so clear-everything about it went just perfectly and the taste is out of this world! Thank you for such a great recipe.
My pleasure! Thank you so much for your excellent review, we’re so glad you enjoyed it!
My grandmother made the most wonderful apple pie. After she passed away, I tried to replicate it but could never get it right. So after many failed attempts, my mission changed to finding a new Apple Pie recipe that would be my go to. I can not tell you how many recipes I’ve tried over the years. So many recipes. Some were not good at all, some were okay, but none brought the angels singing. So the search continued. Until now. I have finally found my go to Apple Pie recipe! The crust is so much buttery flaky goodness. I could seriously just eat the crust alone. The filling is perfect. Not too sweet, not too tart, the perfect amount of cinnamon. And it sets up so nicely. I’ve even started doing the lattice top, which I never did before. If you’ve also been looking for the perfect Apple Pie, try this one. It’s amazing!
What a great comment and feedback! Thank you so much for sharing that with us, I am so happy to know that you really loved the apple pie.
Hi Natasha…I Have been married to my amazing husband for 54 years. He has always loved my pie crust and apple pie. I made yours today and WOW! We both absolutely loved it…..Thank you so much for our new favorite apple pie.
Yay so awesome to hear that! Thank you so much for sharing your experience with us.
Thank you for the recipe! It came out perfect. The flavour was amazing!
That’s wonderful! I’m so glad you loved the apple pie.
I am always scared about making pie from scratch but not anymore. Made your pie crust and apple pie filling and the family love it. A little rough around the edges but delicious. Thank you for sharing our favorite new apple pie recipe.
You’re welcome, Mickey! I’m so glad you enjoyed that!
Made the pie today and my husband and I loved it.
Thank you
You’re welcome! I’m so glad you enjoyed that Marilyn!
The pie crust recipe is the easiest and best I have found to date! Thank you for sharing.
The filling was delicious too! My husband loved it! The hardest part about this recipe is waiting the hour until it cools down to eat. I’ll definitely be adding this one to the recipe book
I’m so happy you enjoyed this recipe, Olivia! Thank you so much for that wonderful review!
Made it today, its delicious!!
Thanks for sharing, so glad that you loved it!
“The pie was yuummm!!!” (This is how my son described it). I used honeycrisp apples and they tasted really great. I also liked that the crust was flaky. We love this recipe. Thank you!
That’s just awesome Lech! Thank you for sharing that amazing review with us!
Hi
I tried your Apple pie recipe and it turned out just as you mentioned in the recipe. Amazing. I used gala apples as it’s difficult to get the apples you mentioned in india. I just love yr recepies. I live the way you. Make yr video s with so much of love. May God bless you n your adorable family. Always. Would love to meet you some day n give you a hug. May our Lord Jesus protection be with you n yr family. Take care
You are so nice! Thank you for that wonderful compliment and comment, Zenia! I’m so inspired!
Have a ton of apples and would like to know if you can freeze the filling?
Hi Kathy, I haven’t tested freezing that but I think it could work. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe
i would like to know this as well. Huge apple harvest here. Let me know if you tried it and how it worked out!
Just wanted to report back. I made 6 pies for the freezer, natasha’s recipe, assembled and unbaked. (Parchment over disposable pans so you can slip it into your glass pan when you want to bake). I threw one in the oven the other night for unexpected guests. Turned out great! Definitely a smidgen better when fresh, but everyone loved it. It’s like having money in the bank!
Yay so awesome to hear that. Thank you for sharing that with us!
HI, Natasha. Since I only have a toaster oven, can I bake the apple pie in there on bake mode? Will there be any problems or issues? My conventional oven is broken so I cannot use it.
Hi Jessica, I have not tested this in a toaster oven on bake mode to advise. If you experiment, let me know how you liked the recipe
i use a toaster oven in my travel trailer. it is larger than the oven . i made 6 muffins at a time . worked great. if i could only remember year to year how to work it. lol
Nice to know that it works great!
Pie crust and filling came out beautifully. However, the bottom crust burned. Any thoughts? Never had this problem.
Hi Del, I’ve never had that experience either. Did you use a different kind of pan (possibly a foil pan?). Also, make sure to bake in the center of the oven on conventional bake mode (not convection). I hope that helps.
HI, Natasha. Since I only have a toaster oven, can I bake the apple pie in there on bake mode? Will there be any problems or issues? My conventional oven is broken so I cannot use it.
Hi Jessica, I haven’t really tried using an oven toaster using this recipe to advise. Sorry about that!
Best pie recipe ever.
Natasha doesn’t leave any details behind which leads to success Everytime I bake this pie.
Thank is so sweet, thank you so much for your wonderful comments!
Loved! I just had a piece.
Do I store the rest in the fridge? Covered or uncovered?
When I have a piece (tomorrow) should I microwave? Put into oven?
Hi Maria, you can store it in the fridge and cover it loosely with plastic wrap and reheat it the next day.
This Apple pie recipe is awesome. The recipe was easy to follow. Definitely a keeper.
Thank you for sharing that wonderful review, Marie!
I made this not one, but two of these today and they turned out AMAZING! By far, the best apple pie recipe that I’ve ever made. The recipe was simple and very easy to follow, and my results were almost identical to yours (which I was SO excited about- I always follow measurements precisely and I get so cross when recipes don’t work!).
I’ve recommended this recipe to quite a few friends now and I can’t wait to try this crust with some different fillings.
I uploaded a photo on my insta today and tagged you in it
Sounds like you found a new favorite Georgia! Thank you for sharing this amazing feedback with us!
I have a pie dish that’s 10 1/2 inches wide by 2 inches deep. Will this recipe work for that or do I need to double it?
Hi Jennifer, that should work for this recipe.
Ive tried making this filling three times and every time I’ve tried it doesn’t taste sweet once I’m done, it just taste like butter. It doesn’t look like a filling either looks watery. Could it be the pot Im using or is it the butter Im using? ( I do use unsalted butter)
Is there a specific butter brand I can use?
Please please help this looks delicious and I can’t figure out what’s wrong🥺
Hi Stephanie, I haven’t had that experience. Are you using the same kind of crust that I recommend in the post above? Also, are you making any changes to the process or ingredients of the filling?