My all-time favorite Apple Pie Recipe! Imagine saucy apples bubbling through that flaky pie crust – irresistibly good! This pie always gets glowing reviews from everyone who takes a bite. This is the pie everyone has to make for Thanksgiving!
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Helpful Reader Review
“I have made a lot of different apple pies for my family over the years. This is by far the best apple pie ever! My family requests it all the time.“ – Elaine ★★★★★
Apple Pie Video Tutorial
Watch my video and see how easy this apple pie is—from the simple crust to that homemade apple pie filling. You’ll crave it until you make it!
Apple Pie Recipe
This easy Apple Pie is a treasured recipe with thousands 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, flaky, gooey, and just perfect.
You’ll love the homemade flaky pastry 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 method for this homemade apple pie 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 crust – 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 store-bought, 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 & Flour – creates a thick and saucy 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 – combining 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, but use less sugar when substituting sweeter apples such as Golden Delicious, Jonagold, Honeycrisp, Fuji, Braeburn, or Pink Lady.
How to Make Apple Pie
- Prepare the pie crust recipe and chill in the refrigerator. 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, add flour and whisk constantly for 1 minute. Whisk in water and sugar. Simmer 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 cinnamon and toss to combine, then stir in the filling to coat the apples.
The Best Tool for Apple Recipes
My family loves apple recipes, from Baked Apples to Apple Turnovers. If you love apple desserts, this apple slicer will save you so much prep time! It peels, slices, and cores all in one swoop. You’ll have all of your apples prepped in less than 5 minutes. Imagine saucy apples bubbling through that flaky lattice crust – irresistibly good!
- Roll the Crust – into a 12-inch diameter pie dough and transfer to a 9-inch, deep pie pan. Add the apple filling, 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 with a pizza cutter. Arrange half of the strips over the pie and weave in the second layer of strips (see how to make a lattice crust). Crimp the edges to seal and brush the crust with egg wash.
- 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 for at least 5 minutes.
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 stress, 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, for the juices to thicken up and set, otherwise it will slide apart when sliced.
Everything about this apple pie is good, from the flaky, buttery, homemade crust to the unbeatable apple pie filling. Try this served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream! Let me know if it graces your holiday table.
P.S. Did you know you can make an apple pie ahead (see the make-ahead tips in the notes below). With all the bustle of the holidays, it’s nice to know you can check this pie off your list early.
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, core, 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 for at least 5 minutes.* Rest at room temp 1 hour before serving.
Notes
- Store at Room Temp: Cool completely to room temperature before covering and storing. The pie keeps well covered on the counter for up to 2 days.
- To Refrigerate: Cover and refrigerate for up to 4 days.
- Freezing Pie: store in a freezer-friendly airtight container for up to 3 months. Here’s a tutorial on how to freeze and bake a frozen pie.
- To Reheat: thaw baked pie in the fridge or on the counter and then reheat in a 350°F oven until warmed through.
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
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 that 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
- Pumpkin Roll
My daughter and I made this together today after coming home from worship. We had a tough time with the crust. It needed much more water and it was tough to roll out. However, it still cooked well and it tasted amazing. We just need to practice more. I had never cooked a sauce on the stove for apple pie so that was new, and it produced a delicious sauce. Our apples were still pretty firm after an hour playing the oven. But the flavor was spot on! Will make again and tinker around with it a bit.
Hi Kelly! I’m glad you enjoyed it. The lattice crust does take some practice. It helps if you measure your flour by weight, or if you do not have a food scale, fluff your flower and spoon it into your measuring cup, and then level it off. That way you’re not using too much flour. If it seems to dry, you can add a few more teaspoons of water until it comes together. I have been using 6 to 8 tablespoons of water, but it can vary based on how your ingredients are measured, the temperature of your ingredients, and the temperature of your room. It’s best to go off visual cues. Just be careful not to over mix it.
You can also slice the apples, a little thinner if you prefer them less crispy.
Also- make sure to allow the crust to sit at room temperature for a few minutes after removing from the refrigerator. This will make it easier to roll out.
I’ve always wanted to try making an Apple pie and especially one with a lattice pie crust. Great recipe. This was delicious!! Family loved it!
I’m making this in a few days but my husband can’t have gluten. So I have to make a gluten free crust, which is easy. My question is should I add a little cornstarch to the gluten free flour in the sauce to make sure it thickens appropriately?
Hi Christina! I’ve never tested GF flour so I’m not sure if it affects how it thickens the sauce. Several of my readers make this GF with great results.
Wow! Apple is my absolute favorite dessert, and this was my very first time making an apple pie, everyone loved it! The crust, the flavor, everything came out perfect. This recipe is definitely a keeper.
I’m so happy you found a favorite on my blog, Scharleen! Thank you for your wonderful review.
The article says it can be made ahead of time and to check the notes for make ahead tips, but I don’t see them in the note section of the recipe. Help!
Hi Melissa, on the printable recipe card (Jump to Recipe) Towards the bottomw you will see the “Storage Tips” section. There I share how to store, freeze and reheat the pie. I hope that helps.
Can I add Cranberries to this recipe and if so how much? I had been making your delicious Apple Cranberry Braid but pie is requested this year.
Hi Barbara! I haven’t tested that, I think it would work but may need some experimenting.
5 stars, love the crust, so easy to make and so delicious!!!
Thanks so much, Cristina! I’m glad you loved it.
I have no idea what I did wrong. I tried making the ‘sauce’ multiple times but every time I let it cool it solidified. The first time I had over boiled it and accidentally make a caramel but I made sure not to the second time. I even went on the video and it looked like yours did. Any tips on how to fix it? Also when I added the water my butter mixture clumped up a little before adding the sugar. Please help!!
Hi Anisha- you can try adding warm water instead of cold water to the butter/flour mixture. That should help it not clump up.
Make sure to not overcook the flour, just one minute is enough. After you add the sugar, when you see bubbles (the boiling point) you can reduce the heat and simmer. If your mixture is sitting too long while you prep your apples, it’s normal for it to thicken. You can use 1-2 tablespoons of hot water to loosen it. You can also prep your apples ahead of time so the mixture hasn’t cooled too much to solidify by the time you’re ready to add it to the apples. I hope that helps.
Everyone loved it. Not too sweet. Flaky crust. Followed the Crust and pie recipes for a real winner. Thank you
you’re welcome, Donna! I’m so happy you loved it.
It’s hard to beat a homemade apple pie! This pie was delicious; however, it was very juicy and quite a bit spilled out. Even after letting it sit for a couple of hours, it was still very juicy. Not sure what happened, but I followed the instructions to a T.
Hi Laurie! I’m sorry to hear that. Did you bake it until the filling was bubbling? It needs to reach that stage so it can thicken the filling. Also- the type of apples you use can release more liquid or be mushy. See my notes above for best apples to use. If it spilled out of the pan, make sure to use a deep pie dish. Mine was a 9” deep pie dish.
I love the method of making a roux to thicken the filling rather than corn syrup, like other recipes. The steps were very easy to follow and the pie turned out delicious. I made mini pies which were a hit with the family.
This pie was delicious, easy to make and it’s so pretty. It made the house smell amazing also. Definitely will make this pie again!
Apple pie was delicious! I though had trouble with the pie being too mushy and falling part. But all the flavors and crust were yummy! I’m guessing that was a mistake on my part or I put too many apples in it making it more runny. I guess trial and error.
Such a delicious recipe and so easy to make.
It is easy to make it! All apple lovers should try this apple pie recipe 😋
This is one of the only recipes I’ve seen that creates a caramel for the filling. Usually you add the sugar to the apples which makes the filing watery. Really liked how it came all together.
My family can’t wait until I make this delicious Apple Pie!! So easy to make! Hands down the best Apple Pie!!
So looking forward to making this. What is the white pie pan that you are using? I was trying to read the writing on the handles but couldnt see it well enough.
Hi Marc. I linked it in step 4 of the recipe. Click on the bold words. It’s a 9” deep pie dish. I hope you love the recipe.
I love this recipe! This is the best apple pie I have ever made and eaten. 2 more are still in my freezer.
I’m so happy to hear that, Helena!
This is the best apple pie recipe you’ll ever find!! I make this pie recipe at least once a month, my family always asks for it! 😋
Hi Sara! I’m so happy to hear you love the recipe.