The Best Homemade Apple Pie

Autumn is by far my favorite season. There are no days as pleasing to the eye as the sunny ones in October, filled with vibrant hues of yellow, bronze, green, and red. This leaf-decorated Apple Pie is a perfect way to celebrate the year’s most colorful season.

It’s a comforting pie with a buttery, flaky crust and a sweet, cinnamon-flavored apple filling. It is for sure un unforgettable dessert to enjoy with your loved ones.

The recipe is quite similar to this Berry Pie I made some time ago, but decorated differently and uses different spices for the filling. This apple pie is best served slightly warm with a big scoop of ice cream on top.

How to make apple pie

Begin with preparing the dough for the crust. Continue with preparing the apple filling and assemble the pie. From the remaining dough cut some decorative leaves for decoration and bake the pie until golden brown and bubbly.

How to prepare the crust dough

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Incorporate cold, cubed butter using a pastry blender, fork, or food processor until the mixture forms coarse crumbs. Add one egg and a few tablespoons of cold water, stirring until the dough begins to come together. Divide the dough into two equal pieces, wrap each in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to chill.

How to prepare the apple filling

While the dough chills, prepare the apple filling. In a small bowl, combine sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg, and freshly grated lemon zest. Place the sliced apples in a large bowl, add the sugar mixture and freshly squeezed lemon juice, and toss to coat the apples evenly. This mixture will enhance the flavor and texture of the apples when baked.

How to assemble the pie

Preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). On a lightly floured surface, roll out the first piece of dough to a diameter of about 12 inches (30 cm). Carefully line an 8 or 9-inch (20-23 cm) pie pan with the rolled dough, pressing it gently into the edges and trimming any excess.

Next, arrange the prepared apple mixture evenly over the crust. To ensure a perfect top crust, return the pie to the refrigerator while you roll out the second piece of dough to the same diameter.

Place the rolled top crust over the apples. Press the edges together to seal, trimming any excess dough. Use any leftover dough to cut out decorative leaves with a small knife. Brush the top crust with beaten egg, arrange the dough leaves on top, brush the leaves with the beaten egg, and sprinkle with a little sugar for added sweetness and a glossy finish.

How to bake the apple pie

Bake the pie in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. After the initial baking time, add a pie crust shield or cover the edges with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning. Reduce the oven temperature to 350°F (180°C) and continue baking for an additional 25-30 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly.

Remove the pie from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for about 3 hours. This cooling time allows the filling to set properly, making it easier to slice.

Serve your classic apple pie slightly warm or at room temperature, with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream for a delightful treat. Store any leftovers in the refrigerator.

Hope you will try it out and enjoy this delightful dessert! If you try it out, make sure to share the photos with me on Instagram. Would love to see how it turns out for you.

For more tart and pie ideas check our full collection of Tart and Pie Recipes.

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Apple Pie

5 from 2 votes

This leaves-decorated Apple Pie is a great way to celebrate the year’s most colorful season. It is a comforting pie, with a buttery flaky crust filled with sweet, cinnamon apple filling, a memorable dessert to enjoy with your loved ones.

Servings 8 servings

Prep Time 25 minutes mins

Cook Time 45 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 10 minutes mins

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Ingredients

  

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Pastry Dough

• 2 ½ cups (320g) all-purpose flour
• 1 cup (226g) unsalted butter , chilled
• 1 tsp (5g) salt
• 2 tbsp (30g) sugar
• 1 egg , beaten
• 3-4 tbsp ice cold water

Apple Filling

• 26 oz (750g) apples - peeled , cored and thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup (100g) sugar
• 1/4 cup (30g) cornstarch
• 3/4 tsp (2g) cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp (1g) nutmeg
• 1 tbsp (15ml) lemon juice
• Zest from a lemon

Glaze

• 1 egg , beaten
• 1 tsp (5g) sugar

Instructions

 

Prepare the crust dough

• In a medium bowl whisk flour with sugar and salt. Incorporate butter using a pastry blender, a fork or a pastry processor, until crumbs are formed. Add egg and water and stir until incorporated.
• Divide the dough into 2 pieces, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Prepare the apple filling.

• In a small bowl combine sugar with cornstarch, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon zest.
• Place the apple slices into a large bowl, add the sugar mixture and lemon juice and toss to combine.

Assemble the pie.

• Preheat oven to 400F (200C). Prepare a 8 or 9 inch (20-23cm)  pie pan.
• Into a lightly floured surface roll first piece of dough until it's about 12in (30cm) in diameter.
• Line the pan with the rolled dough and press the edges.Cut the excess dough.
• Arrange the apple mixture over the crust. Refrigerate until you roll the other disc of dough.
• Roll the other piece of dough and place over the apples.
• Press the edges and cut off the excess.
• Use the leftover dough, roll it and cut leaves using a knife.
• Brush the pastry with some of the beaten egg and decorate the pie with the dough leaves.
• Brush the leaves with beaten egg and sprinkle sugar on top.

Bake the pie.

• Bake for 20 minutes. Add a pie crust shield or aluminum foil on top of the pie, reduce oven temperature to 350F (180C) and bake for another 25-30 minutes.
• Remove from the oven and let the tart cool down for about 3 hours. Serve with ice cream.

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1 serving out of 8Calories: 495kcalCarbohydrates: 65.3gProtein: 6gFat: 24.6gSaturated Fat: 14.9gCholesterol: 102mgSugar: 27.9g

Calories: 495kcal

Course: Dessert

Cuisine: American

Keyword: apple pie, autumn pie, fall recipes, fruit pie, leaves decorated pie, pate brisee, pie, sweet pastry