Flaky crust, tart apples, cinnamon and a slight hint of sweetness, my apple pie recipe is something to look forward to every fall.
Let’s get one thing straight: my apple pie will never win any awards in the looks department. No matter how much I try, my apple pie never looks picture perfect. What I can promise is a flaky crust with a tart and slightly sweet apple filling – the best kind of apple pie (in my opinion).
Another opinion I have is that pie should be served COLD – I’m a cold pie till I die type of person when it comes to fruit pies (but if it’s warm pie vs. no pie then I’ll make do with warm pie). While most people will disagree with me, there are people who agree (I believe Christopher Kimball from Milk Street Podcast and Dan Pashman of The Sporkfull podcast had a debate on the subject once; Christopher siding with cold pie).
Why cold you may ask? I think it’s a textual and flavor thing. I think a cold pie is flakier, the filling is thicker and the layers of the pie are held better. When it’s served warm, the layers blend more and the filling oozes too much for my liking. Plus, I believe that cold pie is tarter than the same pie served warm – and I really prefer the tartness of the apples to shine in my apple pies.
Apple pie ingredients
Flour, salt, water and an egg. Pretty standard ingredients in any dough – nothing really special to say about them in this case.
Vinegar. I’ve made the dough using regular white vinegar and apple cider vinegar, both are delicious. Whichever you use, definitely use it! It helps inhibit the formation of gluten and evaporates during baking helping add flakiness!
Vegetable Shortening. I’ll be honest, vegetable shorting does not have much flavor. Yet, it’s flakiness in a pie dough is just amazing.
Macintosh Apples. My FAVORITE! Both in a pie and to bite into, Macintosh is by far my favorite type of apple. It’s tart and sweet, and just delicious. Of course, you can use your favorite apple, just make sure to taste test your seasoning before adding to the pie.
Cinnamon and sugar. Two classics for seasoning your apples. Use as much or as little as you want, just taste test! Plus a little lemon for balance and to prevent browning!
Recipe Notes
Make the pie dough ahead of time. This dough is easier to work with when it’s cold. So refrigerate the disks for at least 30 minutes (about the time it will take to clean up, peel and cut your apples) up to 2 days.
Taste your apple seasoning. Apples are like snowflakes, they all have their own levels of tartness and sweetness. So if you need to add more or less sugar, be my guest!
Don’t play too much with the dough. Playing too much with the dough will cause gluten to form. This will make your dough tough and less flaky (the vinegar helps with this).
Use parchment or wax paper as you roll. Literally, a lifesaver when transferring your dough from countertop to pie dish.
Bake in a pyrex dish. This lets you look at how the crust is progressing as the pie bakes.
Baking on a baking sheet. The baking sheet will catch any drippings!
Let completely cool before serving. Whether you are serving the pie cold or warm, let it cool completely after baking, then either serve as is, cold or warmed up. Letting it cool completely gives your flavors and textures a chance to settle and set.
Hope you enjoy!
MY APPLE PIE RECIPE
Flaky crust, tart apples, cinnamon and a slight hint of sweetness, my apple pie recipe is something to look forward to every fall.
INGREDIENTS
Pie dough:
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 cup vegetable shortening, cut into cubes
- 1 large egg
- 1 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp ice-cold water
Filling:
- 4-5 cups sliced macintosh apples (cut into eigths)
- 1 tbsp cinnamon (or to taste)
- 2 tbsp sugar (or to taste)
- Juice of half a lemon
INSTRUCTIONS
Making the pie dough:
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Mix together flour and salt in a large bowl.
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Add vegetable shortening and cut into the flour with a pastry cutter or two knives until you have pea-sized pieces.
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In a medium bowl beat the egg, vinegar and water together. Pour over the flour mixture and mix together with a fork until just incorporated.
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Divide dough in half, shape into a dish, wrap with plastic wrap and chill for at least 30 minutes before pie assembly.
Making the filling:
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Peel, core and cut the apples into eighths until you have about 4 to 5 cups.
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Mix apples with cinnamon, sugar and lemon (to prevent browning). Set aside for assembly.
Putting it together:
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Place rack in the middle and heat oven to 450°F.
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Lightly flour a piece of parchment or wax paper. Roll out one disk until it is about one inch bigger than your pie dish. Transfer to pie dish with the help of the paper and press the dough to fit the dish.
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Transfer filling into the dish.
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Roll out the second disk out like the first. Place on top of pie, cut excess dough leaving about a ½-inch overhang.
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Press the bottom and top together and fold underneath. Crimp with a fork or your fingers.
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Cut air holes at the center and bake until the apples are soft and the crust has browned, about 45 minutes. Let cool completely before serving.
RECIPE NOTES
Make the pie dough ahead of time. This dough is easier to work with when it's cold. So refrigerate the disks for at least 30 minutes (about the time it will take to clean up, peel and cut your apples) up to 2 days.
Taste your apple seasoning. Apples are like snowflakes, they all have their own levels of tartness and sweetness. So if you need to add more or less sugar, be my guest!
Don't play too much with the dough. Playing too much with the dough will cause gluten to form. This will make your dough tough and less flaky (the vinegar helps with this).
Use parchment or wax paper as you roll. Literally, a lifesaver when transferring your dough from countertop to pie dish.
Bake in a pyrex dish. This lets you look at how the crust is progressing as the pie bakes.
Baking on a baking sheet. The baking sheet will catch any drippings!
Let completely cool before serving. Whether you are serving the pie cold or warm, let it cool completely after baking, then either serve as is, cold or warmed up. Letting it cool completely gives your flavors and textures a chance to settle and set.
Did you make this recipe?
Please let me know! Tag @thebeaderchef on Instagram and tag it #thebeaderchef
Tools I Used to make Apple Pie
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