The Best Apple Pie
This really is The Best Apple Pie. The crust is tender and flaky, and the filling perfectly delicious with the flavours of apple and cinnamon!
If you’re looking for a classic apple pie recipe, this is it! I’ve been making this delicious recipe for years…it’s tried-and-true! I hope you love it.
Classic Apple Pie
This pie has the most tender and flaky crust, and the filling is soft, sweet and cinnamon apple-y! Everything an apple pie should be. Serve this classic pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. We also LOVE it with slices of cheddar cheese on the side…have you had apple pie this way? Cheese + apple pie = delicious!
Making the Crust for Apple Pie:
The perfect apple pie starts with the crust! I like to start with my tried-and-true pastry recipe that makes the most tender and flaky crust. Then I make a filling with my favourite apple pie apples, McIntosh. The result, is the Best Apple Pie!
Baking tip!
I bought a pie crust shield and it’s the BEST thing ever for baking pies (see the image below). Often when baking, the pie crust edges will darken much faster than the rest of the crust, so when I see that the edges are close to burning, I will lay the shield onto the pie. No more burnt crust! Love it. This is an affiliate link: this is the one I bought.
It doesn’t have to be perfect.
I think a lot of times, perfection stops people from baking pies. Pies do not need to look perfect. Repeat after me, pies do not need to look perfect. I have to remind myself of this every time I make pie…it seems a silly thing but it’s a good reminder. It’s okay if the filling bubbles up through the vents, that just means that the filling is delicious. The crust edges may get a little dark, that’s ok, you can fix it or prevent it with foil or a shield. The crust may settle funny over a mound of apples…if you look closely at my pictures, that’s what happened with this pie. It’s fine. When it comes to pie , it’s all about flavour.
Crust Decorating Idea: Pie Crust Stamps
Sometimes I like to get creative with my pie crusts. I have a set of pie crust stamps that I bought at Michaels that are perfect for a fall pie. Just stamp the leaves out of the dough, then lay them out how ever you like on to the top of your pie. No skill involved…trust me…you can do this. SO easy, and makes such a beautiful pie. I’m in love with this pie.
Apple Pie Tips & Tricks
- Apples: I like to use McIntosh apples for my pies, but you can use your favourite baking apples. Other delicious options are Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Golden Delicious, and Braeburn.
- To peel or not to peel? I always peel my apples first, because we don’t like the peels in the pie. But if you prefer to leave them on, that’s fine!
- Place a baking sheet under your pie. I like to place a baking sheet on the rack directly under the pie in case the apple filling bubbles out…which it almost always does. This saves you from having to clean your oven after.
- Why the high heat for baking? Baking the pie at 425 degrees F for about 20 minutes, ensures that the bottom of the crust doesn’t get soggy. Just make sure to turn the heat down to 350 degrees F after this time.
- Pie Crust Shield: As I mentioned above, I like to use my pie crust shield if it looks like the edges of the crust are getting dark too dark. You can uses small strips of tin foil instead to achieve the same effect…just take small pieces and cover the edges as best you can.
- Leftovers: I store leftovers, covered, on my counter for a couple of days…but honestly this pie doesn’t last long.
The Best Apple Pie
This really is The Best Apple Pie. The crust is tender and flaky, and the filling perfectly delicious with the flavours of apple and cinnamon!
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 1 pie 1x
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
Ingredients
Apple Filling:
- 8 medium apples (peeled, cored and 1/4 inch sliced)
- 3/4 sugar
- 3 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp salt
Pie crust (This recipe makes 1 top and 1 bottom crust)
- 2 cups flour
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2/3 cup shortening (lard)
- 1/4 cup water
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425 degrees F.
- Make the apple filling first: slice the apples into 1/4 inch slices, then combine them with the sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, sift together the flour and salt.
- With a pie cutter, cut in the shortening until the particles are pea sized.
- Sprinkle in the water, 1 tsp or so at a time, mixing lightly with a fork. Don’t over mix or the crust will be tough.
- Press into a ball. Then split into 2 balls. It’s okay if the mixture is crumbly. In fact crumbly makes for a tender, flaky crust!
- Lay out a piece of wax or parchment paper, lightly sprinkle it with flour, then roll out one of the crusts for the bottom of the pie. Then press the crust into a 9″ pie plate.
- Using new piece of parchment paper, roll out the other crust for the top of the pie. If you are using pie crust stamps, use the dough for the top crust and use as much of the dough as possible while using the stamps. If you are laying on a top crust (instead of using pie stamps) just make sure to cut ventilation holes into the crust.
- Make a mixture of sugar and cinnamon, then sprinkle it on to the top of the pie crust.
- Bake for about 20 minutes at 425 degrees F (this will ensure that you don’t end up with a soggy bottom crust). Tip! Place a baking sheet on the rack directly under the pie in case the apple filling bubbles out.
- Then after this time, reduce the heat to 350 degrees F and bake for about 25-30 minutes more. (Until the crust is lightly browned and the apple mix is bubbling up from under the crust.)
- Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire cooling rack. Let it cool for at least an hour before cutting into it. Enjoy!
PIN IT to make later!
Have a delicious day!
Note: This recipe was originally published September 2015. I have since updated it with new images and more recipe tips!
Seriously this belongs on a magazine cover Jo-Anna. I can’t get over how stunning it is!
Thank you so much Alex! It’s my most favourite too! I can’t wait to make a pumpkin one now
What a beautiful pie!! Pinned for later – definitely trying your recipe.
Thank you Lynda!
Where did you get those stamps? Can I order it online? 🙂
Hi! I bought them at Michaels! I hope you find them!
This looks stunning! I can’t wait to do this for thanksgiving.
Thank you Trisha!
What a gorgeous looking apple pie! Pinning and thanks for sharing!
The recipe sounds delicious and it looks gorgeous! How pretty this would be served for any fall dessert. Thanks for partying at Snickerdoodle. Pinned and Tweeted.
What a stunning pie!! I’ve yet to try making pie on my own, but I sure do admire the handiwork of more accomplished bakers such as yourself- lovely presentation! Thanks for coming by the 100th Snickerdoodle Sunday- hope you entered our Amazon Gift Card contest. And please come back this weekend with your latest makes & bakes. 🙂
Sarah (Sadie Seasongoods)
This is beautiful. Thank you for joining Foodie Friends Friday. Hope to see you again next week!
Thank you Lois!
I have never seen a prettier apple pie! I love this so much that I’m featuring this post at the next Share The Wealth Sunday blog hop! I’m sharing it on my FB page as well. Thanks so much for linking up with us and have an awesome weekend!
xoxo
Lisa @ Fun Money Mom
Thank you so much Lisa!
That looks way too gorgeous to eat!
But so delicious we had to haha! I just made my husband cut it! 😉