A tall, old-fashioned deep dish apple pie with a flaky homemade crust and layers of tender, cinnamon-spiced apples. Pre-cooking the filling keeps the apples juicy yet firm, giving you a bakery-style pie that slices cleanly every time.
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3 to 3 1/2lb (1.3 to 1.6 kg)baking applesUse 3 different varieties of apples such as Granny Smith, Golden Delicious, Gala, Northern Spy, Jonagold, Honey Crisp, and Braeburn
1tbsp (15 ml)fresh lemon juice
3/4cup (150 g)sugar
1/3cup (70 g)light brown sugar
1/4tsp (1.5 g)salt
4tbsp (32 g)cornstarch
3/4tsp (2 g)cinnamon
granulated sugar or sparkling sugarfor sprinkling
For the egg wash
1largeegg yolk
2tsp (10 ml)water
Instructions
Make the Homemade pie dough recipe and chill according to the instructions while preparing the filling. Adjust oven rack to bottom third position and preheat oven to 400˚F.
For the apple filling
Peel, remove cores and thinly slice apples to make 12 cups in volume.
In a large shallow pot or skillet, add the apple slices, and gently toss with lemon juice, granulated sugar, light brown sugar, salt, cornstarch, and cinnamon, until well combined.
Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until apples are tender when poked with fork but still hold their shape, about 5 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, about 15-20 minutes.
To roll out the pie crust
On a floured work surface, roll out one of the chilled pie dough disks (keep the other one in the fridge) to a 13-inch diameter. Roll out the other pie dough disk into a circle that is about a 12-inch diameter. This will be the top crust.Tip to prevent the soggy pie crust bottom: Brush the bottom of the pie crust with the beaten egg white (if using). Then keep it in the fridge while you roll out the top crust.
To bake the apple pie
Reclaim the bottom crust from the fridge and put the cooled apple filling on it. Cover the pie filling with the top crust. Trim or arrange the loose crust around the edge of pie pan. Crimp or flute the edges to seal.
Lightly brush the top crust with the egg wash. Sprinkle the top with granulated sugar or sparkling sugar. Cut a few slits on the top to allow steam to escape during baking.
Put the pie on a spacious baking sheet and bake for a total of 60 minutes until it turns golden brown. Around 40 minutes into baking, inspect the pie crust for excessive browning. If necessary, gently cover the pie with a aluminum foil tent to prevent further browning, and then continue baking for the final 20 minutes.
Allow the pie to cool to room temperature, about 2-3 hours before serving. This will allow the filling to thicken up. Serve your pie with vanilla ice cream.
Notes
Pie Baking Reminders
Bake on the lower third oven rack for even crust browning.
Place a foil-lined sheet pan under the pie to catch drips.
Cover loosely with foil if the top crust browns too quickly.
A baking steel/stone under the pie dish helps crisp the bottom crust.