⁘ anna bakes cupcakes ⁘

perfected apple pie

classic apple pie with soft apple pie filling and all butter crust

crust recipe from Sally's Baking Addiction

filling recipe from Spend with Pennies


baked in November 2025

yield: one pie
prep time: 2 hours
cook time: 1 hour 5 minutes
difficulty level: hard

Ingredients

Pie Crust


Filling


Directions

For the pie crust:

  1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt together.
  2. Add the cold cubed butter on top. Using a pastry cutter, food processor, or two forks, cut or pulse the butter into the dry ingredients until it resembles coarse meal. You’re looking for pea-sized bits of flour-coated butter. A few larger bits of butter is OK.
  3. Drizzle the cold water over the surface of the flour mixture, 1 Tablespoon at a time, and stir after each addition. Stop adding water when the dough comes together easily and begins to form large clumps.The dough will feel moist and a little sticky, but not feel overly wet. Do not add any more water than you need to. I always use about 1/2 cup (120ml) of ice water.
  4. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. Using floured hands, gently bring the dough mixture together into a ball. Avoid overworking the dough. If it feels too dry or is too crumbly to form a ball, dip your fingers in cold water and then continue bringing the dough together. If it feels too sticky, sprinkle on a little more flour and continue bringing it together.
  5. Using a sharp knife or bench scraper, divide the dough in half. Using your hands, gently flatten each half into a 1-inch-thick disc.
  6. Wrap each disc tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 5 days before using in a pie recipe.
  7. After refrigerating, the dough is ready to roll out and use in a pie recipe. Proceed with the pie per your recipe’s instructions. TIP: When rolling out the chilled pie dough discs, use gentle force with your rolling pin. Start from the center of the disc and work your way out in all directions, turning the dough with your hands between rolls. Smooth out the edges if you notice cracks. (See video.) Keeping your work surface, rolling pin, and hands lightly floured makes rolling out easier.

For the filling:

  1. Peel, core, and chop or slice apples.
  2. Melt butter and cinnamon over medium heat. Stir in apples, sugar & water.
  3. Cover and cook stirring occasionally for 4-6 minutes or until very slightly softened.
  4. In a small dish combine cornstarch and 4 Tablespoons water. Add to the pan while stirring and continue to cook until apples are soft (not mushy) and filling is thickened.
  5. Let bubble 1 minute. Cool.

To assemble the pie:

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F with pizza stone on bottom rack.
  2. On a floured work surface, roll out one of the discs of chilled dough (keep the other one in the refrigerator). Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls until you have a circle 12 inches in diameter.
  3. Carefully place the dough into a 9-inch pie dish that’s 1.5 to 2 inches deep. Tuck the dough in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth.
  4. Spoon the filling into the crust. It’s ok if it is still warm from the precooking step. It will seem like a lot of apples; that’s ok. Pile them high, and tightly together.
  5. Remove the other disc of chilled pie dough from the refrigerator. Roll the dough into a circle that is 12 inches diameter.
  6. Using a pastry wheel, sharp knife, or pizza cutter, cut strips of dough.
  7. Carefully thread the strips over and under one another, pulling back strips as necessary to weave.
  8. Use a small paring knife or kitchen shears to trim off excess dough.
  9. Fold the overhang back towards the center of the pie, and pinch the edges to adhere the top and bottom crusts together.
  10. Crimp or flute the pie crust edges to seal.
  11. Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash. Sprinkle the top with coarse sugar, if using.
  12. Optional: Refrigerate the pie for 20–30 minutes to help set the lattice’s shape.
  13. Bake the pie on the pizza stone with parchment paper underneath (to catch any juices) for 25 minutes.
  14. After 25 minutes, keeping the pie in the oven, reduce the oven temperature to 375°F. Add a pie crust shield (or aluminum foil) to prevent the edges from over-browning.
  15. Continue baking until the pie is golden brown and the filling is bubbling through the lattice, 35–45 more minutes. If you want to be precise, the internal temperature of the filling taken with an instant-read thermometer should be around 200°F when done.