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Classic Apple Pie
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Classic Apple Pie

Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 1 hour 20 minutes
Refrigerating & Cooling Time: 5 hours
Total Time 7 hours 20 minutes
Servings 1 pie
Author Pam - For the Love of Cooking

Equipment

  • Large Skillet with Lid
  • 9-Inch Pie Crust
  • Baking Sheet

Ingredients

  • 2 store-bought pie crusts
  • ¼ tsp lemon zest
  • Juice from half a lemon about 2 tbsp
  • 5 lbs. apples, peeled, cored, and sliced thinly (about 11 large apples) (I used a mix of Honeycrisp, Granny Smith, and Gala apples) ***5 pounds before peeling and coring*
  • ¾ cup brown sugar packed
  • ¾ cup white sugar
  • 5 tbsp all-purpose flour
  • ¼ tsp kosher salt
  • 1½ tsp cinnamon
  • ¾ tsp nutmeg
  • ½ tsp cardamom optional
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1 tbsp milk for brushing on the pie
  • 1 tbsp beaten egg optional, for brushing on the pie
  • 1 tbsp raw sugar or turbinado sugar for topping the pie

Instructions

  • Prepare the filling by combining the lemon zest and lemon juice in a large skillet.
  • Peel the apples and slice them into ⅛-inch pieces.   Side Note: Peeling and slicing one apple at a time, then tossing them in the lemon juice, so they don't get brown, and then move on to peeling the next apple.
  • Cook the apples in the large skillet over medium heat. Getnly stir in the brown and white sugars, flour, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cardamom.
  • Once the mixture is all moistened and you don't see patches of flour or cinnamon, set a timer for 20 minutes. Cover the mixture with a lid, and stir the mixture every 3-5 minutes, replacing the lid each time, adding water if the apples stick to the skillet. After 20 minutes, the apples should be fork-tender but still hold their shape.  Side Note: The apples will finish cooking while baking in the oven. 
  • Remove the pan from the heat and stir in 1 teaspoon vanilla.
  • Transfer the apple pie filling (including all the brown caramel gooeyness) to a rimmed baking sheet and spread the apples all the way to the edges.
  • Completely cool the apple pie filling by placing it in the fridge or the freezer; it only takes 30 minutes.
  • Roll out your pie dough and place it in a deep 9-inch pie dish, with any excess hanging over the edges.
  • Use a rubber spatula to scrape up every last bit of the chilled apple pie filling into the pie dish.
  • Top your pie with the other pie crust, crimping the edges and cutting a few vents in the center.
  • To make a lattice top crust, roll out the second crust and cut out strips using a pizza cutter. You can make the strips as wide or as thin as you want.
  • Weave your lattice by taking every other strip of pie dough and laying it across your pie, with a little space in between each strip.
  • Peel back every other strip that is on your pie, all the way to the edge.
  • Lay an edge piece of dough perpendicular to the others, tucked up right against the edge. Replace the peeled-back strips of dough to lay flat on top of the pie.
  • Take the strips that are underneath and peel them back. Lay out your next strip of dough. Replace the peeled-back strips.
  • Continue until the pie is completely woven.   Side Note: If at ANY point your pie dough becomes soft, place everything in the refrigerator. If you have a strip that tears, use a tiny bit of ice water to patch it with your fingers.
  • Fold up and crimp the edges, if you have them. Our crust was not overhanging, so we tucked it in the best we could.
  • Place the whole pie in the refrigerator for  30 minutes for a really flaky crust.
  • Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Place a baking sheet on the center rack of your oven while it preheats to make sure it’s really hot.
  • Right before putting the apple pie in the oven, mix the milk and egg well, then brush the top crust all over with it.
  • Sprinkle the whole pie with raw sugar, turbinado sugar, or white sugar.
  • Bake by placing the chilled pie on the heated baking sheet in the oven and bake for 15 minutes. The crust on the edge should be turning light brown.
  • Meanwhile, get a square of foil that is the same size as your pie. Fold it in half, then in half again. Cut out the center. Open it up again. You should have a square of foil with a circle cut out of the center.
  • Reduce the heat to 350 degrees. Remove the pie from the oven and place the foil on top.  Side Note: This helps prevent the crust from burning.
  • Place the pie back on the baking sheet in the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 40-45 more minutes. Side Note: You will know the pie is done when the edges are brown, and the center is light golden brown. If you did a lattice crust, you should see the filling bubbling away nicely.
  • Let the pie cool on a wire cooling rack for about 4 hours.  Side Note: You must wait for it to cool to room temperature to achieve the right texture for the filling; if not, the filling will spill out.
  • Slice and serve with vanilla ice cream and whipped cream.