Part of the fun of making apple pie is it allows you more flexibility than the standard frozen pie you’d buy. Do it yourself, and you can customize with your pick of our apple pie filling ideas, use your choice of apples, and choose your favorite crust. We’ll walk you through all the totally doable steps of making homemade apple pie. Just be sure to have the vanilla ice cream ready for all of the a la mode action.
Pick Your Type of Apple Pie
Before you dive into how to make apple pie from scratch, you need to choose the type of apple pie you want. Making a Dutch apple pie is slightly different from an apple pie with a lattice topping, but the core concepts and initial layers can be similar. Take a peek at our best apple pie recipes for inspiration.
The Best Apples for Apple Pie
The type of apples you’re baking with determines the amount of sugar to use in your filling. Because Granny Smith apples are more tart than Golden Delicious apples, you’ll want to use an additional ¼ cup of sugar. Get our tips on choosing and prepping apples for pie here. So what are the best apples for apple pie? Braeburn, Cortland, Gala, Golden Delicious, Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Jonagold, and Pink Lady all work wonderfully. And if you have a variety, no need to worry about keeping things exclusive! We love featuring a combo of sweet and tart varieties of these best apples for apple pie (say, Jonagold for tart and Honeycrisp for sweet). There’s only one type of apple we’d recommend steering clear of in your apple pie recipes: Red Delicious. They don’t accentuate the other ingredients because they don’t have that lovely tart quality that other options on our best apples for apple pie list do. Also, their texture tends to end up too mushy.
How to Make Apple Piecrust
One of the best tricks to making apple pie from scratch was discovered in our Test Kitchen: Prep your piecrust before you get your apple pie filling going. The longer that filling sits before you pop it in the oven, the more liquid it will likely release—resulting in a watery pie. Working with cold ingredients (especially water and butter) is also essential for the best crust results. We love this all-butter piecrust, or you can go with the traditional all-shortening pastry. Graham cracker crust, nut crusts, or any crushed cookie-based crust are also options if you don’t want a pastry topping. If you’re using a store-bought refrigerated piecrust (no judgment; some days we do this, too!), let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before unrolling. Working with a too-cold crust will make it tougher to work with and more likely to tear. Carefully lay your piecrust of choice in your pie pan.
How to Make Apple Pie Filling
To determine just how many apples to make a pie, a good guideline is that 1 medium apple yields about 1⅓ cup sliced apples. Most of our apple pie filling ideas call for 6 cups of sliced apples. To get this amount, you’ll need to start with about 5 medium apples. Follow the instructions for how to make apple pie filling called for in your recipe, then layer the apples you just made rather than dumping them in the crust. This will allow for even placement and prevent gaps that might lead to unequal slices or a domed top crust.
How to Make Apple Pie Topping
Depending on the type of apple pie you selected, this is where you can really get creative. Here are a few of our favorite variations that are super showy:
Double crust A single piecrust Dutch apple pie crumble topping Cinnamon roll apple pie
If you’re using double-crust pastry methods, you might want to consider these showy special edge ideas. Test Kitchen Tip: If using a double crust, cut several slits into the top before baking it to allow steam to escape and prevent excessive bubbling.
How to Bake Apple Pie
Now it’s time to ace that bake. Follow the time and temperature listed in your apple pie recipe (usually around 40 to 60 minutes, and may involve a temperature change part-way through to avoid overbaking), and keep these tips in mind:
Preheat a pan. To speed up the baking process and help the top and bottom crusts cook evenly, place a baking sheet in the oven as it preheats. Once your oven is at the correct temp and your apple pie is assembled, carefully place your pie on top of that sheet pan to bake. Bake until golden. Fruit pies are done when the crust is golden brown, and the filling is bubbly. As an additional test, gently pierce a knife through the crust into an apple slice or two—the fruit should be tender. Cover up. If you notice that the edges of your piecrust are browning quicker than you’d like, fold a 12-inch square of foil into quarters, then cut a 7-inch circle out of the center. Unfold the foil and mold it loosely over the pie’s edge. Or invest in a reusable shield.
How to Serve Apple Pie
Allow your apple pie (and any fruit pie, for that matter) to cool at least two hours before cutting. This way, slices are less prone to falling apart, and fewer juices will seep out. Whether you top it with ice cream, whipped cream, or a simple dusting of powdered sugar, you can slide that apron off, pop those slippers on, and feel proud that you’re now a pro at making apple pie from scratch.
