The Best Apple Crumb Pie Ever

Do you know what fresh crisp fall mountain apples bring???? APPLE CRUMB PIE.

But not just Apple Crumb Pie, THE BEST APPLE CRUMB PIE EVER!

I hope you enjoyed seeing the orchard where we buy our apples each fall. I use the apples from there to make this apple crumb pie almost every year. This pie is like taking a bite into fall, made with deliciously crisp fall mountain apples, baked coated with brown sugar, and warm spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. This pie is crowned with a buttery, brown sugar, and cinnamon crumb topping, making it an all-time favorite apple recipe.

I originally shared this apple crumb pie recipe back in the October 2013. As you may have seen from some of my other posts, I have been revisiting a lot of recipes that I may have already shared and trying to see if I can improve them.

I have made this apple crumb pie a lot and I have always used “Golden Delicious” apples, as specified in the original recipe. Last weekend, I made this pie for the second time this season, but this time I changed the recipe up a bit, by using a tart cooking apple called “Greening”. We found this variety of apple in a bin during our visit at Hartland Orchard. The sign described them as a tart cooking apple; similar to the “Granny Smith” apple. David and I both adore Granny Smith apples because of their tartness. I figured they would be perfect for the apple crumb pie.

I cannot begin to tell you the difference it made in the taste of this delicious apple crumb pie! Golden delicious apples are pretty sweet to start out with. When making this apple crumb pie, you add more sugar to the apples and in my opinion, it’s just a little too sweet. The tart Greening apples broke up some of the sweetness of the pie. The slight tartness made the taste of the apples pop, instead of masking them in a sugary syrup.

It is quite amazing how the type of apple turned this apple crumb pie into the best apple crumb pie ever! 

How To Make The Best Apple Crumb Pie Ever

Arrange a rack in the lowest slot of the oven and preheat the to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Dice the butter for the crumb topping into small pieces with a knife; place the diced butter back into the refrigerator to chill, until needed.

Prepare the pie crust:

Fit the pie crust into a Deep 9-inch pie plate and crimp edges. Refrigerate the pie shell, until you are ready to add filling.

Prepare the Crumb Topping**:

Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, cloves and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Use a whisk to ensure there are no lumps. Add the chilled butter to the flour/spice mixture. Using your fingertips, begin to pinch the butter into the flour/spice mixture, until a crumbs form. It will take a minute or two. When the mixture looks like moist beach sand, you are done combining. Refrigerate, until needed.

I cannot stress enough how important it is to keep the butter for the crumb topping as cold as possible. I made this in August, on one of those upper 90 degree days. The kitchen was hot and I was rushing to get the pie in the oven before our friends arrived. I overworked the crumb topping and it looked more like sandy coated cat turds than it did crumbs. Regardless of how it looked it still tasted good. Just sayin’..

Prepare the Apple Filling:

In a very large bowl, toss apples, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg together. Ensure all of the apple slices are coated with the sugar mixture.

My hands were the best tool for the job. The apple slices do not stick together when the brown sugar mixture is on both sides of each slice.

Assemble and Bake the Apple Crumb Pie:

Remove the prepared pie crust from the refrigerator. Spoon the filling into crust, forming a mound towards the center. Remove the crumb topping from the refrigerator. Toss to loosen it up. Top the apple filling with the crumb topping. Place the pie on top of the foil-lined baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, reduce temperature to 350 degrees F. Bake for an additional 30 more minutes, or until fruit is tender. If the edges of the crust get too brown, tent the pie with aluminum foil. This may be needed during the last 15 minutes of baking.

Let the pie cool for at least 1 hour, before slicing.

When cool, dust with powdered sugar and serve with fresh whipped cream or ice cream (optional).

Store at room temperature.

Notes:
*This pie is best with a tart cooking apple. Greening, Granny Smith, Jonathan, Jonagold or McIntosh work best, but use golden delicious if desired.

**When making the crumb mixture it is very important to not get the butter too warm by overworking it. Keep the butter chilled as much as possible and only use your fingertips when mixing it into the sugar and spices. You can use a fork, pastry cutter or even pulse in a food processor, but I found that my fingertips are perfect for getting the job done and with less mess! You want the texture of the crumb mixture to resemble moist beach sand. Refrigerate, until needed.  

This pie is a great way to celebrate fall and perfect for the upcoming holidays. It also pairs well with a nice glass of Pinot Noir, not that I would know…. hiccup!

So what are you waiting for? Go buy some apples and try this recipe!! You will not be sorry; it’s the best apple crumb pie ever!

Sharing the recipe over at Fiesta Friday. Come on over and join in on the fun!

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The Best Apple Crumb Pie Ever

Take a bite into fall, with the best apple crumb pie ever! Made with crisp fall mountain apples baked under crumbs of buttery, brown sugar and cinnamon.

Course Dessert

Cuisine American

Keyword apple, Crumb, Pie

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour

Total Time 1 hour 30 minutes

Servings 12

Calories 585kcal

Author Debbie Spivey

Ingredients

• 15 ounce pie crust prepared refrigerated

The Crumb Topping:

• 1 ½ cups unsalted butter cut into pieces (1½ sticks)
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ¾ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 pinch ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg fresh grated

The Filling:

• 6 tart cooking apples* peeled, cored and cut into ⅛-inch slices
• ¾ cup packed light brown sugar
• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 pinch ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated
• powdered sugar for serving (optional)
• Fresh whipped cream or ice cream for serving (optional)

Instructions

• Arrange a rack in the lowest slot of the oven and preheat the to 375 degrees F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.
• Dice the butter for the crumb topping into small pieces with a knife; place the diced butter back into the refrigerator to chill, until needed.

Prepare the pie crust:

• Fit the pie crust into a Deep 9-inch pie plate and crimp edges. Refrigerate the pie shell, until you are ready to add filling.

Prepare the Crumb Topping**:

• Combine flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, cloves and nutmeg in a medium bowl. Use a whisk to ensure there are no lumps. Add the chilled butter to the flour/spice mixture. Using your fingertips, begin to pinch the butter into the flour/spice mixture, until a crumbs form. It will take a minute or two. When the mixture looks like moist beach sand, you are done combining. Refrigerate, until needed.

Prepare the Apple Filling:

• In a very large bowl, toss apples, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg together. Ensure all of the apple slices are coated with the sugar mixture.

Put Together the Pie:

• Remove the prepared pie crust from the refrigerator. Spoon the filling into crust, forming a mound towards the center. Remove the crumb topping from the refrigerator. Toss to loosen it up. Top the apple filling with the crumb topping. Place the pie on top of the foil-lined baking sheet and bake at 375 degrees F for 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, reduce temperature to 350 degrees F. Bake for an additional 30 more minutes, or until fruit is tender. If the edges of the crust get too brown, tent the pie with aluminum foil. This may be needed during the last 15 minutes of baking.
• Let the pie cool for at least 1 hour, before slicing.
• When cool, dust with powdered sugar and serve with fresh whipped cream or ice cream (optional).

Notes

*This pie is best with a tart cooking apple. Greening, Granny Smith, Jonathan, Jonagold or McIntosh work best, but use golden delicious if desired.

**When making the crumb mixture it is very important to not get the butter too warm by overworking it. Keep the butter chilled as much as possible and only use your fingertips when mixing it into the sugar and spices. You can use a fork, pastry cutter or even pulse in a food processor, but I found that my fingertips are perfect for getting the job done and with less mess! You want the texture of the crumb mixture to resemble moist beach sand. Refrigerate, until needed.

Store at room temperature.

Nutrition

Calories: 585kcal | Carbohydrates: 70g | Protein: 4g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Cholesterol: 61mg | Sodium: 205mg | Potassium: 191mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 36g | Vitamin A: 15.2% | Vitamin C: 5.1% | Calcium: 4.5% | Iron: 11.5%

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