Indulge in the quintessential taste of autumn with this irresistible Apple Pie featuring a luscious homemade caramel sauce. This timeless classic is a guaranteed crowd-pleaser, boasting a rich, buttery, and flaky pastry encasing perfectly spiced, tender apples, all crowned with a generous drizzle of golden caramel. It’s the ultimate comfort dessert, perfect for cozy evenings, festive gatherings, or simply elevating any day of the week.
As the vibrant hues of autumn paint the landscape, and a crisp coolness fills the air, there’s no better way to embrace the season than by baking a heartwarming pie. And what could be more iconic, more comforting, or more utterly delicious than a classic apple pie? Our recipe takes this beloved dessert to an extraordinary level, pairing it with an easy-to-make, rich caramel sauce that truly transforms every bite into a moment of pure bliss.
The days are growing shorter, and the evenings invite us to snuggle indoors. This time of year awakens a special kind of excitement, offering the perfect excuse to indulge in simple pleasures like baking. There’s something uniquely satisfying about the aroma of cinnamon and baked apples wafting through your home, promising warmth and comfort. This apple pie isn’t just a dessert; it’s an experience, a delightful embrace of the season’s charm.
Apple Pie: A Timeless Culinary Masterpiece for Every Occasion
There are some recipes that become instant favorites, cherished year after year, and this apple pie is undoubtedly one of them. Its simplicity is its strength, offering consistent, delectable results every single time. It’s the kind of reliable recipe you’ll return to again and again, cementing its place as your go-to pie. The magic begins with the first whiff of apples baking with aromatic spices, instantly conjuring feelings of home and happiness.
Imagine a heavenly combination: tender, sweet-tart apples infused with warming spices, all nestled within a wonderfully crumbly, rich, and buttery pastry. If that isn’t enough to tempt your taste buds, picture it generously drizzled (or lavishly poured, if you’re like us!) with a velvety homemade caramel sauce. This added layer of sweetness and depth transforms a humble apple pie into an extraordinary dessert that truly elevates any meal.
Simple Ingredients, Exceptional Flavor: Crafting Your Perfect Apple Pie
One of the many beauties of this apple pie recipe is that it calls for only a handful of straightforward ingredients. Chances are, most of what you need is already waiting in your pantry or fridge, making it an accessible bake for anyone, any time. Let’s dive into the core components that make this pie so special.
The Foundation: Our Flaky Pie Pastry Recipe
Every great pie starts with an exceptional crust, and ours is no exception. This pastry recipe has been carefully adapted to ensure a tender, flaky, and buttery texture that perfectly complements the apple filling. While this particular adaptation includes egg yolks for added richness and structure, achieving a delicious vegan pastry is remarkably simple. Just omit the egg yolks entirely and opt for a high-quality vegan butter or baking spread. If you find your vegan pastry mixture a bit too crumbly, a tiny extra tablespoon of olive oil can help bring it together, but typically, the cold water addition will suffice. The goal is a dough that’s pliable but still tender.
For those times when you’re pressed for time or prefer a quicker route, don’t hesitate to use ready-made, pre-rolled shortcrust pastry. Many brands offer excellent vegan options, making this a convenient shortcut without compromising too much on taste. Just be sure to check the ingredients to ensure it meets your dietary preferences.
Choosing the Perfect Apples for Your Filling
The choice of apple is paramount to a truly exceptional apple pie. For our recipe, we consistently reach for Granny Smith apples. These classic “green apples” are renowned for their firm texture and delightfully tart flavor, making them an ideal candidate for baking. Their ability to hold their shape exceptionally well during baking is crucial; it ensures your pie filling remains beautifully textured, avoiding a mushy consistency. Furthermore, Granny Smiths are incredibly versatile and widely available in most grocery stores and supermarkets, making them an easy choice.
However, if Granny Smiths aren’t your preference or readily available, other excellent baking apples include Honeycrisp, Braeburn, or even a mix of varieties for a more complex flavor profile. The key is to select apples that are firm and offer a good balance of sweetness and tartness. Alternatively, for ultimate convenience, you can also opt for a high-quality canned apple pie filling. This canned apple pie filling recipe provides a fantastic base if you’re looking to enhance a store-bought option or create your own from scratch using canned apples!
Crafting Perfection: How to Make Apple Pie with Caramel Sauce from Scratch
Creating this stunning apple pie with caramel sauce is a rewarding process, broken down into manageable steps. Starting with the pastry ensures it has ample time to chill, which is a crucial step for a flaky crust.
Begin by preparing your homemade pastry. In a food processor, combine the flour, butter (or vegan butter), and a pinch of salt. Pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Gradually add 5 tablespoons of ice-cold water, pulsing until the dough just comes together to form a ball. If mixing by hand, gently rub the butter into the flour, then gradually add water, stirring with a wooden spoon until a dough forms. Shape the dough into a disk, wrap it tightly in cling film, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. This chilling period is vital for a tender, flaky crust, allowing the gluten to relax and the fats to firm up.
While your pastry is chilling, turn your attention to the aromatic apple filling. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, your chosen warming spices (cinnamon and mixed spice work beautifully), and cornflour. The cornflour acts as a thickening agent, preventing a watery filling. Add your peeled, cored, and sliced apples to the bowl and gently toss everything until the apples are evenly coated with the spice mixture. Set this aside, allowing the flavors to meld.
Mastering the Art of Rolling Your Pastry
Once your pastry has thoroughly chilled, remove it from the refrigerator and place it onto a lightly floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out approximately two-thirds of the pastry disk into a circle about 30 cm (12 inches) in diameter. Aim for a thickness similar to a £1 coin (roughly 3 mm). This portion will form the bottom crust of your pie. The remaining pastry will be reserved for creating the decorative lattice top.
Carefully drape the rolled pastry over your rolling pin, lightly dusted with flour, and then gently unroll it into your tart tin or pie dish. Press the pastry gently against the bottom and sides of the tin, ensuring it fits snugly into all the crevices. Trim any excess pastry from the edges, but whatever you trim, save those precious offcuts! They are perfect for crafting delightful Pie Crust Cookies – a wonderful, crispy treat to enjoy with your afternoon tea, ensuring no delicious scrap goes to waste.
If you’re looking for a dessert that offers the comforting flavors of apple pie but with less effort, consider trying an Apple Pan Dowdy. This “deconstructed” pie often uses ready-made pastry, making it an excellent choice when you’re short on time but still crave that warm apple goodness.
Once your pie dish is lined, spoon the apple filling evenly into the pastry-lined tin, mounding it slightly in the center. Next, roll out the remaining pastry into a rectangle, again about 3 mm thick. Use a sharp knife or a pastry wheel to cut ten even strips for your lattice topping. A classic “over and under” lattice is always elegant and surprisingly simple to achieve. However, feel free to unleash your creativity! For inspiration and various lattice styles, this article on Food 52 offers fantastic ideas to experiment with different looks, making your pie truly unique.
The Grand Finale: Baking and Caramel Drizzle
With your beautiful lattice top in place, prepare for the final flourish before baking. Lightly brush the pastry with an egg wash (for a golden sheen) or, if you’re making a vegan version, use a plant-based milk like almond or oat milk. Then, generously sprinkle the entire top with caster sugar. This sugar caramelizes during baking, adding an extra layer of sweetness and a delightful sparkle to your crust. Bake your pie for approximately 40-45 minutes, or until the crust is a rich golden brown and the filling is bubbling invitingly.
While the pie bakes, turn your attention to the star accompaniment: the homemade caramel sauce. This rich, buttery sauce is incredibly quick and easy to prepare, and it truly elevates the apple pie experience. Its warm, gooey embrace is the perfect complement to the spiced apples and flaky crust.
Any leftover caramel sauce (if such a thing exists!) can be transferred to an airtight container or a squeeze bottle and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Before serving it again, a gentle warming in a bowl of hot water or a quick zap in the microwave will bring it back to its luscious, pourable consistency.
This apple pie with caramel sauce is more than just a dessert; it’s a celebration of comfort, flavor, and the joys of home baking. Serve it warm, perhaps with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream, and watch it disappear. It’s perfect for family dinners, holiday gatherings, or simply treating yourself.
Thank you for joining us on this culinary journey. We hope you enjoy baking and savoring this delightful recipe as much as we do! We’d love to hear about your experience – please feel free to leave a comment and a rating if you try this recipe. You can also connect with us and share your creations on our Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook pages!
Wishing you a wonderful week filled with delicious bakes, until next time!
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Apple Pie with Caramel Sauce
Equipment
- 23 cm loose bottom tart tin or pie dish
Ingredients
For the Apple Filling:
- 700 g cooking apples (e.g., Granny Smith, peeled, cored, and sliced)
- 30 g caster sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon mixed spice (e.g., nutmeg, cardamom, allspice)
- 2 tablespoons cornflour
For the Flaky Pastry:
- 400 g plain flour (plus extra for dusting)
- 200 g cold butter (or dairy-free butter/spread for vegan)
- 6 tablespoons ice-cold water (plus more if needed)
- 1 egg yolk (optional, omit for vegan pastry)
- 2 tablespoons caster sugar (for sprinkling on top)
- 1 tablespoon milk or plant-based milk (for brushing the crust)
For the Homemade Caramel Sauce:
- 200 g caster sugar
- 60 g butter (or dairy-free butter for vegan)
- 130 ml heavy cream (or soya cream/oat cream if vegan)
Instructions
To Make the Pastry & Assemble the Pie:
- In a food processor, pulse together the flour, cold butter (and egg yolk if using), and a pinch of salt until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add 5 tablespoons of ice-cold water (and the egg yolk, if using) and pulse until the pastry just comes together into a cohesive ball. If making by hand, rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips, then stir in the water with a wooden spoon. Shape the pastry into a disk, wrap tightly in cling film, and chill in the refrigerator for a minimum of 35 minutes until firm.
- While the pastry chills, prepare the apple filling. In a medium bowl, combine the caster sugar, ground cinnamon, mixed spice, and cornflour. Add the peeled, cored, and sliced apples and toss until all the apple pieces are evenly coated. Set aside.
- Preheat your oven to 200°C (180°C fan / 400°F). Remove the chilled pastry from the fridge. On a lightly floured surface, roll out approximately two-thirds of the pastry disk into a 30 cm (12-inch) circle, about 3 mm thick. Carefully roll the pastry around your rolling pin and unroll it into your 23 cm tart tin or pie dish. Gently press the pastry into the tin, trimming any excess from the edges. Save these pastry offcuts.
- Spoon the apple filling into the pastry-lined pie dish, mounding it slightly in the center.
- Gather the reserved pastry offcuts and roll them out into a rectangle, also about 3 mm thick. Cut 10 even strips for the lattice topping. Arrange the strips in a lattice pattern over the apple filling (a simple “over and under” weave works wonderfully). Brush the lattice top with milk (dairy or plant-based) and generously sprinkle with the remaining 2 tablespoons of caster sugar.
- Bake for 40-45 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and the filling is bubbling. If the crust browns too quickly, you can loosely tent it with foil. Let the pie cool slightly on a wire rack before serving.
For the Homemade Caramel Sauce:
- In a heavy-based frying pan or saucepan, combine the 200g caster sugar with about 4 tablespoons of water. Place over medium heat and stir gently until the sugar dissolves completely. Increase the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil without stirring. Allow the mixture to bubble for 3-4 minutes, watching carefully, until it turns into a rich amber caramel. Immediately remove from heat and carefully stir in the cream (dairy or plant-based) and butter (dairy or dairy-free). Be cautious as the mixture will bubble vigorously. Continue stirring until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly, it will thicken as it cools.
Please note that all my recipes are developed and tested in metric grams for accuracy. I strongly recommend using digital scales for the most reliable results. While I have provided a conversion to US customary measurements in the recipe, please be aware that I have not personally tested the recipe using this method.
Notes
*For convenience, you can use ready-made, pre-rolled shortcrust pastry. You’ll need either a 500g block or two sheets of 320g pastry. Any leftover pastry can be used to make decorative elements like leaves, flowers, or charming pie crust cookies.
*If you’d like a visual guide on creating a beautiful lattice pattern, check out this recipe for detailed instructions.
*Any excess caramel sauce can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Reheat gently before serving to restore its pourable consistency.