Deep-Dish Apple Crisp Pie
To be completely honest, I still think the saying “easy as pie” is ridiculous. (Which is why you might have noticed that the pie category here is currently a little underpopulated.) Fillings I can do. That’s all about understanding flavors and combinations, sometimes employing some cooking skills, and often leveraging a bit of science to get the right texture. Crust? Crust takes practice — or at least making it with confidence does.
This is why, for more years than I can count, my go-to desserts were crisps and crumbles. Rhubarb, peach with a bit of fresh ginger, mixed berries, tart cherry with an almond streusel topping, and my fall-favorite, a cinnamon-laden apple. I experimented with varying the topping — walnuts, pecans, sliced almonds, no nuts, even flaked coconut once on a ‘dump cake’ inspired cherry-pineapple, and a range of texture from loose and evenly spread to clumped into large, crunchy nuggets. Except for a time or two underestimating just how juicy a particular fruit might be and winding up with soupier results than intended, I really never met a crisp/crumble I didn’t like.
This little stroll down Memory Lane and the cooling PNW weather is making me ready to whip up a crisp or two for the blog! But first, this pie.
Conventional wisdom discourages us from serving something we’ve never made before to guests at a dinner part. Grandpa is not really good at listening to popular advice, especially if it discourages us from having fun. Besides, I was essentially just putting apple crisp into a pie shell, right? Fun!
Understand, dear reader, that I tell you this not as a brag but by way of encouraging you to take risks and play — one of our guests said it was the best apple pie he’d ever eaten (and later said he was still thinking about it weeks later). I’ve made this pie twice for family dinner parties and left with an empty pie plate — partly because my brother-in-law had three slices each time. Now, that is why we bake.
Enjoy!
These are some of the items I find especially helpful for this bake. (These are affiliate links.)
Cuisinart 13-Cup Food Processor
King Arthur All-Purpose Flour
OXO Good Grips Silicone Balloon Whisk
Nielsen-Massey Pure Vanilla Extract
Deep-Dish Apple Crisp Pie
makes one 10” deep-dish pie
TOPPING INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup good quality all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cold butter, cut into chunks
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon good quality vanilla extract
1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (or pecans, if you prefer)
FILLING INGREDIENTS
6 large apples, peeled and cored, thinly sliced (preferably a mix of Granny Smith and your choice of a semi-sweet crisp variety)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 light or dark brown sugar
1/4 cup good quality all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon allspice
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Generous pinch of salt
INSTRUCTIONS
Prepare the crust according to instructions. Keep well chilled until ready to use.
Toss the apples in the lemon juice and set aside.
Prepare the topping. In a food processor, pulse the flour, nutmeg, salt and butter until pieces are pea-sized. Add the remaining ingredients and pulse just until the mixture begins to clump. Set aside.
With the rack set in the center of the oven, preheat the oven to 375º. Place a foil-lined baking sheet on the bottom rack (just in case).
In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, flour and spices. Add the apples to the bowl, stirring to coat well. Spoon the apples into the prepared crust, gently shaking the dish to settle the apples and adjusting slices to fill gaps.
Squeeze the topping mixture tightly into large handful clumps, then break and disperse over the pie, leaving some bigger chunks. Fill any gaps with the smaller clumps and the remaining topping.
Cover the pie loosely with foil and bake for 45 minutes - 1 hour, until filling is beginning to bubble. Remove the foil, rotate the pie, and bake for another 15-30 minutes until the crust and topping are golden.
Allow the pie to cool at room temperature for several hours before slicing and serving. (If making ahead, cool to room temperature before refrigerating.)
NOTE — Pie crust recipes are everywhere (and generally, totally reliable), so I’m not even going to attempt to reinvent the wheel here. I will say that I am a proponent of using both butter and shortening. And in case you haven’t found one you love, I have two worthy of recommendation. I’ve long relied on America’s Test Kitchen’s Foolproof Pie Dough, and was recently VERY impressed with the results of the smearing method that Martha Hall Foose uses in her Screen Doors and Sweet Tea cookbook. I used it in making this pie. (Plus, the book is worth buying for her Molasses Ginger Cookie recipe alone!)
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