While apple pie is my favorite dessert, crumble toppings are my favorite.
Of everything. Ever.
Apple pie knows no seasons and that is exactly why I don’t wait around for Fall every year to enjoy it. I wanted to share something a little different that still embodies everything I love about traditional apple pie and definitely deserves a spot in your favorite Thanksgiving pie recipes. Today’s apple crumble pie:
- Has a buttery, flaky crust.
- Has a rich apple filling that’s juicy, compact, sweet, and cinnamon-spiced.
- Is topped with a brown-sugary, buttery, toasty walnut crumble.
- Is the perfect spot for vanilla ice cream.
- Is the purpose of life.
Video Tutorial
Preparing it? Well, that’s a piece of cake pie.
Start with my go-to pie crust. ← Pie crust recipe, video, step-by-step photos, and tips included! The apple filling is nothing out of the ordinary. Very, very simple. Fresh lemon juice, apples, flour, spices, and sugar. For a more complex, interesting flavor, I suggest using a variety of apples. I always use a sweeter apple like Fuji, Pink Lady, or Honeycrisp and a tart variety like Granny Smith. Here is a complete list of the best apples for baking.
- My #1 tip? Make sure your apple slices are around the same thickness. You don’t want some super thick apples (that won’t really cook) and some super thin apples (that will become mushy). Aim for around 1/4-inch thickness.
The crumble topping is a bunch of ordinary ingredients like brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, and butter that, when combined, make something extraordinary. The whole truly is greater than the sum of its parts.
Baking = chemistry.
And now apparently, philosophy too.
The crumble topping complements the apple filling perfectly. What really makes it stand out are all of the toasty walnuts. I’ve been using Diamond of California walnuts since I was little. It’s all my mom kept in the pantry to throw into her oatmeal raisin walnut cookies. Though I much preferred chocolate chips in my oatmeal cookies when I was 10, I’m all about nuts in desserts now. And you’ll LOVE what the toasted walnuts* add to this pie.
*They toast as the pie bakes!
I do not skimp on the crumble topping. This is serious.
The more buttery, crisp, sweet topping = the more you have to enjoy with melty vanilla ice cream. This crumble topping also makes a wonderful substitute to streusel toppings made with oats, you can cut this topping recipe in half to use on caramel apple cheesecake pie!
Something you’ll notice about most pie recipes. Not all, but most. Most pies begin at a higher oven temperature. Putting a pie into a very, very hot oven helps the crust brown. After 20 minutes or so, reduce the temperature. This helps allow the pie’s filling to cook thoroughly before the crust burns. Cool, huh?
See that beautiful decorative edge on the pie? So simple to create by fluting the extra pie dough that overhangs the edges. See my full how to flute pie crust tutorial for all the details.
PrintApple Crumble Pie
- Prep Time: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
- Total Time: 6 hours, 50 minutes
- Yield: one 9-inch pie
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Deep dish apple crumble pie is heavy on the crumble topping!
Ingredients
- Homemade Pie Crust (recipe makes 2 crusts; you can halve the recipe or freeze the 2nd half)
- 8–10 cups apple slices (1/4-inch slices, see note)
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) lemon juice
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Crumble Topping
- 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 3/4 cup (94g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 3/4 cup (95g) chopped walnuts
- 5 Tbsp (71g) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
Instructions
- The crust: Prepare my pie crust recipe through step 5.
- Make the filling: In a large bowl using a rubber spatula or wooden spoon, stir the apples, lemon juice, flour, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, sugar, and vanilla extract together until thoroughly combined. Set filling aside as the oven preheats; this time allows the apples to begin letting off their juice.
- Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C).
- Roll out the chilled pie dough: On a floured work surface, roll out one of the discs of chilled dough (if you made the entire pie dough recipe, you can freeze the other half of the dough at this time). Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls until you have a circle 12 inches in diameter. Carefully place the dough into a 9×2 inch pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Spoon the apple filling into the crust, leaving some of the liquid in the bowl—you don’t want all that in the pie. Use a small paring knife to trim excess dough off the edges. Flute the pie crust edges.
- Make the crumble topping: In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, flour, and walnuts. Using a rubber spatula, stir in the butter. The crumble topping will be thick and crumbly. Sprinkle over apples.
- Place the pie onto a large baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Keeping the pie in the oven, turn the temperature down to 375°F (190°C) and bake for an additional 30-35 minutes. After the first 20 minutes of bake time, I place a pie crust shield on top of the pie to prevent the edges from browning too quickly.
- Allow the pie to cool for 3 full hours at room temperature before serving. This time allows the filling to thicken up. Serve with vanilla ice cream if desired. Cover pie leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: This a great pie to make 1 day in advance—after it cools, cover tightly and keep at room temperature. The pie crust dough can also be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Baked and cooled pie freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Rubber Spatula or Wooden Spoon | Rolling Pin | 9-inch Pie Dish | Pie Crust Shield
- Apples: You need about 5-6 large peeled apples. Peel then slice apples in a uniform thickness, about 1/4 inch thick. You don’t want some solid apples and some thin, mushy apples. For best flavor, use a variety of apples such as Granny Smith, Honey Crisp, Fuji, and/or Pink Lady.
- Adapted from Salted Caramel Apple Pie.
Hello Sally! I have made this pie about a half a dozen times now and each time its been absolutely, lip smacking delicious! It was my go too sweet thing this past winter while I was pregnant! I am curious to know it it would be possible to combine this pie with your blueberry crumble pie? I plan on just making half of each filling then mixing it together and see what happens but I thought I would ask for your advice anyways!
Thank you!
YUM!!! That would be absolutely delicious. Half apple, half blueberry, mixed together under delicious crumbs. I say go for it! Let me know how it turns out.
WHOA BABY! This pie is unbelievably delicious! Is it wrong to lick the plate?! The combination is sweet/tart apples and spices are just perfection. I also loved the contrast of flaky crust and buttery crum topping. O.M.G!!! This pie is everything! I think this just topped my list of pregnancy cravings and fear I’ll now struggle in the weight department from here on out.
Can I just say that I am a Central European and whilst we do all variations of apple cakes, I have never made the apple crumble pie before.
Long story short, I made the apple crumble pie for my husband last week and it was JUST HEAVENLY.
So much so, I am making another one for my church coffee shop. A big hit!
Hi! I’ve made this recipe for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and just an hour ago because my family couldn’t get enough of it. Amazing pie, and turns out great every time. I also started putting an egg wash on the edges of the crust so it turns a nice golden brown. Amazing pie, and I will be sharing with everyone I know lol!
Do you think this recipe could easily be converted to muffin tin mini pies? If so how do you think the baking would change? Thanks!!
Absolutely! Individual mini pies baked in a standard 12-count muffin pan usually take around 25 minutes at 350F. Rotate the muffin pan halfway through bake time.
Hi,
can you tell me how I can change this recipe to make either mini pies or hand pies ? For individual servings for Thanksgiving.
Hi Nisreen! I recommend using a muffin pan for mini pies. Individual mini pies baked in a standard 12-count muffin pan usually take around 25 minutes at 350F. Rotate the muffin pan halfway through bake time.
You can also try my apple hand pies recipe.
I’ve been using your recipes the last year! So Amazing! We have a nut allergy over here. What lease could I use instead! Thank You! ❤️
Hi Sarah! You can simply leave out the nuts or add some oats instead.
i made this today and served it this evening after our dinner to my mother-in-law. My son who is a loves to rate things out of 10 got everyone to give me their points and they all absolutely loved it! The pie crust reminds me of my grannys which made this just perfect. Thank you for sharing. I must look through your other recipes so that i can continue baking for others xx
Hi! Can I make these into bars instead of a round pie shape? If so, what size dish should I use?
Thank you!
Hi Hillary! This recipe makes a deep dish style apple pie and it would be too much for apple pie bars. I recommend making my apple pie bars recipe. You can use this crumble topping instead of the oat streusel if you’d like!
Hi Sally,
I’ve always added ground oatmeal (not whole pieces) to my apple crisps & pies. Is there a reason you prefer not to use any oatmeal?
Btw, my son & I made your overnight cinnamon buns this morning. We didn’t do the overnight version but baked them right away. They are absolutely the best cinnamon bun recipe ever! I’ve always made a cinnamon bun that wasn’t quite as Rich more of a light bread dough and had never added cream cheese to the glaze. I’ll never go back to the old recipe again!
Thanks,
Mary
Thanks Mary! I love those cinnamon rolls. This is more of a crumb crumble on top vs a streustel crumble (which typically has oats). If you’d like an oat streusel topping, try this one: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/2017/07/21/blueberry-crumble-pie/
Can I use frozen apple slices?
I don’t suggest it– fresh is best.
Hi, my crumble is not very crumbly! It’s more like a paste. Any tips for getting it to resemble crumbs? Thanks!
Hi Liesel! Did you alter the crumble recipe at all? You can always add more flour to help form crumbs. The paste would be from too much wet and not enough dry.
Hi Sally,
My daughter is allergic to walnuts. If I leave them out, do you recommend any adjustments to the ingredients in the topping? Thanks!
Nope! No changes necessary if you leave out the walnuts.
I always find my walnuts in the topping burn! Do you have any advice for combatting this?
Lower the oven temperature slightly and cover loosely with foil 🙂 That will help!
I rarly comment on recipies, but I have made this pie numerous times since I found it on your website a couple of years ago; everyone agrees, including me, it takes the “award” for best pie ever — thanks!! Setting up for a few hours is a great trick, too – really helps the pie settle so it slices easily – looks lovely. I follow the recipe as posted except I double the topping to ensure there is plenty of that deliciousness to cover the entire top generously!
Oh my this was a very pleasant surprise to our Thanksgiving dinner. I followed the recipe but I added about 1/4 oats to the topping to give it a more “crisp” like dessert and then I drizzled caramel over the top. What an easy and fantastic dessert.
I made this recipe for Thanksgiving. It was my first time making a pie and it was amazing! I followed the instructions exactly. There isnt anything I would change!
What could I use instead of a pie crust shield? Aluminum foil?
Yep, aluminum foil works.
I made this with pink lady and granny smith apples and used anjou pears as well. It was amazing! I’ve had requests to bring it to all 3 of the Thanksgiving dinners we will be attending this year!!! Thanks for a fantastic recipe 🙂
Hi there, I assembled the pie fully and popped it in the freezer in hopes of just throwing the whole thing in the oven on Wednesday for Thanksgiving. How much baking time should I add for a frozen pie?
I’d say 20 minutes.
This is a GREAT pie. Thank you. Your tip about cutting the apples to the same size is excellent. Pur your recipe I always use 3 different kinds of apples. Just like making good bourbon, they add many different barrels to the mix
Yes yes! I do this all the time. You can freeze the unbaked pie, then bake the frozen pie. Just tack on some extra bake time.