Description
Cranberries, apples, cinnamon spice, and a buttery homemade pie crust makes this apple cranberry pie one of my favorite fall recipes.
Ingredients
- homemade pie crust (my recipe makes 2 crusts; 1 for bottom 1 for top)*
- 3 large apples, cored, peeled, and sliced into 1/2-inch slices (about 6–7 cups of slices, or 750–875g)
- 1 and 1/2 cups (187g) fresh or frozen cranberries
- 3/4 cup (150g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (14g) cornstarch
- 1 teaspoon fresh orange zest
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 2 Tablespoons (30g) unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk
Instructions
- The crust: Prepare my pie crust recipe through step 5.
- Make the filling: Stir the apples, cranberries, granulated sugar, cornstarch, orange zest, cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg together in a large bowl. Set filling aside as the oven preheats.
- 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 (keep the other one in the refrigerator). 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-inch pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Spoon the filling into the crust, leaving any excess liquid in the bowl (you don’t want that in the filling—discard it). Dot the pieces of butter on top of the filling. Stick in the refrigerator until ready to cut the lattice.
- Arrange the lattice: Remove the other disc of chilled pie dough from the refrigerator. Roll the dough into a circle that is 12 inches diameter. Using a pastry wheel, sharp knife, pizza cutter, or this fun ribbon cutter, cut strips 1 or 2 inches wide. Remove the pie from the refrigerator and carefully thread the pie dough strips over and under one another, pulling back strips as necessary to weave. Press the edges of the strips into the bottom pie crust edges to seal. Use a small knife to trim off excess dough. Crimp or flute the pie crust edges. See recipe notes for making the braid or apple shapes! (Alternatively, you can simply cover the filling with the 12-inch pie dough circle. Cut slits in the top to form steam vents. Trim and crimp the edges. Or crumble topping (from apple crumble pie) or streusel topping (from peach pecan crisp) would be great as well.)
- Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash mixture.
- Place the pie onto a large baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Keeping the pie in the oven, turn the temperature down to 350°F (177°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. Cover leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: A couple ways to make ahead of time! 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 pie also freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. Prepared filling can also be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Peeler | Citrus Zester | Glass Mixing Bowl | Rolling Pin | 9-inch Pie Dish | Pizza Cutter, Pastry Wheel, or Ribbon Cutter | Pastry Brush | Pie Crust Shield | Fall Shapes Pie Crust Cutters
- 3 Pie Crusts: If you’d like to make the apple shapes and/or the braided edge, I recommend working with 3 pie crusts in total. 1 for the bottom, 1 for the lattice, and 1 for the braid + apples. So make my pie crust recipe twice.
- Pie Crust Apples: On a floured work surface, roll the crust out into a large circle, about 1/8 inch thickness. Using an apple cookie cutter, cut into shapes. Place directly on top of pie crust before baking OR bake separately. To bake separately, brush each lightly with the egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar (that’s optional). Place onto a parchment paper or silicone baking mat-lined baking sheet and bake at 350°F (177°C) for 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove and set aside to cool before decorating pie.
- Braided Pie Crust Edge: With a sharp knife or pizza cutter, cut six 14-inch-long, 1/4-inch-wide strips. Gently braid three strips. Brush edge of crust with egg wash, then carefully place braid around half of the pie and press lightly to secure. Repeat with remaining strips, then attach the two braids by pressing one into the other. Brush it all with egg wash. Here’s my full tutorial on how to braid pie crust.