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.
Original recipe has to salt in crumb top or apples- I added 1/2 teaspoon to both because everything benefits from a little salt
Wonderful!! I’ll never need another apple pie recipe, although I recommend reducing the cloves to 1/8 tsp. They were a bit overpowering, but still delicious!!
Thank you so much! I am sure it will taste as good as it looks.
I’ve made this pie twice now following the recipe exact and the baking temps and times seem off. It’s not a matter of the crust getting too brown, but the issue is with the crumble seeming practically burnt (very dark) with some of the walnuts for sure turning black. It definitely doesn’t look like the pictures on this post. I see others have commented on the issue of the crumble getting over baked, as well. Maybe this recipe needs another look and update?
Hi Julie, Thank you for trying this recipe. Did you turn your oven temperature down to 375 after the first 20 minutes? If you try again you can try using a lower rack of your oven, lower the oven temperature slightly, and cover loosely with foil. That will help!
Do you blind bake this pie crust first or just fill it and bake?
Hi Amy, we do not blind bake the pie crust first with this recipe.
Hi Sally,
I love this pie! Do you have any suggestions for a cinnamon substitute? Someone at my Thanksgiving is allergic.
Thanks!
Hi Julie, instead of cinnamon you could try nutmeg, ginger, cloves, or a similar warm spice.
Hi Sally, I was looking for a pie recipe for thanksgiving and found this recipe. I will have to bake a day before because of our travel plan. How can I keep the crumble topping crunchy the next day? I don’t want a soft crumble on my pie.
Hi Anna, This a great pie to make 1 day in advance– after it cools, cover tightly and keep at room temperature. We haven’t had issues with the crumble getting soft.
Made this today, it’s in the cooling stage….my crumble top got really dark, only cooked it for that additional 32 minutes after the initial 20 at 400 degrees. I did not leave any loose crumble it began a more solid crumble once the butter was added. Hopefully will taste okay but I’m unhappy with how dark the top is.
Hi Kris! If you try this apple crumble again, you can try tenting the pie with foil halfway through baking (or when you notice the crumble getting dark) to prevent it from browning. Hope you love it!
I apologize if this has already been asked but to avoid soggy bottom with this pie, should the bottom crust be par-baked in addition to leaving some of the liquid from the apple mixture out? Thank you in advance!
Hi Jona, there’s no need to par-bake this pie, the crust will cook with the apples. Hope you love it!
Thank you! One more question. If I want to make the filling in advance, how far in advance can I make it and also, will making in advance affect the texture of the apples since we aren’t cooking the apples a bit prior to baking?
Hi Sally, love all your recipes! I’ve made this pie a few times in the past, always in a glass pie dish and it comes out perfectly every time! I’m bringing this to a party and I want to bake it in a disposable foil tin so I don’t have to worry about getting my dish at the end of the night. I’ve read a few different articles saying that the foil tin bakes differently than the glass. do you think I can prepare the pie in the foil tin and then place it all into a glass dish to bake? Or do you think that would cause something weird to happen? I appreciate any guidance you can give!!
Hi Liana! We’d caution against baking it within two pans, as the pie may not bake evenly that way. Glass pie dishes usually take a bit longer, so keep an eye on your foil tin and know that it might take a bit less time than when you make it in a glass dish. Hope this helps!
This pie was a super hit. I usually make a double crust apple pie but this one is so much better. Now my go to apple pie! Thanks Sally
The perfect recipe!
I found this pie to be too sweet. Perhaps the crumble topping was a bit much. I think i would definitely back off on the sugar in the topping.
Followed instructions precisely and apples were still crunchy. Also, the nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon were very overwhelming. Totally masked the apple flavor. I would cut back on those flavors if making pie again. Not sure what to do about the apples being undercooked. My slice of cut pie didn’t look like photo. Completely fell apart. I think I should have layer the apples instead of dumping them in the pie.
Can you make the crumble part without the walnuts? Would you add more of something else or simply just remove the one ingredient?
Hi Shauna, You can make a streusel topping which uses oats instead of nuts. Follow the instructions for the topping on our Apple Pie Bars.
All I had was self rising flour, but it looks amazing & smells good too!!
Huge fan Sally! Your recipes are not only amazingly tasty but your step by step instructions fill me with confidence. For this recipe, would you be able to suggest a nut-free crumble topping? I’m making this for a coworker who has a pretty hefty nut allergy.
Hi Christiana, You can make a streusel topping which uses oats instead of nuts. Follow the instructions for the topping on our Apple Pie Bars.
Thank you so much! I love that Apple Pie Bar recipe!
Nice recipe. I didn’t like the walnuts in the crumble – probably would leave out next time. Just my preference.
thank you for the wonderful apple crumble pie recipe and pie crust. at 60 years old i made my first home made pie. i was allways scared to tackle because my mother in law was a great baker. i was afraid i couldn’t do it . so thank you for giving me the confidence. it was great and gonna be making many more pies
Yet another delicious recipe, thank you Sally! LOVE the crumb topping and your pie crust!
Used coconut sugar instead of granulated to ensure it wasn’t too sweet. The apples are slightly crunchier than I prefer and wondering if I can plop it back in the oven after refrigerating?
Hi Danica, you can pop the pie back into the oven to reheat, yes. That should help soften up the apples a bit too. Glad you enjoyed this pie!
Made this recipe from Sally for the 2nd time last night.
I added 2 extra apples and piled them higher towards the middle before adding the crumble (very carefully).
I did not adjust the measurements of the other ingredients, but made sure to tent the pie in foil 20 mins after baking to prevent burning.
Because I loaded this pie with extra apples, it took a little more time to get the filling to start bubbling.
Sally is definitely my first choice on baking recipes, and I can’t see myself looking elsewhere.
Thank you again Sally! ☺️
First time making an apple crumble pie. The crumb topping turned out very dry for me. Next time, I’ll use less of it. I also used only 1/8 tsp of cloves and nutmeg but still feel like the cloves are too dominant.
the only problem is the cloves
I didn’t have a toothache so I left that out!!!
its taste pretty good
I just took the pie out after the first 20 minutes and the nuts were burnt on top. Not sure what I did wrong. I covered it loosely with foil and hope it won’t continue to burn.
My crumble got dark too 🙁
Fabulous! Once I learnt the framework of this recipe, I made it with and without pie crust and even vegan using plant based butter twice in a ramekin. This is a wonderful recipe and tastes divine! Thank you for this recipe!
Butter crust is ridiculously yummy and the “guts” of this pie are just the right amount of sweet and spice!
Hi there! Wondering if I could use this recipe to make just an apple crumble, not an apple crumble pie. Could I omit the crust and leave everything else the same?? Thank you!!
Hi Nadira! That should work just fine. Bake in a greased 9-inch pie dish or 9-inch square baking pan. The bake time may be a little shorter.
Hi Sally,
Would pecans work as a substitute for walnuts for this recipe?
Absolutely! Same amount.
Hello! If I want to make the crumble in a casserole dish instead of a crust, do I need to alter the recipe to account for the lack of crust? Thank you!
Hi Sally,
I was wondering if I should change the cooking temps or instructions if I am using a pre made stovetop pie filling prepared ahead of time?
Hi Maranda, We haven’t tested this pie with pre-made filling but you can follow the directions on your package for the filling. You will likely need to pre-bake the pie crust as your whole pie won’t need to bake as long.
Hi Sally! May I ask if it is possible to make a smaller version of this pie? Like a 6 inch version? Would the baking time change?
Hi Nini, Yes you can make a smaller version. I’m unsure of the exact bake time needed for a 6 inch pie but it will be less.