This deep dish apple pie recipe features layers upon layers of sweet spiced apples nestled in a buttery flaky pie crust. Top with vanilla ice cream for the ultimate homestyle dessert.
Apple pie is my favorite pie on the planet. It’s my favorite of all the Thanksgiving pies, and I certainly don’t limit it to the fall season. I’ve been making this deep dish apple pie recipe for years and easily consider it to be the best apple pie. That is, of course, if we’re not counting salted caramel apple pie. The recipes are pretty similar, but the other includes salted caramel. I’m ALL about that!
Deep Dish Apple Pie
Today we’re diving deep… and I mean super deep… into homemade apple pie. Deep dish style should be the only pie style. The higher the layers of apples, the better. If apple pie doesn’t tower over the pie dish edge, it’s just not worth it. But did you know that there’s a craft to deep dish apple pie? You can’t simply add more apples to any apple pie recipe.
And let’s take some time to discuss that.
Start With Quality Pie Crust
You need a sturdy crust to sandwich all those apples. Whether you’re a pie crust beginner or pro, I encourage you to read through my pie crust recipe. There is nothing quite like homemade pie crust and my grandmother’s recipe has consistently proven its authority over the past several decades. It’s our family’s favorite and I’ve been using it ever since I could lift a rolling pin.
This recipe uses a mixture of butter and shortening to provide a quality combination of sturdy, flaky, and buttery. I also have an all butter pie crust if you’re interested. But for best taste and texture, swear by using both shortening and butter. You can taste the difference.
Deep Dish Apple Pie Filling Ingredients
This deep dish apple pie has a deliciously gooey, sweet, spiced, and layered apple filling. These next few ingredients are my go-to ingredients for most apple pie recipes. (Even my apple cheddar pie, too!)
- Apples – It’s best to use a variety of apples in apple pie. Just like when we make apple cake, I recommend using half tart and half sweet. I love tart Granny Smith apples paired with a sweet variety such as Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Jazz, or Fuji. Here is a complete list of the best apples for baking.
- Spices – Apple pie isn’t apple pie without warm spices like cinnamon and nutmeg. It also isn’t apple pie without a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, but we’ll get to that in a second. Add allspice to the filling for a little something extra.
- Lemon – A touch of lemon is crucial in apple pies. Not enough to taste the lemon, but just enough to prevent the apples from browning and to keep the flavor bright.
- Sugar – Sugar sweetens the pie filling.
- Flour – Flour thickens the pie filling.
How to Make Deep Dish Apple Pie
- Roll out the bottom pie dough. Tuck the dough into a deep dish pie pan. Refrigerate as you prepare the filling. Remember, cold pie dough is key to pie making.
- Make the filling. Stir all of the filling ingredients together in a large bowl. An optional step, and something I’ve been doing more recently, is to pre-cook the filling on the stove for just a few minutes. This begins to soften the apple slices, and helps to meld the flavors together. I find it makes for a juicier, and more flavorful filling!
- Pile the filling into the pie dish. Don’t just pour the apples in. Instead, make sure the apple slices are compact inside. Tuck them in tightly so there’s hardly any air pockets.
- Add the top pie crust. I have a whole tutorial on how to lattice pie crust, which is how I topped this pictured pie. Alternatively, you can make a double crust pie by laying the 2nd rolled out pie crust on top. Slit some vents on top with a sharp knife.
- Flute the edges. If you’re unsure how, I show you how I flute edges in the video on my all butter pie crust page. You could also simply crimp the edges with a fork. I used to trim the edges of pie crust before fluting or crimping, but I don’t anymore. I like a thick-style pie crust edge!
- Brush with egg wash. Egg wash is a combination of egg and milk and gives the pie crust its golden sheen. Pie crust looks very dull without it. For a little crunch and sparkle, I always add a touch of coarse sugar on top too.
- Bake: Bake the deep dish apple pie until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling through the vents, about 1 hour. Baking the pie at an initial high temperature helps set the crust. After about 25 minutes, lower the oven temperature.
- Cool: The longer you let apple pie cool, the more the filling will set. I recommend cooling for at least 3 full hours before slicing and serving.
3 Tips for Deep Dishing
- Uniform Size Apples: Make sure your apple slices are uniform in size. Why? You don’t want some thick solid apples and some thin mushy apples. You want them all to be a deliciously crunchy-soft texture. Aim for about 1/4-inch thick slices. If the apple slices are too thin, they’ll just pack themselves down and you’ll lose all deep dishiness. –> the accurate term here.
- Use a Ton of Apples: This sounds like a no-brainer, but you’d be surprised how many apple slices can fit into a pie crust. Pile them so high that it looks ridiculous.
- Use the Correct Pan: My all-time favorite pie dish is deep-dish style, but perfect for regular (non-deep-dish style) pies as well. You want a pie dish at least 2 inches tall.
Each bite of this pie is stacked with sweet spiced apples. There’s clearly no shortage of apple slices, so if you’re crazy for apple pie, this is a must in your baking future. Top it with vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of salted caramel because you and I don’t mess around when it comes to dessert. A dollop of whipped cream would be excellent here, too! 🙂
More Classic Pie Recipes
- Salted Caramel Apple Pie
- Lemon Meringue Pie
- Pecan Pie
- Blueberry Pie
- Coconut Cream Pie
- Key Lime Pie
- Pumpkin Pie
Deep Dish Apple Pie
- Prep Time: 3 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 7 hours
- Yield: 8-10 servings
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Deep dish apple pie features layers and layers of delicious apple slices and a buttery flaky pie crust!
Ingredients
- Homemade Pie Crust (my recipe makes 2 crusts; 1 for bottom 1 for top)
- 8–9 large apples, cored, peeled, and sliced into 1/4-inch slices (11–12 cups, or 1375–1500g total)*
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup (31g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled)
- 1 Tablespoon (15ml) lemon juice
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon each: ground allspice & ground nutmeg
- egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk
- optional: coarse sugar for sprinkling on crust
Instructions
- The crust: Prepare my pie crust recipe through step 5.
- Make the filling: In a large bowl, stir the apple slices, sugar, flour, lemon juice, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg together until thoroughly combined.
- Optional pre-cook: Pour the apple filling into a very large skillet, or dutch oven, and place over medium heat. Stir and cook for 5 minutes until the apples begin to soften. Remove from heat and set aside. This step is optional, but I’ve found it makes for a juicier, more flavorful filling because it helps begin to soften the apples. If you can, take the few extra minutes to do this, because the flavor is worth it!
- 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 9×2-inch pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Spoon the filling into the crust. It’s ok if it is still warm from the precooking step.
- Finish assembling: Remove the other disc of chilled pie dough from the refrigerator. Roll the dough into a circle that is 12 inches diameter. Lattice the pie crust. Crimp or flute the edges to seal.
- Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with the egg wash. Sprinkle the top with coarse sugar, if using.
- Place the pie onto a large baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes. After the first 25 minutes of bake time, I place a pie crust shield on top of the pie to prevent the edges from browning too quickly. Keeping the pie in the oven, reduce the temperature to 375°F (190°C) and bake for an additional 35–40 minutes until the crust is golden-brown.
- Remove the pie from the oven and set it on a wire rack. Allow the pie to cool for 3 full hours at room temperature before slicing and 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 fillings can also be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Large Skillet or Dutch Oven (for optional pre-cook) | Rolling Pin | Pie Dish | Pastry Brush | Pie Crust Shield
Keywords: apples, Thanksgiving, pie
Hi Sally ! I’m going to make your deep dish apple pie and I wondered if I could bake it at 375 the entire time (instead of 400 for 20 minutes first). What would the bake time be at 375 only ? Asking because I’m also baking pumpkin pie and that is cooked at 375 so want to allow all pies to be in the oven at the same time. Let me know please !!
Hi Michelle, Baking the pie at an initial high temperature helps set the crust, we found this to work best for this pie and recommend it if at all possible. We’re unsure of the bake time without that step, but the bake time will be slightly longer.
Sally, thank you for answering my last question so quickly! I appreciate it! One more thing, is there a pie shield you recommend? Thank you!!!
Hi Barb! We usually just use pieces of tin foil to keep the edges from burning – but a pie shield works great, too! Let us know if you find one you love.
I just made this pie. The dough became a bit soft and warm just from me working w it and it’s warm in my kitchen. I placed the prepared pie in the fridge to let it kind of chill before baking. Is that the right thing to do? Thank you! Ps…I love all of your recipes, Sally! You’re my faithful go to!!!
Hi Barb, you’re on the right track! Always feel free to stick the dough back in the fridge to help cool it down if it’s becoming too warm and the fats are starting to melt. Hope you enjoy the pie!
Just wondering if I can assemble this pie and freeze it?
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Hi Eoanna, you can freeze the assembled pie before baking. No need to thaw before baking, especially if you’re using a quality pan like a glass pyrex or disposable pan. The bake time will be a little longer.
Love this Apple Pie recipe! Third time making today and added a bit more sugar and a few pats of butter on top of the apples before I topped with the crust. I now have my forever Apple Pie recipe, thank you!!!
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Hi Sally!
Are the oven temperatures fan-forced?
Thanks so much!
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Hi Melanie! All of the recipes on this site are written for conventional settings. Convection ovens are fantastic for cooking and roasting. If you have the choice, we recommend conventional settings when baking cakes, breads, etc. The flow of air from convection heat can cause baked goods to rise and bake unevenly and it also pulls moisture out of the oven. If you do use convection settings for baking, lower your temperature by 25 degrees F and keep in mind that things may still take less time to bake.
Hi Sally,
Love all your recipes!!! Question about dish- my glass Pyrex pie dish seems to be 9 in by 1 1/2. Given I’m not using a 2 inch, will I have overflow? Would you recommend using an 8” metal cake pan or cast iron skillet instead?
Hi Laura! You will likely have a bit of extra filling — you could freeze the extra filling for another time, or you could use our salted caramel apple pie recipe instead (omit the salted caramel if desired). We don’t recommend a cake pan or cast iron skillet. Let us know what you try!
Hey Sally!
Does this have to be made with a lattice crust or could I do a full crust, and just make a few slits on the top?
Hi Alex, you can make this pie with a full crust top as you mention. Enjoy!
Thanks. Can’t believe you answered so quickly. I will obviously take your advice.
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I recently made a strawberry/rhubarb pie. The top crust was perfect, but the bottom almost dough like. I was thinking of par baking the crust for this apple pie. Thoughts?
Hi Duncan! There is no need to blind-bake the bottom crust for this recipe. The filled pie is in the oven long enough to properly cook it. However, if you would like to par bake the crust, you certainly can. It’s tricky to attach the top crust after par baking.
Hi Sally!
Is this pie with your braided crust able to be made the day before, kept in the fridge, and then baked the next day?
Thanks!
Kim
Hi Kim! Yes, up to 1-2 days in the refrigerator is completely fine for this assembled pie before baking. Enjoy!
I was really excited to try this recipe, but somehow i think i screw it up. I followed everything except that I used limes instead of lemons ( since we don’t have another kind here in my country) and the filling turned out tasting… bitter. Like old lemonade-ish that’s about to spoil. It had a bad aftertaste. I was really sad. I wonder if it was the zest as well. I don’t know. I’m lost. Overall is a wonderful recipe. I’m just feeling dissatisfied with my personal attempt. Thank you though.
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Getting ready to make this tomorrow and have Saigon / Vietnamese / Organic and McCormick cinnamon. Never knew until last year when I started buying different ones how different they could really taste. With the above cinnamon which would you advise.
Hi Margi, we usually use McCormick cinnamon, but please let us know how it goes if you try one of the other varieties!
I love apple pie! I usually eat Dutch Apple. However, I’ll have to try this. It looks so yummy!
I’d leave out the cloves which overpower the pie. Will not use this recipe again— a waste of time and money.
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Hello Sally! I was wondering if I can know the total weight of apple used (in grams, already cored and peeled).
Plus, I cannotfind shortening here. Can I use all butter for the pie or I should reduce a bit the quantity of butter? (I have read in your post about the dough that the shortening gives a better crust – but here is nowhere to be found 😀 )
Thanks!!!! Chiara
Hi Chiara, We are unsure of the exact weight of the sliced apples. If you use 6-7 whole apples and slice them, you will have enough (this doesn’t have to be an exact amount!). You can use our all butter pie crust instead!
I have made this pie twice already! I have one in the oven right now. It’s so easy to make and taste fantastic. I love the easy to follow directions and the note section.
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This is a terrific recipe! I made only a minor change in the ingredients: I used light brown sugar instead of granulated white. I also made a minor change in the technique: I mixed the flour, sugar and spices in a small bowl and then added this mixture a little at a time to the apples. This ensures that the apples are all coated the same way.
Hi Sally….I’ve taken up baking since I retired last year and really following your recipes on your web site. Today was first ever attempt at a deep dish apple pie. Everything seem to go well. Comments from my official taste tester (aka my beautiful wife) was the filling was to soft and it seemed to be a little over spiced. I used only granny apples. Looking for a few pointers to improve for the next time….thanks so much.
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Hi Sally..I’ve taken up baking as one of my retirement hobbies and have become somewhat addicted to your easy to follow web site. This was my first attempt at making a pie. Everything seem to go well except my apple filling was way to soft and the comments from my number one test taster (aka my beautiful wife) was the filling was to soft and it was a little over spiced. I used only granny apples. What can I try different the next time?
Thanks so much!!
Hi Michael, thank you so much for trying this apple pie recipe. If you try it again, feel free to reduce the amount of cinnamon and/or allspice, cloves, and nutmeg. Reducing the bake time or cutting thicker slices of apples should help keep the filling firmer. (It’s possible yours may have been over-baked?)
Hello Sally, I am 13 years old and I just made this recipe and I love it!! It is perfect for a Christmas family gathering. Thank you and have a merry Christmas!!:)
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I made this pie for Thanksgiving, and it was very good! In retrospect, I should have added more apples to it, but it tasted great anyway (I used Honeycrisp and Granny Smith apples). I had a hard time with the lattice, the dough kept breaking while doing it, I guess it was too warm?
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Hi Luciana, We are so happy you enjoyed this recipe! Yes, the colder the dough the easier it is to work with. You may find the post How to Lattice Pie Crust helpful if you try it again.
Hi Luciana, I had this problem to. Just add a little bit more water to your dough.
This was my first time making apple pie and it turned out awesome. Hands down best apple pie I’ve ever had! Especially the crust is to die for! Thank you, thank you, thank you for being such a reliable source for baking!
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Hi Sally,
I absolutely love your recipes. I look at a bunch of different ones every time I want to try something new, but yours are always the one I select! They are easy to follow, always come out great and you have great tips that I need being new to this baking thing over the last year. Always a hit! I even bought your cookbook, love that too! Making this recipe for second time for Thanksgiving, Thank you for being such a great resource!
P.S. I prepared more apples this time, you’re right, never too many apples!!
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I’m torn between making this deep dish apple pie with a braided lattice crust and your apple crumble pie. What are your thoughts on somehow combining the two? Maybe sprinkle the crumble on top or under the lattice…too much?
Hi Caitlin, I don’t think it’s necessary to use both a crumble topping AND top crust. That may overpower the apples. However, you can certainly try it if you’d like. Crumble topping under the lattice should be ok, but make sure the filling doesn’t overflow. You may want to use only a small amount of crumble topping or slightly reduce the apple filling.
My FAVORITE apple pie! I have tried a handful of other recipes and felt none of them got it quite “right”. This one was a hit and I can’t wait to make it over and over again!
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Hi Sally! I just have to say I’ve been following your recipes for a loooong time and they never disappoint. So I’m super excited to make an apple pie for the first time this Thanksgiving. Does the All Butter Crust Recipe work well with this also?
Hi Christina, thank you so much and good luck with your first ever apple pie! The all butter pie crust works with this recipe, but I strongly recommend my butter/shortening pie crust. It’s a lot easier to work with, especially if you’re a beginner!
Made this pie a while back and it was a huge hit. I would like to make this a week in advance so I will be freezing it but if I wanted to warm it up, is it possible?
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Hi Kimberly, After the pie has been frozen you can thaw it overnight in the refrigerator and then if you wish to serve warm pie you can reheat it a warm oven (you may need to cover the top so it doesn’t get too brown). Enjoy!
I just tried this recipe, the pie is in the oven as we speak. I am super excited as i love all of your recipes!
I have some questions:
-If I want to make two pies next time, are all of the proportions the same (for crust and pie contents)?
-I did not have all spice so I use 1/2 tsp of apple pie spice (has cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice), 1/4 cloves, and the 1.5 tsp cinnamon. Should I do it different next time or just purchase allspice?
-Any tips for how to tell its done other than baking time-my oven temp fluctuates so I have a thermometer to watch it, but I was wondering if there was anything equivalent to checking with a toothpick like we do with cakes?
Thank you so much!
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Hi There!
I really liked this recipe, your crust recipe combined with this recipe was very good…but…I really wanted more “sauce” in the pie. Is there something I could add to make sure there’s more of that gooey yummy sauce…? I didn’t think the pie was overly sweet (I used Galas and Granny Smiths) So maybe just 1/4 c more sugar to the filling….? Thx!
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Hi Paula, Thank you for trying this recipe, we are happy you enjoyed it! You can certainly add more sugar if you wish. Make sure your apples are sliced to 1/4 inch and If you decide to use some of the juices that collect in the bottom of the bowl instead of discarding them, I recommend using a glass pie dish so that you can see the bottom crust to make sure it’s fully cooked and not soggy. I hope this helps!