Apple Crumble Pie with a Couple of Secrets in the Crumb Topping!
Happy Fall, y’all! Today, we’re revisiting one of my favorite pie recipes: Apple Crumble Pie. I originally posted this November 20, 2019, but the blog and the pictures left a little to be desired. So, today, we’re cutting out all the irrelevant fluff and putting in some gorgeous new shots. Read on!
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Why Apple Crumble Pie?
This recipe started my best intentions to master a Dutch Apple Pie. But, here’s the thing: this is not a Dutch Apple Pie. It’s a little more like an apple crumble in a pie crust. It’s all the gorgeous apple flavor combined with a caramel filling and the pumpkin streusel topping from my loaf cake recipe.
Now, you’ll look at this recipe and see how long it is and think, “Oh, that is daunting.” I don’t want you to feel that way and end up missing out on a great pie. So, let me ease your doubts.
Three Recipes Rolled into One
Look at it as if there are three recipes. The first part, the crust, is easy to pull out of this recipe and use in, say, a pumpkin pie recipe, too. I love this crust because it is really simple, and uses whiskey to amp up the flavor as well as the flakiness of the pastry.
The Crust
Before we talk about the whiskey in the crust, I want to make a quick note that par-baking your crust is going to be very important to achieving a great pie. As you probably have seen, Paul Hollywood is always concerned about a soggy bottom. Par-baking helps prevent this from happening.
I use a crumbled bit of parchment paper to form to the pie better. Then I fill it with pie weights. This time I just used quinoa since it needed to be toasted anyway. The weight prevents the crust from puffing up hugely. Large bubbles in the crust will get popped when filling goes in, and then that liquid will get deep in the crust, and then you have a soggy bottom again.
How does alcohol work in a crust? As the butter in the pastry melts, it creates pockets of air. Then as the liquid dissipates, the pastry cooks, leaving those pockets open. The faster that moisture evaporates, the more time the pockets have to bake and become crisp. And that is what creates a “flaky” crust.
But why whiskey? Vodka has no flavor, and that’s fine for some. For me, though, I love that whiskey leaves behind this earthy, smoky, “What am I tasting?” flavor. Rum is another option, as it has a fruity flavor and high alcohol content. However, it’s more sugary, which, for some reason, deflated my pastry’s layers.
The Filling
For starters, I cooked the apple pie filling on the stove first. This gave me more control over how fluid the sauce would be. It also softened the apples enough to accommodate a proper pie filling.
What kind of apples do I need? There are a ton of options, so here’s a great source to help you pick what you want. I have done this with Granny Smith apples, a mix of Gala and Granny Smith, Winesaps, and a mix of Macintosh and Winesaps. Hit up the farm stand or orchard and get a variety!
What if I want more spices? You are more than welcome to use Apple Pie Spice. Just make sure you’re using a pure blend like the kind from Burma Spice. They don’t put any odd fillers or preservatives in their spices, so you know you’re getting nothing but high-quality spices every time.
Crumb Topping
If you remember from my Pumpkin Streusel Loaf Cake, I made the topping with pumpkin instead of butter. For this, I needed to stretch the crumb a little farther, so I added in a little bit of butter. But overall, you want that good crunch to counterbalance the softness of the apple filling.
So, there’s pie crust remnants in it? Yes. Don’t let the bits of crust that you cut off go to waste. You can cut them into little bits and toss them in with the crumble. My husband said this was his favorite part of the whole pie. It’s interesting and adds a fun texture element.
I previously just cut them up with a knife to make sure nothing went to waste, but it’s also really fun to cut shapes out. For this round of photos, I used the fat end of a piping tip to cut out tiny circles. Seriously. How cute, right? But you can do little leaves or stars or whatever!
Ready to try Apple Crumble Pie?
I hope you’re still with me because all three parts of this pie have made me very proud. My husband, having eaten way too many of my experimental pies in the past, will vouch for this one. It is just a little bit different from what you’re used to, but it also delivers everything you love and more about a good, old fashioned apple pie.
If you try my Apple Crumble Pie recipe, please comment below, and tell me how it turned out for you. What did you do differently? How did you like it? I can’t wait to hear from you! And please subscribe for updates!
Apple Crumble Pie
Equipment
- Plastic wrap
- Pie plate
- Parchment paper
- Pie weights
Ingredients
Pie Crust
- 1¼ cup all purpose flour
- 2 Tbsp pure cane sugar
- ⅓ cup unsalted butter frozen
- ⅓ cup whiskey ice cold
- 1 pinch salt
Pie Filling
- 8 medium baking apples
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp minced ginger
- ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- 1 pinch salt
Crumb Topping
- ⅓ cup all purpose flour
- ⅓ cup rolled oats
- ⅓ cup powdered sugar
- 3 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1 Tbsp pumpkin purée
- 1 pinch salt
Instructions
- For pie crust: In a medium bowl, whisk together 1¼ cup flour, 2 Tbsp sugar, and pinch of salt. Grate in ⅓ cup of frozen butter. Toss together to coat the butter bits in dry mix.
- Work it together very quickly until the grated butter bits no larger than peas.
- Drizzle in the whiskey, starting with 2 Tbsp and working up until the mixture forms a ball when squeezed together but is not tacky to the touch.
- Turn pie dough onto a floured work surface. Gently work the dough until it forms a cohesive mass, and work it into a smooth 2 inch thick disc. Do this quickly, and do not let it get warm.
- Wrap your dough in plastic wrap, and place in the fridge for 1 hour.
- For pie filling: Peel and slice 8 baking apples and place them in a 4 quart sauté pan or soup pot. Toss together with ⅓ cup flour, ½ cup light brown sugar, 1½ tsp ground cinnamon, ½ tsp minced ginger, a pinch of salt.
- On the stove, bring the mixture to a simmer to soften the apples. Stir every couple minutes. The apples will release their juice, and it will be a runny sauce at first. Continue to simmer until the sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon.
- Remove the apples to a large glass bowl, cover and refrigerate until cooled completely.
- For crumble: Whisk together ⅓ cup all purpose flour, ⅓ cup rolled oats, ⅓ powdered sugar, and pinch of salt. Cut in 3 Tbsp cold butter and 1 Tbsp pumpkin purée. When the mixture is crumby, you're done. Do not over work it. Cover bowl, and place in the fridge.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- On a floured work surface, roll out pie dough to a 13 inch round, and gently place into the pie plate, smoothing it in the bottom and sides. Cut extra pie dough from the edges, and create a design in the edge as you wish.
- Cut the extra pie dough into small pieces and toss into the crumble topping mixture.
- Take a piece of parchment paper large enough to fill the pie crust and crumble it into a ball. This makes it more flexible. Place inside the pie crust, and fill with pie weights.
- Bake the crust for 15 minutes.
- Remove crust from the oven. Remove the parchment paper and pie weights.
- Pour apple pie filling into crust, and sprinkle the crumble topping over top.
- Bake at 375 for 45 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, and cool before serving.
