How to Make This Apple Pie (It's Easy!)

Everyone likes to bring a special dish to a party that people will rave about. This pie always makes a big impression wherever I've taken it, but it's honestly so much easier than it looks! And you can make it pretty quickly if you know the best order in which to do things, and how to cut a few corners along the way.

 I'm going to give you all of my secrets!!

Step 1

Cut 6 apples. Chopping them up is my least favorite part (I hate repetitive actions), so it's nice for me to get it out of the way first thing. Plus, doing them now will keep our order of operations flowing nicely. You'll see! 

To cut my apples, I cut off their tops and bottoms (to make them flat) and then peel them with a vegetable peeler. Then I cut each apple into four pieces (avoiding the core), and and cut each piece lengthwise into apple slices. Hopefully the pictures help explain how I did this. You could core your apples first, but this is faster!!

Step 2
Making the filling!

Collect all of your apple slices into a large, deep skillet. The key to making the apple slices bend like flower petals is to cook all of the ingredients of your filling together first. I think you could really use ANY apple pie filling recipe here, but I like to make mine using:

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar 
• lemon juice, to taste (I used bottled) , approx 1 Tbsp?
• spices to taste*

(*The spices you use really depend on your personal preference. Typically apple pie recipes call for cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, etc. But if you don't already own all of those, it's pretty expensive to buy each spice separately. Save yourself time and money and just buy pumpkin spice-it's in the spice aisle with all the others. There is no pumpkin in pumpkin spice. Pumpkin spice is just a blend of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice.)

So I just combine all of those ingredients in my skillet, over low/medium heat, (covered with a lid), stirring occasionally to make sure nothing burns. Be careful, it'll be steamy when you open the lid! Cook the apples until they are bendy, about 7-10 minutes. While I'm waiting for them to cook, I make my easy pie crust!



Step 3

This is the easiest way to make homemade pie crust. FOR REALZIES.

I guess you could use a store-bought pie crust here and save even more time, but PLEEEEEASE try this instead. I promise it's so much better and not at all difficult.

In a food processor, combine:

• 1 stick of butter, cold and cubed
• 1 cup of flour
• 1/2 Tbsp sugar
• pinch of salt

Now pulse this mixture until all the butter is completely broken up and blended into your dry ingredients. Then I add (with the food processor going):

• a little squirt of the same bottled lemon juice I used in the filling, for flavor
• just enough ice water to make the dough form into a ball, seen below. Add the water slowly and give it time to combine before adding more! I probably only use a couple of Tablespoons total. 

Step 4

 Now brace yourself....we are NOT going to roll out our crust. There is an easier and less-messy way to do this!



If you guys are interested, I will do a tutorial on fancy pie crusts later on, but today we're keeping it simple. All you have to do is throw your ball of dough into your pie dish and then spread it out with your fingers. That's seriously it, you guys. Make sure you spread it out evenly and that there aren't any gaps. Then put your crust/pie dish in the freezer.

Step 5
 At this point, my apples were cooked.  And they smell sooooo friggin good.

Right away, I dump the cooked apples into a strainer that I had placed over a heat-safe bowl. We want to save all of those extra juices for later!

Your apple slices now need some time to cool off before you touch them, maybe about 15 minutes. Stir them occasionally to make sure all of the heat is escaping and not getting trapped. I used this extra time to wash all of dishes, so they weren't waiting for me later. That's always such a bummer. I also preheated my oven to 350 degrees during this time.

Step 6

Take your pie crust out of the freezer. It'll be pretty solid now, which is perfect. That way, your crust is less likely to overbake in the oven, and these warm apples aren't going to melt your crust while you work!

Now, moving in a circle, from the outside in, put your apple slices in the crust. I took a few progress photos to show, but it's really pretty simple.

Step 7
 Bake your pie for about an hour. I took a shower and watched TV during this time. This recipe doesn't require babysitting.

Remember those juices we saved from before? As soon as you take your pie out of the oven, pour that juice over the apples, making sure it gets in all the nooks and crannies. If we had kept the juice in the pie while baking, your crust would get soggy. Instead, now you have a juicy filling and a crusty crust!The way it's supposed to be!!!

Step 8
Wait a little while for it to cool, and then cut yourself a slice! Ice cream is recommended, but not necessary. This pie is good enough on its own! And makes a fab breakfast IF you're lucky enough to have leftovers!