No Thanksgiving is complete without a pie. Instead of a pumpkin pie this year, I thought I might share something a little different, something that works for both Thanksgivingย and Christmas. Anyone interested in some salted caramel apple pie?? Complete with homemade salted caramel sauce and pie crust?!
Not so sure about that pumpkin pie now are you ????? Overall, I'm enormously pleased with how this recipe turned out. As I have said who knows how many times, I'm not a baker. So once again, if I can make this, you can too! Trust.
First off, the salted caramel portion of said salted caramel apple pie. In my opinion, homemade caramel sauce gets a bad rep. It's honestly pretty easy! The only thing is to make sure youย watchย it. Making caramel sauce is not something you can set on the stove, get distracted, and walk away. You have to stay with it! Otherwise, that's when all the things that people say could happen with homemade caramel will happen, most notably burning the sugar. But if you're right there with a medium heat, it's all good!
Also, here's a secret: I do not, and probs never will, own a candy thermometer. So no need to be professional. Again; if I've got this, you do too ????????.
Another secret: I'm actually notย that big a fan of apple pie ????. I find that quite frequently they're justย wayย too sweet, to the point where you get a sugar induced headache. The addition of a salted caramel sauce cuts through the sweet perfectly! Combined with a smaller amount of white sugar, this salted caramel apple pie has just the right amount of sweet with the perfect hint of saltiness.
Plus, you're going to be reminded of that fabulous caramel apple stand at the carnival the whole time you eat it ????.
PS. I know some of you might be traditionalists, (but maybe with aย little wiggle room) and prefer a classic pumpkin pie to go with your feast. If you want to try something a tad new, give this bourbon buttermilk pumpkin pie a try! It was the hit of my Thanksgiving last year, apart from the dry-brined roasted turkey of course ????.
Salted Caramel Apple Pie (with homemade caramel!)
Ingredients
FOR THE CRUST
- 2 ยฝ cups flour
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 ยฝ teaspoons white sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- ยพ cup cold water
- Egg wash: 1 egg yolk + 1 tablespoon cold water, beaten
FOR THE FILLING
- 6-7 assorted large apples (honey crisp and granny smith), peeled, cored, and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- ยผ cup flour
- ยฝ cup white sugar
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ยผ teaspoon allspice
- ยผ teaspoon ground ginger
- Pinch of nutmeg
- Pinch of ground clove
- ยผ cup of the salted caramel sauce*
FOR THE SALTED CARAMEL SAUCE
- 1 cup white sugar
- 6 tablespoons butter
- ยฝ cup heavy whipping cream
- ยฝ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ยฝ tablespoon coarse salt
Get Recipe Ingredients
Instructions
Prepare the Crust
- Preheat oven to 350หF.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour, sugar and salt until fully combined.
- Add the cubed butter, and using either a pastry blender or two forks, cut the butter into the mixture until the pieces are around the size of a pea.
- Pour in the water and the vanilla extract. Stir until the dough clumps together.
- Move the dough to a floured surface (you can keep the dough in the bowl as long as you add enough flour to your hands) and fold the dough into itself until the flour is incorporated (if it is too sticky, add some more flour to the surface or your hands) and forms a ball.
- Divide the dough in half and pat the halves down into two discs, about ยฝ inch thick. Wrap each one in plastic and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes.
- Remove one disc from the fridge. This will be your top crust. Roll out into a 12-inch circle. Place on a round cookie sheet and chill in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- Meanwhile, remove the other disc, roll out into a 12-inch circle, Place in a 9-inch pie pan, trim the overhang to 1 inch, and put back in the fridge to chill while working on the top crust.
- Remove the top crust from the freezer. Use lattice cutter, stencils, cut outs, etc. to decorate the pie crust as you desire, making sure it stays chilled by putting back in the freezer if it gets too warm. When done, place into the fridge to chill while making the filling and the caramel sauce.
Make the Salted Caramel Sauce
- Wipe a heavy bottomed medium sized sauce pot clean of all impurities (bits of dust, etc.). Add white sugar in an even layer and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently with a heat resistant spoon while it melts.
- When the sugar is completely caramelized, quickly whisk in the butter until completely dissolved. Be careful as it will bubble up!
- Remove from heat and pour in the cream, quickly whisking until smooth. Again, be careful as it will bubble up.
- Add vanilla extract, and salt. Whisk together until smooth. Set aside in a warm place.
Assemble the Pie
- In a large bowl, combine all ingredients for the filling, except for the salted caramel sauce.
- Fill the pie crust โ of the way with filling, layering the apples tightly together. Drizzle โ of the salted caramel sauce on top. Repeat this step two more times, until all of the filling and ยผ cup of salted caramel sauce is used.ย The apple filling should be taller than the height of the pan. ย They'll shrink down quite a bit when cooking!
- Gently top the filling with the top crust and tuck edges underneath the bottom crust, crimping the edges as desired.
- Brush the top crust with the egg wash. Place back in the refrigerator for 15 minutes to chill.
- Place the pie on a rimmed baking sheet in the oven and cook for 60-70 minutes, until juices are bubbling, turning halfway through to ensure even cooking.
- Remove from heat and let cool at least 1 hour, preferably 3-4, to allow the filling to set up, before serving. Drizzle with the remaining salted caramel sauce, a few sprinkles of white sugar and a pinch of coarse salt. Top slices with french vanilla ice cream, even more salted caramel sauce, and enjoy!
Notes
*The remaining caramel sauce will be used for drizzling the pie when finished baking!
Jay says
Wow