AUNT SHARON’S APPLE PIE
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I went looking through my mother’s cookbook for my Aunt Sharon’s apple pie recipe, and what I found looked less like instructions and more like notes from someone who had made enough pies to stop measuring.
“Select several apples for pie,” it begins, as though we’re choosing a fine wine. “I always use Golden, Granny Smith and Newton.” The recipe calls for six to eight apples. She uses twelve.
It goes on like that—a little math, a little rebellion. Two tablespoons of lemon juice, “but I add more.” One cup of sugar and one teaspoon of cinnamon, but in practice, closer to one tablespoon of cinnamon with another half cup of brown sugar. The recipe suggests flour or cornstarch to thicken the filling. She skips it entirely—although she notes, generously, that you could add three tablespoons if you’re the type who follows directions.
Glass pan, 400 degrees, one hour. Metal pan, 425 degrees, about 50 minutes. Apparently, oven temperature was where she drew the line. I left that part alone.
I'm sharing this because it captures her perfectly: confident, instinctive and armed with enough apples to make a statement. I've taken her notes and made a few edits of my own — Braeburn in for Golden Delicious, which softens more than I like in a pie, and a lighter hand on the sugar and cinnamon.
Why You’ll Love It
Three kinds of apples balance tartness, sweetness and texture.
My Perfect All-Butter Crust is flaky, golden and sturdy enough to hold all the apples.
Cinnamon, brown sugar and extra lemon create a filling with plenty of old-fashioned apple-pie flavor.
It is the kind of tall, generous pie that makes six to eight apples seem slightly unambitious.
Prep Information
Prep: 45 minutes | Additional: 5 hours 30 minutes | Cook: 1 hour 5 minutes | Total: 7 hours 20 minutes | Serves: 8–10
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Ingredients
1 recipe Perfect All-Butter Pie Crust, divided into 2 disks
10 cups peeled, cored and sliced apples, about 8-10 medium (Granny Smith, Braeburn, Honeycrisp)
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (feel free to add more, if you’re a rebel)
½ cup granulated sugar
⅓ cup packed light brown sugar
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
½ teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 large egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for the top crust
Coarse sugar, for sprinkling
How to Make It
Make the pie dough according to my Perfect All-Butter Pie Crust recipe. Divide it into two disks, wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Preheat the oven to 400°F if using a glass pie dish or 425°F if using a metal pie pan. Place a rack in the lower third of the oven and line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine the sliced apples and lemon juice.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the granulated sugar, brown sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. Sprinkle the mixture over the apples and toss until evenly coated.
Place the apple mixture in a Dutch oven and cook on medium heat for 5 minutes, until the apples just begin to soften. Cool completely.
Roll one chilled dough disk into a 12-inch circle. Fit it into a 9-inch pie dish, leaving about 1 inch of dough overhanging the edge.
Spoon the cooled apple filling into the crust, mounding the apples slightly in the center. Dot the top with the butter.
Roll the second dough disk into a 12-inch circle and place it over the apples. Fold the bottom-crust overhang over the edge of the top crust, press to seal and crimp as desired. Cut several vents in the top.
Brush the top crust with the egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Place the pie on the prepared sheet pan.
Bake for approximately 1 hour in a glass dish or 50 minutes in a metal pan. If the edges brown too quickly, cover them with foil or a pie shield. The pie is ready when the crust is deeply golden, the apples are tender and the filling is bubbling through the vents.
Transfer the pie to a wire rack and cool completely—at least 4 hours—before slicing. The filling will continue to thicken as it cools.
Pro Tips & Notes
Use a mix of apples. Granny Smith and Braeburn bring tartness, Honeycrisp adds a bit of sweetness. Aunt Sharon used “Newton”—once I determine exactly what she meant, I’ll report back.
Keep the dough cold. This is the trick to flaky pie crust. I keep the butter in the freezer and then take it out about an hour before I start making the dough.
Let it cool completely. Four hours feels unreasonable when the kitchen smells like apple pie, but slicing too soon releases all those lovely juices onto the counter.
Make Ahead & Storage Tips
Make the dough ahead. Refrigerate the wrapped dough disks for up to 2 days or freeze them for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen dough overnight in the refrigerator before rolling.
Prepare the filling ahead. Cook the apple filling as directed, let it cool completely and refrigerate it in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Assemble the pie with cold filling so it doesn’t soften the butter in the crust.
Store the baked pie. Once completely cool, loosely cover the pie and keep it at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, refrigerate it for up to 4 days.
Freeze the baked pie. Cool it completely, wrap it well and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator.
Bring back the crisp crust. Warm the whole pie in a 350°F oven for 15–20 minutes, or warm individual slices for about 10 minutes. The microwave works faster, but the crust will know what you did.
What to Serve with It
Do I really need to say it? Fine: vanilla ice cream.
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A Few Helpful Extras
Ten cups of apples, one very full pie and the required scoop of vanilla ice cream—these three tools have jobs to do.
Apple Peeler, Corer and Slicer→
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