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Christopher Kimball’s Double-Crust Apple Pie

Makes one 9-inch Double Crust Pie

2 hours 1 hour active, plus cooling

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This pie is “doubled” both inside and out. The tender, flaky double crust envelops a filling made with a duo of apples. Granny Smiths add tartness and acidity, plus they retain a good amount of texture when cooked. McIntosh apples, on the other hand, are sweet and flavorful and they break down to an applesauce-like texture with cooking. Though this sounds like a fault, the Macs helps thicken the filling, obviating the need to use a lot of starch, which deadens the fruitiness of the apples. If Macs aren’t available, Cortland or Empire apples are good stand-ins. We like our apple pie to taste of the fruit, not of a mélange of spices, so we add only lemon zest and juice as flavor brighteners, and sometimes just a pinch of cinnamon and nutmeg. Feel free to up the amount of spices to suit your taste. If your apples begin to release moisture the moment they’re combined with the sugar, it’s a good idea to toss in a tablespoon of flour so the baked filling isn’t awash in watery juices. The pie is best served at room temperature, when the filling is set, which makes slicing easier and neater. As with all apple pies, this is delicious served a la mode. And it’s great even on the following day.

Makes one 9-inch

Double Crust Pie

Tip

Don’t assemble the filling until both portions of dough have been rolled out and the pie plate has been lined. If the sugar-tossed apples are allowed to stand for more than just a few minutes, the juices will flow out of the fruit and the mixture will become soupy. This will affect the consistency of the filling as well as the how the bottom crust bakes and browns.

2 hours

1 hour active, plus cooling

For the crust

  • 113

    grams (8 tablespoons) cold salted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

Directions

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Reviews
Mary D.
November 24, 2023
Apple Pie Delivers Apple Taste
Old pie baker here. I didn't use any spices as recently recommended on a recent Instagram post, just the pinch of salt and lemon juice/zest. It was absolutely delicious. However, I would reduce the volume of MacIntosh and replace them with more Granny Smith or Braeburn if I can find them. I used Sarah Purdy's basic crust recipe. Two things happened - I found out an apple pie can live without cinnamon and next, that my interest in heirloom apples has expanded.
Aerin B.
November 17, 2023
Is the suggested weight on shortening correct?
I think 8 tablespoons of shortening is closer to 95 grams?
Diana L.

I baked it tonight. My store didn't have Mac apples so I chose kiku apples. The feeling was very good with no cinnamon and nutmeg. Delicious. I worried about all the juice that may come out from apples so I have added 2 tablespoons of tapioca. I'm glad I did. There still a little bit of liquid. The crust - apples cooked and went down but the crust on top didn't. When I cut into the pie it has this dome on top. An empty dome then there is apple filling. The crust tastes good but I wish it didn't have this dome (an empty space between the crust and the filling).