I’ve always heard this kind of pie referred to as Dutch apple pie, although I have no idea whether this is accurate or not.

I will say that wherever this apple pie comes from, the people who developed it are a patient bunch. I usually try to avoid 2 day recipes, but I’m sorry to say that if you wanted this pie today you probably should have started yesterday. On the other hand, if you start today, tomorrow’s you will not be upset. Tomorrow’s you will have to put in minimal effort and will be able to sit down to the perfect blend of a deep apple pie and an apple crumble with a sweet and fall-spice-y topping. So do future you a favour!

Ingredients:

• Pie Crust
  • 1 cup AP flour
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, very cold and cut into cubes
  • 3-5 tbsp ice water
• Pie Filling
  • 3 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 6 gala apples, peeled and cubed
  • 3 granny smith apples, peeled and cubed
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 1 tsp cinnamon (or a mix of spices, I like a combination of mostly cinnamon with a bit of nutmeg and cloves)
  • 1 pinch salt
• Topping
  • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
  • 3/4 cup brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1 cup flour
  • 1/2 cup pecan pieces

Directions:

Day 1

1. Prepare pie crust
   • Lightly butter a pie dish and set aside (I used a 9″ dish, an 8″ dish will work too but make sure it is deep or be prepared to clean your oven)
   • Stir flour (1 cup) and salt (1/4 tsp)
   • Cut the flour mixture and butter (1/2 cup) together) – you can do this using forks, a pastry cutter, or even a couple of seconds in a food processor – just don’t over mix, the clumps of butter are what make the pastry flaky
   • Very slowly add water, a spoonful at a time, while gently mixing the flour and butter mixture together – you may not need all of the water – the moment the mixture starts to come together into a dough stop adding water
   • Gently pat the dough into a flat-ish circle, wrap tightly, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes
   • Roll the dough out into a crust and place in the prepared pie dish (you are only making a bottom crust)
   • Wrap tightly again and refrigerate overnight or for at least a few hours (this helps prevent the dreaded “shrinkage”
2. Prepare pie filling
   • In a large pot, melt the butter (3 tbsp)
   • Add the peeled and cubed apples, sugar (1/4 cup), cinnamon or spice mixture (1 tsp), and salt (pinch) and stir together
   • Let cook on medium heat until the apples have more or less fallen apart, have let go of their juices, and the juices have mostly boiled down (see picture below)
   • Remove from heat and let cool, then cover and refrigerate overnight
3. Prepare topping
   • Combine melted butter (1/2 cup), brown sugar (3/4 cup), cinnamon (1/2 tsp), and flour (1 cup) and stir together
   • Add the pecan pieces (1/2 cup)
   • Cover and refrigerate overnight

Day 2

1. Bake the pie crust
   • Preheat oven to 350 degrees f
   • Line the pie crust with aluminum foil or parchment
   • Fill the lined pie crust with pie weights (or old dried beans from the back of your cupboard, you know you have had those for too long anyway!)
   • Bake for 40 minutes
2. Pie assembly and baking
   • Remove the pie weights and foil or parchment from the pie crust, let the pie crust cool for a couple of minutes
   • Pour the pie filling into the pie crust
   • Sprinkle the topping over the filling (you may need to use a spoon or fork to carefully break it up a bit)
   • Bake for about 25-30 minutes, until the topping has nicely browned and the edges of the crust are starting to get a tan
   • Let cool before eating (or at least try)

Notes:

• You could do this in one day, just be ready for some serious chilling time in between steps.
• There are lots of options for the crust. This recipe is for a traditional pie crust, but feel free to use puff pastry or anything else you like. You can even use a (gasp) store bought crust, just make sure to hide the box and sprinkle some flour around your kitchen so no one knows. The key is to make sure that the crust is pretty well fully baked before you add the filling.