I already made several recipes with apples this fall, but to be honest – there is always room for one more. Fall is apple season and I think you should do as many recipes that include apples as possible. That’s why I made this delicious Apple Crumble Pie today. Well, last week. The combination of the apple and crumble topping is so good. Not making this would have been a crime. Is that something I can say in English?
I am definitely a huge fan of anything related to apple cake/pie. Basically, since I can walk and hold a fork. Apple cakes were made quite often at home back then. Family gathering – apple cake. Something to celebrate – apple cake. Being bored on a Sunday afternoon – apple cake. The combination of sweet and sour is just great.
»Converting« to apple pies instead of cakes happened during the time I was living in the US – before that I never had an apple pie in my life (and I was in my 20s at that time). Well… now both – apple cakes with streusel and classic apple pies are made often in my home. And this one here is basically a combination of both – the apple pie with crumble topping.
Since I like (rum) raisins, I added some of them to the apple filling. Not everyone likes them, so feel free to leave them out. But I highly recommend to add them and especially let them soak in rum before. Really nice.
While you are here and since we are talking about pies. Baking a pie is pretty easy. Having a bit of experience helps, though. Here are some helpful tips to get better results when making a pie. I know you did not ask for it, but hey – here you go:
Always use cold ingredients to make pie dough.
Pie dough does not like heat/warmth. If your kitchen is warm (because it is summer or your heaters are too hot) you might want to place all of the ingredients in the fridge before you start preparing the dough (including the bowl). With “normal” room temperatures it’s fine to just use cold butter from the fridge and water with some ice cubes added. You can swap the water with some vodka if you like – the alcohol evaporates quicker than water and supposedly makes the dough even flakier. If you have kids – do not listen to me.
Try to do everything quickly.
The butter you add should not melt nor »fuse« together with the flour. If that happens, the dough will get too homogenous which means the baked pie crust will be very compact instead of crunchy and flaky. If you make pie dough everything needs to stay cool and you have to work quickly so the butter does not melt and stays cool. If you have warm hands like me, it can help to wash your hands with cold water before you start preparing the dough. I normally work with a pastry cutter to avoid touching the flour and butter with my hands – not only to keep them clean but also not to warm up the butter.
The size of the butter pieces makes a difference.
Depending on the filling you want to add to your pies, you should also treat the dough differently. If you have larger pieces of butter in your dough, it will be flakier and breaks more easily – in general something you want to happen. That kind of crust works well with fruity pie fillings like apples, cherries etc. If you want to make a pie with a cream filling like banana cream pie or pumpkin pie, it’s better to have slightly smaller butter pieces in your dough so the baked crust holds the filling better.
Do not add too much water!
If you look at pie dough recipes you will often find measurements for the liquid that give a range like »1-3 tablespoons«. This means you start adding 1 tablespoon of water and check how the dough looks. If it is too dry and the crumbs are not holding together, you gradually add more water. Pie dough should never feel wet or sticky in any way. If that happens, you have to add some more flour… but it actually should not happen. It’s bad.
Let the dough rest and cool it.
Before using pie dough, it has to rest for some time in the fridge. You want to give the flour a chance to soak up some of the moisture, but you don’t want this to be the butter – that is why we place it in the fridge. If you let the dough rest in the fridge for 30-40 minutes everything should be fine. If you are in a hurry you can shorten that waiting time by placing the dough in the freezer for 10-20 minutes. After you rolled out the dough and put it into the baking tin, you should cool down the dough once more. This will prevent the dough from shrinking during the baking time and the result will be better in general.
INGREDIENTS / ZUTATEN
For the dough:
1 1/4 cups (160g) stronger all-purpose flour*
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (120g) cold butter
1/4 cup (60ml) ice water
1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar*
For the crumble topping:
2/3 cup (85g) stronger all-purpose flour*
4 tbsp. brown sugar*
1 pinch of salt
1/3 cup (80g) butter
2 tbsp. rolled oats*
For the filling:
28-30 oz. apples
1 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. stronger all-purpose flour*
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon*
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg*
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar*
2.5 oz. (70g) raisins* (optional)
2 tbsp. dark rum* (optional)
Für den Teig:
160g Mehl (Type 550)*
1/4 TL Salz
120g kalte Butter
60ml Eiswasser
1/2 TL Apfelessig*
Für die Streusel:
85g Mehl (Type 550)*
1 Prise Salz
80g Butter
4 EL brauner Zucker*
2 TL Haferflocken (Feinblatt)*
Für die Füllung:
800-900g Äpfel
1 EL Zitronensaft
2 EL Mehl (Type 550)*
1/2 TL Zimt*
1/2 TL Muskatnuss*, gemahlen
100g brauner Zucker*
70g Rosinen* (optional)
2 EL dunkler Rum* (optional)
DIRECTIONS / ZUBEREITUNG
1. If you want to use the raisins in this recipe, you should let them soak the day before baking in the two tablespoons of dark rum so they soften and get some flavor (optional).
2. Mix the flour with the salt in a large bowl. Add the cold butter in small pieces and mix. Cut the butter with a pastry blender into pea-sized pieces. Mix the ice water with vinegar and add gradually to the bowl, mix until the dough starts coming together. Do not knead much, the dough should not be too wet or sticky – it should just hold together. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
3. Roll out half of the dough on a floured surface to a circle that is slightly larger than your 23cm pie dish* pie dish. Transfer the dough to the pie dish and press to the bottom and sides – the dough should overlap slightly. Shape a nice border around the rim of the pie dish and prick the bottom several times with a fork. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
4. Prepare the crumble topping by mixing the flour with brown sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the butter in small pieces and rub everything between our fingers to get nice crumbs. Add the rolled oats and mix, then place in the fridge until needed.
5. Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Peel, core, and slice the apples. Add to a large bowl and mix with the lemon juice so they are not browning so quickly. Add the soaked raisins and mix in (optional). Mix the flour with cinnamon and nutmeg and sift it over the apples – mix until everything is covered. Add the brown sugar (hold back about two tablespoons) and mix in as well. Pile the apples into the pie crust, top with the crumble mix and sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar. Bake the pie for about 35-40 minutes until the crust and crumbles are golden and crisp. Take out of the oven and let cool down on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm or cold with some whipped cream or ice cream.
1. Wer Rosinen im Pie haben möchte, sollte sie am Vorabend mit dem Rum in ein Schüsselchen geben und ziehen lassen – alle anderen lassen diesen Schritt einfach aus.
2. Das Mehl mit dem Salz in einer großen Schüssel vermischen. Die Butter in kleinen Stücken zugeben und kurz im Mehl schwenken. Die Butter mit einem Teigmischer oder einem Messer in erbsengroße Stücke zerteilen. Das Wasser mit dem Essig vermischen und nach und nach zugeben und alles mit den Fingern verarbeiten, bis der Teig anfängt, zusammenzuhalten. Der Teig sollte weder feucht noch klebrig sein. In Klarsichtfolie wickeln und für mindestens 1 Stunde in den Kühlschrank legen.
3. Den Teig auf einer bemehlten Fläche etwas größer als eine 23cm Pieform* ausrollen, in die Form legen und festdrücken. Den Rand auf etwa 1cm Überhang zurechtschneiden, einen schönen Rand formen und dann mit einer Gabel den Boden mehrmals einstechen. Für weitere 30 Minuten in den Kühlschrank stellen.
4. Für das Streusel Topping das Mehl mit dem braunen Zucker und Salz in einer Schüssel vermischen. Die Butter in kleinen Stücken dazugeben und dann alles zwischen den Fingern verreiben, bis sich Streusel bilden. Die Haferflocken dazugeben, kurz vermischen und dann bis zur weiteren Verwendung in den Kühlschrank stellen.
5. Den Ofen auf 190°C (375°F) Ober-/Unterhitze vorheizen. Die Äpfel schälen, entkernen und dann in Scheiben schneiden. In einer Schüssel mit dem Zitronensaft vermischen, damit sie nicht so schnell braun werden. Wer die Rosinen vorbereitet hat, dazugeben und vermischen (optional). Mehl mit Zimt und Muskatnuss vermischen und dann über die Äpfel sieben – unterheben, bis die Äpfel gleichmäßig damit bedeckt sind. Den Zucker (bis auf 2 EL) dazugeben und untermischen. Die Füllung in die vorbereitete Form füllen und die Streusel darauf verteilen – zurückbehaltenen Zucker darüberstreuen. Den Pie für etwa 35-40 Minuten backen, bis die Streusel und Ränder goldgelb und knusprig sind. Aus dem Ofen holen und abkühlen lassen. Den Pie noch etwas warm oder abgekühlt mit Schlagsahne oder Eiscreme servieren.
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Here is a version of the recipe you can print easily.
Print
Easy Peasy Apple Crumble Pie
- Prep Time: 00:40
- Cook Time: 00:40
- Total Time: 03:00
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Pies
- Method: -
- Cuisine: United States
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
German Apfelstreuselkuchen meets Pie! Combine two delicious bakes and it gets even better: Apple Crumble Pie with some additional rum raisins. So good!
Ingredients
For the dough:
1 1/4 cups (160g) stronger all-purpose flour*
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup (120g) cold butter
1/4 cup (60ml) ice water
1/2 tsp. apple cider vinegar*
For the crumble topping:
2/3 cup (85g) stronger all-purpose flour*
4 tbsp. brown sugar*
1 pinch of salt
1/3 cup (80g) butter
2 tbsp. rolled oats*
For the filling:
28-30 oz. apples
1 tbsp. lemon juice
2 tbsp. stronger all-purpose flour*
1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon*
1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg*
1/2 cup (100g) brown sugar*
2.5 oz. (70g) raisins* (optional)
2 tbsp. dark rum* (optional)
Instructions
1. If you want to use the raisins in this recipe, you should let them soak the day before baking in the two tablespoons of dark rum so they soften and get some flavor (optional).
2. Mix the flour with the salt in a large bowl. Add the cold butter in small pieces and mix. Cut the butter with a pastry blender into pea-sized pieces. Mix the ice water with vinegar and add gradually to the bowl, mix until the dough starts coming together. Do not knead much, the dough should not be too wet or sticky – it should just hold together. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
3. Roll out half of the dough on a floured surface to a circle that is slightly larger than your 23cm pie dish* pie dish. Transfer the dough to the pie dish and press to the bottom and sides – the dough should overlap slightly. Shape a nice border around the rim of the pie dish and prick the bottom several times with a fork. Place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
4. Prepare the crumble topping by mixing the flour with brown sugar, and salt in a bowl. Add the butter in small pieces and rub everything between our fingers to get nice crumbs. Add the rolled oats and mix, then place in the fridge until needed.
5. Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F). Peel, core, and slice the apples. Add to a large bowl and mix with the lemon juice so they are not browning so quickly. Add the soaked raisins and mix in (optional). Mix the flour with cinnamon and nutmeg and sift it over the apples – mix until everything is covered. Add the brown sugar (hold back about two tablespoons) and mix in as well. Pile the apples into the pie crust, top with the crumble mix and sprinkle with the remaining brown sugar. Bake the pie for about 35-40 minutes until the crust and crumbles are golden and crisp. Take out of the oven and let cool down on a wire rack. Serve slightly warm or cold with some whipped cream or ice cream.
Notes
Enjoy baking!
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