Puff Pastry Apple Pie with a Flaky Double Crust

Puff Pastry Apple Pie

This round, double-crust pie has flaky puff pastry above and beneath a generous filling of cinnamon-spiced apple pieces. Cooking the apples until their juices turn syrupy, then cooling them before assembly, helps the bottom crust bake through instead of soaking up liquid.

Bake until the top is deeply golden and the filling bubbles through the vents, but check the bottom crust too. After a short rest, cut the pie into wedges and place a scoop of vanilla ice cream directly on each slice. For a homemade-crust alternative, try classic homemade apple pie.

Ingredients for Puff Pastry Apple Pie

• 2 1/2 pounds firm apples, such as a mix of Granny Smith and Honeycrisp, about 6 medium (about 1,150g before peeling and coring)
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter (30g)
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar (100g)
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 sheets ready-made puff pastry, from one 17.3-ounce package (490g), thawed but cold
• 1 large egg, beaten
• 1 tablespoon coarse sugar
• About 1 pint vanilla ice cream, for 8 modest scoops

Firm sweet and tart apples give the filling balance while keeping the pieces distinct. For another warm spice, add 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg with the cinnamon.

How to Make Puff Pastry Apple Pie

Makes one 9-inch pie, or 8 slices. Allow about 25 minutes of active prep, 55 to 65 minutes of cooking, and about 2 hours 30 minutes total, including cooling, chilling, and resting.

1. Cook the apples: Peel, core, and cut them into roughly 3/4-inch pieces. In a large skillet or wide saucepan, cook the apples, butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice over medium heat for about 12 to 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. The apples should be tender but hold their shape. If thin juice still pools in the pan, keep cooking until it turns syrupy and coats the pieces. Do not add water.
2. Cool the filling: Spread the apples in a shallow bowl or on a tray. Let them cool completely, about 25 to 35 minutes, until they no longer feel warm or give off steam.
3. Line the dish: Gently roll one cold pastry sheet large enough to line the bottom and sides of a 9-inch standard-depth pie dish, leaving a little overhang. Ease it in without stretching, then add the cooled apples. Avoid piling the filling far above the rim.
4. Cover and vent: Roll the second pastry sheet as needed and place it over the filling. Trim excess pastry, press or crimp the edges firmly together, and cut several small vents through the top sheet.
5. Chill and finish: Refrigerate the assembled pie for 15 minutes while the oven preheats to 400°F (205°C). Lightly brush the top with beaten egg, avoiding heavy buildup along the cut edges, then scatter the coarse sugar over it.
6. Bake: Set the dish on a parchment-lined baking sheet on a lower oven rack. Bake uncovered for about 40 to 50 minutes. Check the top after 30 minutes; if it is darkening too quickly, loosely shield it with foil. Begin checking overall doneness around 40 minutes. The top should be deeply golden and puffed, the filling should bubble through the vents, and the visible bottom-crust edges should look baked rather than doughy.
7. Rest and serve: Let the pie rest for at least 30 minutes so the filling stays in the slices. Cut into generous wedges and add one scoop of vanilla ice cream directly on each plated slice just before serving.

How to Avoid a Soggy Bottom Crust

For a full enclosed pie, the apple juices need to cling to the fruit rather than run across the pan. Cooling the filling completely keeps it from softening the pastry during assembly. Thawed pastry should still feel cool; roll it gently to fit the dish, seal the edges, and vent the top so steam can escape.

A golden top alone does not mean the bottom crust is baked. Use a standard-depth dish on a lower oven rack and check the visible bottom-crust edges. If the top browns first, shield it loosely with foil and continue baking. A light-colored metal dish can help the bottom brown; with a ceramic dish, pay particular attention to that bottom-crust cue.

Make Ahead, Storage, and Reheating

The apple filling can be cooked ahead, cooled, and refrigerated. Assemble the pie with cold filling and cold pastry.

Let leftover pie cool, then cover and refrigerate it without ice cream for up to about 3 days. Reheat slices in a 350°F (175°C) oven for about 10 to 15 minutes, until warmed and the pastry regains some crispness. Loosely tent a slice if its crust is already dark. Add fresh ice cream when serving; a microwave will soften the pastry.

Nutrition

Approximate nutrition per slice, based on 8 slices and including one modest scoop of vanilla ice cream: 575 calories, 7g protein, 31g fat, and 65g carbohydrates. Approximate values per 100g of served pie and ice cream: 265 calories, 3g protein, 14g fat, and 30g carbohydrates. Values vary with the puff pastry, apples, ice cream, and scoop size.