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This Caramel Apple Pie recipe brings together tender, spiced apples and rich caramel sauce in a crisp, flaky crust. Adding caramel sauce takes this classic to the next level, infusing the pie with a rich, buttery sweetness that complements the tartness of the apples.
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Not Your Grandma’s Caramel Apple Pie Recipe
We’ve created the ultimate caramel apple pie with a few specific techniques to get the best flavor and texture! We’re talking extra caramel, intense apple flavor, and no soggy bottom crust.
You’ll get the best pie with sweet, tender apples and a flaky pastry, all-butter pie crust.
Oh, and let’s talk about that caramel! This pie is layered with our homemade salted caramel sauce inside, plus a drizzle (more like a very hefty pour) of caramel on top. It’s holiday dessert perfection in every way.
Caramel Apple Meets Buttery Crust
Ah, the timeless charm of a well-made pie! Imagine the rich filling of caramel apple meeting a crust that’s flawlessly buttery and flaky. It’s the kind of pairing that makes you believe in dessert destiny.
This recipe is unlike any apple pie recipe we’ve shared. Yes, we still love our apple slab pie and our Dutch Apple Crumb Pie. But if you love caramel and apples, this sweet and indulgent spin on apple pie is hard to beat!
Why This Caramel Apple Pie Recipe Works
To make the very best caramel apple pie, we have a few tricks up our sleeves.
- Double the flavor: The spiced apples and rich caramel sauce blend together perfectly, creating a balance of sweetness, warmth, and buttery goodness in every slice.
- Crisp crust guaranteed: Baking in the bottom third of the oven ensures that your crust stays perfectly crisp, no soggy bottoms here!
- So much flavor: Boiling the apple juices before adding them back to the filling concentrates the apple flavor.
Top this caramel apple pie with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream, more salted caramel sauce, and the holidays just got a whole lot merrier.
For more delicious fall desserts, try our caramel apple cake, apple ginger muffins, or my favorite pear cake.
Ingredients Needed
Even if you’re a novice at making a homemade apple pies, don’t worry. While there are a few steps involved, it’s overall an easy pie recipe that you can do in any home kitchen.
You will need the following ingredients for your grocery list:
- Produce: Apples, lemon juice
- Pantry: Brown sugar, granulated sugar, cornstarch
- Pantry Seasonings: Ground cinnamon, ground allspice, salt
- Condiments: Caramel sauce (homemade or store-bought)
- Other: Pie dough (either a store-bought crust or you can make homemade dough)
*If making caramel sounds too complicated, you can make our butterscotch sauce.
It is basically caramel topping made with brown sugar, but the acidity in the brown sugar makes it so much easier to make than regular caramel. It only takes a few ingredients to make.
Variations
Looking to switch things up? These recipes will take your pie game to the next level. And if you’re a fan of a crunchy topping, the Dutch variation is so good.
Maple Pecan Apple Caramel Pie: Drizzle ¼ cup of maple syrup over the apples and fold in ½ cup of chopped pecans for a rich, nutty twist.
Cranberry Orange Variation: Add one cup of dried cranberries and 1 tablespoon of orange zest to the apple mixture for a bright, tangy flavor.
Boozy Bourbon Variation: Stir in one to two tablespoons of bourbon into the caramel sauce before drizzling it over the filling.
Dutch Caramel Apple Pie: Replace the top crust with a crumble made from 1 cup flour, 1 cup brown sugar, ½ to 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and 1 stick of butter. After adding the apple filling and drizzling with caramel, top with the crumb topping and bake as directed.
Serving Suggestions
Each slice of this decadent apple pie is dreamy, and this makes the perfect dessert for any holiday gathering! Don’t forget the ice cream if you like apple pie a la mode. In our opinion, ice cream on pie is a must! Especially when there’s extra caramel involved.
Apple pies are a classic dessert perfect for any occasion. This recipe is made with a flaky pastry crust, sweet and tart apples, and a rich, homemade caramel. Serve this showstopper pie on its own, or with a variety of toppings and garnishes.
Here are some ideas for serving apple caramel pie:
- Ice cream: Vanilla ice cream is a match made in heave for this apple pie recipe. You can also try other flavors of ice cream, such as caramel, cinnamon, or butter pecan.
- Whipped cream: Whipped cream is a light and airy topping that perfectly complements the rich and decadent apple pie. You can also flavor the whipped cream with caramel extract or cinnamon.
- Caramel topping: Drizzle extra caramel over the top of your pie for an extra decadent treat.
- Chopped nuts: Chopped nuts, such as pecans, walnuts, or almonds, add a crunchy texture and nutty flavor to pie.
- Spices: Spices such as cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice can enhance the flavor. You can sprinkle the spices on top of the pie before serving, or add them to the filling of pie recipes.
More Apple Pies You Might Love
Storage Options
Here are some helpful tips for storing and freezing this apple pie:
- If you are storing the pie at room temperature, be sure to place it in a cool, dry place.
- Be sure to cover the pie tightly to prevent it from drying out if storing in the refrigerator.
- If you are freezing the pie, be sure to wrap it tightly to prevent freezer burn.
- When reheating a frozen pie, be sure to let it come to room temperature for about 30 minutes before baking. This will help to ensure that the pie heats evenly.
Tips For Success
- Using cornstarch as the thickener doesn’t muddle the flavor of the fruit like flour can. However, if you want to use flour, double the amount (which would be 10 teaspoons of flour).
- Let the pie crust chill before you roll it out.
- Place the pie dish on a baking sheet to catch the juices if they bubble up and spill out of the pie dish.
- To prevent a watery pie, make sure the pie cooks until the juices bubble up for at least 10 minutes.
- Let the pie cool completely before slicing it as the juices will thicken more as it cools. Apples naturally have a lot of pectin that will thicken the pie, but the pectin needs to get hot enough to activate and cool completely to thicken.
- Reducing the apple juices before adding them back to the filling helps concentrate the flavors.
- If the top crust starts to brown too quickly, cover it with a sheet of aluminum foil while the filling finishes baking.
More Recipes You Will Love
This rich Butterscotch Cinnamon Pie is incredible in every way! Thick, soft, and gooey, the creamy butterscotch filling makes an indulgent treat. And our turtle pie is just as decadent.
Skip the store-bought stuff and make your own Homemade Whipped Cream! Our fool-proof recipe results in a fluffy, creamy and rich whipped cream that holds its shape.
This all-purpose, everyday Chocolate cake recipe will become your go-to! It’s tender, moist, and indulgent, with a light chocolate buttercream that tops it all off perfectly.
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Salted Caramel and Apple Pie Recipe
If you make this recipe, please leave a star rating and comment.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups caramel sauce, homemade or storebought
- 1 recipe double crust pie crust
- 3 pounds apples
- 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 teaspoons cornstarch, or instant Clearjel
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
Finishing touches:
- 1 large egg, whisked; or 2 tablespoons cream
- 2 tablespoons Turbinado sugar
Instructions
- If you are using homemade caramel, make the sauce before you begin with the pie recipe. Set the caramel aside while you prepare the pie. We used our salted caramel recipe but store bought sauce also works great.
Prep the apples:
- Peel core, and slice the apples. You should have about 8 to 9 cups of sliced apples.
- Add the apples to a large bowl and toss them with the lemon juice.
- Combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, allspice, and salt. Add the sugar mixture to the apples and toss to coat them in the sugar. Let the apples sit for 30 to 40 minutes until there is a pool of juices on the bottom of the bowl.
Preheat the oven:
- Spray a pie dish with nonstick spray. Place the oven rack in the bottom third of the oven and preheat the oven to 450°F.
Concentrate the juices:
- Drain the juice from the apples into a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat until reduced by half. It should look slightly thickened but still have a runny consistency and be able to drizzle off a spoon easily.
- Add the reduced juice back to the apples and stir to combine.
Add the thickener:
- Combine cornstarch (or clearjel), and granulated sugar in a small dish, then toss into the apples. Stir until the apples are completely coated in the thickener.
Assemble the pie:
- Roll out the dough for the bottom pie crust and place it in the pie dish.
- Pour the filling into the pie crust, mounding them slightly in the middle.
- Drizzle ½ cup of the caramel sauce over the apples. Save the rest of the caramel sauce to serve with the baked pie.
- Roll out the dough for the top crust and place it on top of the filling (or cut strips and create a lattice top). Trim and crimp the edges of the pie crust.
- Brush the top of the pie with a beaten egg or cream and sprinkle sugar on top. Cut several vent holes into the top crust if you do not have a lattice top.
Bake:
- Place the pie on a baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes at 450°F. After 20 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350°F and bake for 50 to 75 minutes or until you see the juices bubble for about 10 minutes. If the crust starts to get too brown before the pie is finished baking, cover the top with a sheet of aluminum foil.
- Let the pie cool completely before slicing (about 4 hours or overnight).
- Serve with additional caramel drizzled on top.
Notes
- Bake the pie in the bottom third of the oven to help the bottom crust get crisp.
- To prevent a watery pie, make sure the pie cooks until the juices bubble up for at least 10 minutes then let the pie cool completely before you slice it. Apples have a lot of pectin that will thicken the pie, however, the pectin needs to get hot enough to activate, then cool completely in order to thicken.
- Don’t place the pie in the fridge to cool down. Cooling the pie in the fridge will create moisture and soften the crust.
- If you reduce the juices too much it will seize up when you add it back to the apples. If that happens, don’t worry, the clumps of caramelized juices will dissolve into the apples.
- Combining the cornstarch (or Clearjel) with a little sugar will help it distribute into the apples evenly without clumps.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Like this recipe? Rate & comment below!
This is for sure one of the best Fall desserts!
I agree, thanks Angie.