As with any great story, the key to a compelling recipe is specificity. For this pie, the apple filling needs to be sweet, not tart, and not too soft. The crumb topping has to have big, clumpy chunks. I like to serve it still warm from the oven so that my vanilla ice cream melts and drips down through the crumbs.
MAKES one 9-inch pie
INGREDIENTS
2 tablespoons (16g/2.4oz) all-purpose flour
¾ cup (150g/5.3oz) granulated sugar
¼ cup (50g/1.8oz) light brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon grated nutmeg
8 Golden Delicious apples, peeled, cored, and cut into ½-inch chunks
1 (9-inch) Magnolia Bakery’s Classic Pie Dough, parbaked
2½ cups (½ recipe) Cinnamon Crumb Topping
- Position an oven rack in the center of the oven and preheat to 425°F. Line a baking sheet with foil.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, both sugars, the cinnamon, and nutmeg.
- Place the apple pieces in a large bowl. You should end up with about 8 cups of cut apples (1kg/2lbs). Toss the apples with the sugar mixture until thoroughly coated. Place in the parbaked crust.
- Cover the apples with large clumps of the crumb mixture by pinching the crumb topping with your fingers.
- Place the pie on the lined baking sheet. Bake for 45 to 55 minutes, or until the apples are just tender and the crumbs are toasted. At 45 minutes, keep a close eye on the pie. You may need to cover the crust with foil or a pie shield if it starts to brown too quickly.
- Place on a cooling rack for at least 1 hour. This pie is great served warm. To reheat, place in a 350°F oven for 15 to 20 minutes.