This salted caramel apple pie is arguably the best apple pie to ever exist! It's made with an all-butter pie crust, juicy fresh apples, and rich salted caramel sauce.
Apple pie will never be the same again without this homemade salted caramel sauce. It transforms an ordinary apple pie filling into gooey, caramely goodness with perfectly cooked juicy apples.
And the crust! It's the perfect flaky, buttery, golden vessel for the most beloved pie filling.
Serve each slice with a generous scoop of vanilla ice cream and even more caramel sauce!
For more apple recipes, try Cinnamon Rolls with Apple Pie Filling, Caramel Apple Skillet Dump Cake, and Apple Streusel Coffee Cake.
Jump to:
Why you'll love this salted caramel apple pie
- Flaky, Buttery Pie Crust: My go-to all butter pie dough that creates an ultra flaky, tender crust that's perfect with any pie filling.
- Caramel Apple Filling: Think perfectly cooked apples coated in homemade caramel sauce with fall spices. Um YES PLEASE.
- Salted Caramel Drizzle: Because you can never have too much caramel!!
Ingredient Notes
Ingredient quantities are listed in the recipe card below. Here you'll find notes on why I chose certain ingredients, as well as ingredient substitutions.
- Flour: Weigh your flour! Homemade pie dough is very simple, so long as everything is measured precisely!
- Salt: Use kosher salt, not table salt.
- Butter: Since there are so few ingredients in pie dough, it gets all of its flavor from the butter, so be sure to use high-quality unsalted butter.
- Ice Water: Pie must be cold at all times, so it's important that the water is iced!
- Apples: I used McIntosh apples, which are sweet and juicy, but a bit softer than other baking apples. I love baking with honeycrisp apples, because they have the perfect balance of sweetness and hold their shape well in the oven. You could also use another baking apple, such as granny smith or pink lady.
- Lemon Juice: Add this to the apple slices to prevent them from browning.
- Salted Caramel Sauce: You could use store-bought or make this recipe!
- Fall Spices: I used a combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, cloves, and cardamom.
- Flour: You'll need some all-purpose flour to add to the caramel sauce, which thickens the filling.
- Brown Sugar: Use light or dark brown sugar here!
Kitchen Equipment
- Kitchen Scale
- Mixing Bowls
- Plastic Wrap
- Cutting Board
- Knife
- Saucepan
- Rolling Pin
- 9" pie dish
- Pastry Brush
- Baking Sheet
Step by Step Instructions
There's no sugar coating it, homemade pie is a process to make. But it isn't necessarily difficult to make! It requires careful timing of when each element is made and A LOT of chill time, but if you read through this recipe at least once (twice wouldn't hurt though😉), you'll be rewarded with a gorgeous homemade apple pie!
Be sure to read below for notes on how to prepare each element ahead of time!
STEP 1: Make the pie dough and chill overnight. For more detailed step by step instructions, see this 3 Ingredient Pie Crust Recipe.
STEP 2: Peal and cut the apples into thin slices, and squeeze lemon juice all over. Set aside.
STEP 3: Weigh out the caramel sauce, the stir in the flour and spices. Set aside.
STEP 4: In a medium saucepan, melt the butter, then add the apples. Stir in the brown sugar and vanilla, and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the spiced caramel, and cook for another 2-3 minutes.
STEP 5: Pour the caramel apple pie filling onto a baking sheet. Spread into an even layer and set aside to cool completely.
STEP 6: Before assembling the pie, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F with a baking sheet on the lowest rack. Roll out 430g of the pie dough and place in the pie dish. Pour the cooled pie filling into the crust, making it slightly mounded in the center. Place in the fridge.
STEP 7: Roll out the remaining pie dough, and cut out six 11"x2.5" strips. Arrange the lattice on top of the pie filling, then trim the excess dough. Fold over the edges of the dough, then place the pie back in the fridge for 15 minutes. Take the pie out and crimp the edges as desired, then chill for another 30 minutes.
STEP 8: Brush the egg wash all over the pie, except for the crimped edges, and sprinkle turbinado sugar all over. Bake the pie for about 60 minutes, or until the crust is deeply golden. Allow to cool for at least four hours or overnight.
Expert Baking Tips
- For more detailed step by step instructions on how to make homemade pie dough, see this post.
- If you have vodka on hand, you can add a tablespoon or two to the pie dough before the water. You'll end up adding less water, so still pay close attention to the hydration level. Vodka does not develop the gluten as much, which makes it perfect for hydrating pie dough and creating a super tender pie crust!
- The most important thing with making pie crust is to always keep the dough cold at all steps. So use ice cold water and cold butter, and any time you touch the dough you should put it back in the fridge for at least 20 minutes.
- If making homemade caramel, I recommend making at least an hour before (or up to a week before) making the apple pie filling to give it time to cool down and thicken up.
FAQ
Cut cold cubed butter into the flour until quarter sized pieces are left. Roll the chilled pie dough out into a rough rectangle, then fold it into quarters. Chill for a few minutes, then repeat. This series of rolling and folding creates layers and layers of butter and dough. When the pie dough is baked, the butter creates steam and pushes the layers of dough upwards, creating an ultra flaky, buttery crust!
Of course! But if you have the time, I encourage you try homemade. It's so much better than store-bought, and it is surprisingly easy to make!
I used McIntosh for this pie, which are sweet and juicy, but a bit softer than other baking apples. I love baking with honeycrisp apples, because they have the perfect balance of sweetness and hold their shape well in the oven. You could also use another baking apple, such as granny smith or pink lady.
Absolutely! But I highly recommend this foolproof salted caramel sauce 🙂 Homemade caramel is surprisingly easy to make, but if you've never made it before the post is packed with tips & tricks to walk you through it!
The apples are cooked in a large saucepan before being baked into a pie in order to ensure that they cook evenly, thicken up to right consistency, and pack in tight so you can get as many apples as possible in every bite!
Make-Ahead Tips
You can make the pie dough up to 3 days ahead of time stored in the fridge or up to 3 months ahead of time if stored in the freezer. If it's stored in the freezer, be sure to thaw it out in the fridge overnight before using.
The caramel sauce can be made up to a week ahead of time stored in the fridge.
And the apple filling can be made one day before baking the pie stored in the fridge.
The day the pie is assembled, it must be baked! I highly recommend baking it the day before serving, as it needs at least four hours to cool and set. This gives the filling enough time to set so you can get clean cut pie slices!
Storage Tips
Store leftover pie slices covered at room temperature or in the fridge for 2-3 days.
Baking in Grams
All of the recipes on this blog are carefully developed with gram measurements so you can easily recreate them in your own kitchen with success. Volume measurements are extremely inaccurate and leave room for significant errors. Not all measuring cups are made equally, so your one cup of flour will be different from my one cup of flour. By providing precise measurements in grams (aside from minor ingredients, which are given in tsp/tbsp), you can make these recipes accurately and with less cleanup! All you need is this kitchen scale.
If this still isn't enough to convince you, I have provided volume measurements in the recipe card. If you are interested in understanding the conversions, this is the best conversion chart.
But trust me, once you try baking in grams you'll never turn back!
Happy baking! x
Other pie recipes to try
If you tried this recipe, I'd love to know how it turned out for you! Leave a star rating & review below and post a picture (or video!) on Instagram and tag me so I can see your bakes! Not ready to make this recipe yet? Click the heart button on the right of your screen to save it for later 🙂
Print📖 Recipe
Salted Caramel Apple Pie
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Yield: 9-inch pie 1x
- Category: pie
- Method: baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This salted caramel apple pie is arguably the best apple pie to ever exist! It's made with an all-butter pie crust, juicy fresh apples, and rich salted caramel sauce.
Ingredients
For the all-butter pie crust:
- 500g (4 cups + 2 tbsp) all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 350g (1 ½ cups + ½ tbsp) unsalted butter
- 1 cup ice water
For the salted caramel sauce:
- Get the ingredients here
For the salted caramel apple pie filling:
- 830g (about 5-6) McIntosh or Honeycrisp apples, peeled & thinly sliced
- 30g (2 tbsp) lemon juice
- 170g salted caramel sauce
- 60g (½ cup) all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp allspice
- ½ tsp nutmeg
- ½ tsp cloves
- ½ tsp ginger
- ¼ tsp cardamom
- 56g (¼ cup) unsalted butter
- 70g (⅓ cup) brown sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla bean past or extract
For assembly:
- egg wash (1 egg + 1 tablespoon water)
- turbinado sugar
Instructions
For the all-butter pie crust:
- In a medium bowl combine the flour and salt.
- Cut the cold butter into cubes and toss in the flour.
- Using your fingers, cut the butter into the dry ingredients until pea sized pieces are left.
- Add a couple tablespoon of water, then toss with your hands to combine.
- Continue adding very small amounts of water until the dough can hold together, but is not overly wet.
- Wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap, then chill for one hour.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll the dough out into a rough rectangle, fold in half, then again into quarters.
- Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for another 30 minutes.
- Roll the dough out again into a rough rectangle and repeat the folding process.
- Shape the dough into a disk, wrap tightly in plastic wrap, and chill overnight.
For the salted caramel sauce:
- Get the ingredients here
For the salted caramel apple pie filling:
- Peel and cut the apples into thin slices. Place in a large bowl and squeeze lemon juice all over. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, stir together the caramel sauce, flour, and spices. Set aside.
- Place a large saucepan over medium heat. Melt the butter, then add the apple slices. Toss to coat.
- Stir in the brown sugar and vanilla, and stir often for about 5 minutes.
- Stir in the spiced caramel sauce and cook for another 2-3 minutes, stirring often.
- Remove from heat and pour onto a baking sheet. Spread into an even layer and allow to cool completely.
For assembly:
- Place a large baking sheet on the bottom rack of the oven, and preheat it to 400 degrees F.
- Weigh out 430g (about ⅓) of the pie dough, placing the bigger half back in the fridge.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the smaller piece into a circle about ⅛" in thickness and large enough to fit in the pie dish with some overhang.
- Carefully transfer to the pie dish, ensuring it is nestled up against the sides and corners. Place in the fridge while the lattice pieces are made.
- Roll out the remaining dough to about ⅛" in thickness and roughly 11"x16".
- Cut out six 11"x 2.5" strips and place on a cutting board or baking sheet. Place in the fridge while the pie is assembled.
- Take the pie dish out of the fridge and pour in the caramel apple pie filling, making it slightly mounded in the center.
- To make the lattice, place three strips on the pie. Pull back the middle piece about half way, and lay a strip horizontally. Lay the middle strip back down, then pull the outer two pieces back. Lay another strip horizontally, and repeat on the other side.
- Trim the excess pie dough from the bottom crust to the very edge of the pie dish.
- Trim the excess pie dough from the lattice to about an inch hanging off of the pie dish. Fold the pie dough over and gently press to seal. Place in the fridge for about 15 minutes.
- Take the pie out and crimp the edges as desired. Place back in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
- Brush an egg wash all over the pie, except for the crimped edges, and sprinkle turbinado sugar all over.
- Place the pie on top of the hot baking sheet and bake for about 1 hour, or until the crust is deeply golden. Tent with foil towards the end if needed.
- Allow the pie to cool for at least four hours or overnight.
- Serve with vanilla ice cream and even more salted caramel sauce!
Notes
- For more detailed step by step instructions on how to make homemade pie dough, see this post.
- If you have vodka on hand, you can add a tablespoon or two to the pie dough before the water. You'll end up adding less water, so still pay close attention to the hydration level. Vodka does not develop the gluten as much, which makes it perfect for hydrating pie dough and creating a super tender pie crust!
- The most important thing with making pie crust is to always keep the dough cold at all steps. So use ice cold water and cold butter, and any time you touch the dough you should put it back in the fridge for at least 15-20 minutes.
- If making homemade caramel, I recommend making at least an hour before (or up to a week before) making the apple pie filling to give it time to cool down and thicken up.
Keywords: salted caramel apple pie, all butter pie crust, salted caramel sauce, McIntosh apple pie, honeycrisp apple pie
Did you make this recipe? Let me know how it turned out!