Classic American Apple Pie (Double Crust)
Eight cups of thin-sliced apples tossed with sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice, thickened with flour and cornstarch and dotted with butter, sealed between two flaky butter and shortening crusts, baked at 425°F and then 375°F until the filling bubbles hard through the vents.
"As American as apple pie" is a phrase about a dish that came from England. Wikipedia's apple pie article says colonists from England, the Netherlands and Sweden brought apple pie over in the 17th and 18th centuries, but there were no apples to bake: the only native ones were small, sour crabapples, so European apples had to be planted first, and early on most went into cider. Because Americans planted from seed rather than grafting, the article says, they grew hundreds of new native varieties. Amelia Simmons's American Cookery (1796) already has two apple pie recipes, and Israel Acrelius wrote from colonial Delaware that apple pie was eaten all year.
By the 1900s the pie stood for the country. Wikipedia quotes a 1902 newspaper declaring that "No pie-eating people can be permanently vanquished", and "mom and apple pie" became shorthand for Americana. What America changed was the build: a full bottom crust, a full top crust, a mountain of thin-sliced dessert apples and a filling thickened to slice cleanly. This is King Arthur Baking's classic, with a crust made of both butter and shortening.
🇺🇸 This one is American
Eight cups of thin-sliced apples tossed with sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice, thickened with flour and cornstarch and dotted with butter, sealed between two flaky butter and shortening crusts, baked at 425°F and then 375°F until the filling bubbles hard through the vents.
🇬🇧 The original
England baked apple pies centuries before America: a short pastry crust filled with apples, sugar and spice, the line that settlers carried across the Atlantic. See the English Apple Pie (Cooking Apples Under a Pastry Lid) recipe.
Why it works the kitchen science
Shortening and butter
King Arthur works the shortening in fine for a tender crust and leaves the butter in dime-size flakes, which steam apart into flaky layers.
Hot, then less hot
20 minutes at 425°F sets and browns the crust before it can slump, and the long finish at 375°F cooks 2 pounds of apples through until the starch-thickened juices boil, which is what lets the filling set as it cools.
Step by step
- Step 1
Make the crust: whisk the flour and salt, work in the shortening until evenly crumbly, then cut in the butter (in 1/2-inch dice) until the flakes are about the size of a dime. Mix in ice water 2 tbsp at a time with a fork until the dough holds together when squeezed. Fold it over on itself 3 or 4 times, divide it in half, pat each into a 3/4-inch-thick disk, wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes.
- Step 2
Heat the oven to 425°F and grease a 9-inch pie pan 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep. Toss the apples with the lemon juice. Whisk the sugar, flour, cornstarch, salt and spices, sprinkle over the apples and toss; stir in the boiled cider and vanilla if using.
- Step 3
Roll one disk into a 12-inch round, fit it into the pan and trim it to a 1-inch overhang. Spoon in the filling, pressing it down, and dot with the diced butter.
- Step 4
Roll the second disk into a 12-inch round and lay it over the apples. Fold the bottom overhang up over the top crust, pinch to seal, crimp and cut several vents. Refrigerate the pie 10 minutes.
- Step 5
Set the pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet, brush the top with milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake 20 minutes at 425°F.
- Step 6
Lower the oven to 375°F and bake about 40 minutes more, checking at 30 minutes and covering the edges with foil or a pie shield if they brown too fast. It is done when the crust is golden brown, the filling bubbles vigorously at the edges and through the vents, and a thin knife pushed through a vent meets tender apples.
- Step 7
Cool the pie completely, until it stops steaming and the filling has set, before slicing; rewarm slices if you like.
Classic American Apple Pie (Double Crust)
Serves 8 · one 9-inch deep-dish pie · 1 hr 45 min total
Crust
- 2 1/2 cups (300 g) all-purpose flour
- 3/4 tsp table salt
- 1/3 cup (60 g) vegetable shortening
- 8 tbsp (113 g) cold unsalted butter
- 7 to 10 tbsp ice water
Filling
- 8 cups (904 g) peeled apples sliced about 1/8 inch thick (from about 3 1/4 lb whole apples; use a mix of varieties)
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 3/4 cup (149 g) sugar
- 2 tbsp all-purpose flour
- 2 tbsp cornstarch
- 1/2 tsp table salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp ground allspice
- 1/4 cup (85 g) boiled cider or 1/4 cup (80 g) apple juice concentrate (optional)
- 2 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
- 2 tbsp (28 g) butter, diced small
To finish
- About 1 tbsp milk
- About 1 tbsp coarse sparkling sugar
Method
- Make the crust: whisk the flour and salt, work in the shortening until evenly crumbly, then cut in the butter (in 1/2-inch dice) until the flakes are about the size of a dime. Mix in ice water 2 tbsp at a time with a fork until the dough holds together when squeezed. Fold it over on itself 3 or 4 times, divide it in half, pat each into a 3/4-inch-thick disk, wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes.
- Heat the oven to 425°F and grease a 9-inch pie pan 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep. Toss the apples with the lemon juice. Whisk the sugar, flour, cornstarch, salt and spices, sprinkle over the apples and toss; stir in the boiled cider and vanilla if using.
- Roll one disk into a 12-inch round, fit it into the pan and trim it to a 1-inch overhang. Spoon in the filling, pressing it down, and dot with the diced butter.
- Roll the second disk into a 12-inch round and lay it over the apples. Fold the bottom overhang up over the top crust, pinch to seal, crimp and cut several vents. Refrigerate the pie 10 minutes.
- Set the pie on a parchment-lined baking sheet, brush the top with milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake 20 minutes at 425°F.
- Lower the oven to 375°F and bake about 40 minutes more, checking at 30 minutes and covering the edges with foil or a pie shield if they brown too fast. It is done when the crust is golden brown, the filling bubbles vigorously at the edges and through the vents, and a thin knife pushed through a vent meets tender apples.
- Cool the pie completely, until it stops steaming and the filling has set, before slicing; rewarm slices if you like.
Adapted from King Arthur Baking, "Apple Pie" by Susan Reid (updated July 10, 2026), one 9-inch pie. We follow it as written: a crust of 2 1/2 cups (300 g) flour, 3/4 tsp salt, 1/3 cup (60 g) shortening worked in until crumbly and 8 tbsp (113 g) cold butter cut to dime-size flakes, with 7 to 10 tbsp ice water, folded 3 to 4 times, halved into 3/4-inch disks and chilled 30 minutes; a 9-inch pan 1 1/2 to 2 inches deep; 8 cups (904 g) apples sliced about 1/8 inch thick (from about 3 1/4 lb whole), 2 tbsp lemon juice, 3/4 cup (149 g) sugar, 2 tbsp flour, 2 tbsp cornstarch, 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp allspice, optional boiled cider and vanilla, and 2 tbsp butter dotted on top; 12-inch rounds, a 1-inch overhang folded over and crimped, vents; 10 minutes in the refrigerator; milk and coarse sugar on top; 20 minutes at 425°F, then about 40 minutes at 375°F until the filling bubbles vigorously, shielding the edges as needed; cooled completely before slicing. The knife test is ours. History from Wikipedia, "Apple pie". King Arthur Baking. Ingredient list follows the source; the method is in our own words.
All sources (2)
Tips
- Use a mix of apple varieties for flavor and texture (King Arthur).
- In a ceramic pie dish, King Arthur bakes on a preheated baking steel in the lower third of the oven and extends the time until the filling bubbles vigorously.
- King Arthur's crumb top in place of the top crust: 1/2 cup sugar, 1/2 cup flour, 8 tbsp butter and a pinch of salt rubbed until sandy.
- A lattice top works too; it lets more steam out (King Arthur).
The rules people argue about
What the sources agree on, what they don't, and what is just a good story.
- Apple pie is as American as it gets. Documented as a phrase only: Wikipedia says the dish originated in England and colonists brought it over.
- The colonists found apples waiting. Documented as false in Wikipedia's account: the only native apples were crabapples, and European trees had to be planted.
- Slice it warm. Documented as a mistake by King Arthur: the filling thickens as it cools, and a warm pie runs.
- Apple pie can sit on the counter for days. Disputed: King Arthur keeps leftovers lightly covered at room temperature for several days; University of Maine Extension, citing the FoodKeeper guide, says up to 2 days, then the refrigerator.
- Apple pie was in America's early cookbooks. Documented as Wikipedia's account: Amelia Simmons's American Cookery (1796) has two apple pie recipes.
Every other apple pie
English Apple Pie (Cooking Apples Under a Pastry Lid)
Chunks of tart cooking apples with honey, cinnamon and mixed spice piled into a deep pie dish under a single lid of butter shortcrust, glazed with egg and baked hot at 400°F until golden and bubbling.
Wiener Apfelstrudel (Viennese Apple Strudel)
A soft egg and oil dough stretched over a floured tablecloth until it's paper thin, brushed with butter, layered with hazelnut breadcrumbs fried in butter, sliced apples, rum-soaked raisins, cinnamon and cloves, rolled up and baked at 350°F until golden.
Tarte Tatin (French Upside-Down Apple Tart)
Apple quarters packed in a skillet and softened in butter, covered with a light amber caramel cooked to 355°F, topped with a chilled disk of butter pastry, baked at 350°F until the edges bubble thick and syrupy, then flipped onto a platter.
Appeltaart (Dutch Apple Pie)
A tall springform pie with a cookie-like brown sugar crust pressed in by hand, packed with precooked Golden Delicious apples, golden raisins and speculaas-style spices, topped with a crisscross of dough strips and baked at 375°F for about 75 minutes. Served "met slagroom", with whipped cream.
Versunkener Apfelkuchen (German Sunken Apple Cake)
A buttery vanilla and lemon batter spread in a springform, topped with a ring of peeled apple quarters scored on top so they fan open and sink as the cake rises around them, baked at 350°F for about 45 minutes and brushed hot with apricot jam.
Gammeldags Æblekage (Danish Old-Fashioned Apple Cake)
Not a cake at all: tart apples cooked with vanilla and lemon into a chunky sauce and chilled, breadcrumbs toasted golden in butter and sugar, and lightly whipped cream, layered in glasses just before serving.
Sharlotka (Russian Apple Sponge Cake)
Four eggs and a cup of sugar beaten until thick and airy, a cup of flour folded in with diced apples, baked in one pan at 350°F for 35 to 40 minutes, then topped while hot with sour cream stirred with orange marmalade.
Pennsylvania Dutch Apple Pie (Crumb Top)
One flaky shortening crust filled with 2 pounds of apples tossed with sugar, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg, covered with a lumpy brown sugar and butter streusel instead of a top crust, baked at 425°F and then 350°F.
Apple Pandowdy (Old New England Pan Dowdy)
Apples with sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, molasses and butter baked between two crusts in a square pan at 425°F, then the top crust is slashed and pushed down into the juices in rough chunks, "dowdied", so it turns half crisp, half pudding.
Vermont Apple Pie with Cheddar Crust
A butter crust with grated sharp Vermont cheddar folded in, filled with sliced apples, sugar, maple syrup and apple pie spice, layered with thin slices of more cheddar under the top crust and baked at 375°F until browned. Vermont's 1999 state pie law names cheddar as one way to serve it.
Southern Fried Apple Pies (Dried-Apple Hand Pies)
Dried apples simmered soft and mashed with sugar and cinnamon, spooned onto 5-inch rounds of lard pastry, folded into half-moons, crimped with a fork and fried in lard at 350°F until blistered and lightly browned.
Skillet Apple Crisp (One-Pan, About an Hour)
Apple wedges sautéed in butter in one ovensafe skillet and coated with reduced cider, covered with a pecan, oat and brown sugar crumble made with melted butter, and baked hot at 450°F for 15 to 20 minutes until the fruit is tender and the top deep golden.
Fried Apple Hand Pies (Inspired by McDonald's, Not Official)
A copycat of the original fried fast food apple pie, inspired by McDonald's, not official: diced apples sautéed in browned butter with brown sugar and cinnamon, sealed in rectangles of pie dough and deep-fried at 375°F until golden and shatteringly crisp.
Meatballs of the World
Italian-American Meatballs
Big, tender meatballs braised for an hour in red sauce over spaghetti. The one most Americans grew up with.
Pallottine (Abruzzo Meatballs)
Tiny meatballs, smaller than a marble, tossed right through square spaghetti alla chitarra. No bread at all.
Swedish Meatballs (Köttbullar)
Small, soft meatballs browned in butter, in a cream sauce made from the same pan, with lingonberry jam on the plate.
Danish Frikadeller
Pork meatballs shaped with a spoon and fried slowly in butter, crusty outside and soft in the middle.
Königsberger Klopse
German meatballs that are never fried: poached, then served in a creamy white sauce with capers.
Spanish Albóndigas in Almond Saffron Sauce
The tapas bar classic: small meatballs in a golden sauce thickened with fried almonds and bread.
Mexican Albóndigas with Chipotle and Mint
Soft meatballs with rice and fresh mint inside, simmered in a smoky tomato and chipotle broth.
Izgara Köfte (Turkish Grilled Meatballs)
Small, flat meatballs kneaded hard, rested cold, and charred on a hot grill pan.
Lion's Head Meatballs
Big, soft pork meatballs, stirred into a sticky paste, fried to set, then braised in a savory sauce.
Chicken Tsukune
Japan's chicken meatball: kneaded sticky, grilled on skewers, glazed with sweet soy tare, dipped in egg yolk.