Caramel Apple Crumb Pie

Table of Contents

1. How to Make The Caramel
2. Ingredients For Caramel Apple Crumb Pie
3. Choosing Your Apples
4. Substitutions and Additions
5. How to Make Caramel Apple Crumb Pie
6. How to Tell When the Pie Is Done
7. Make It Ahead
8. How To Serve Caramel Apple Crumb Pie
9. How to Store Caramel Apple Crumble Pie
10. JUMP TO RECIPE

My caramel apple crumb pie tucks tart apples and melted caramel under a thick layer of buttery brown sugar streusel. There's no lattice to weave and no candy thermometer to watch, which is a big part of why I like making this for busy fall and winter holidays.

The caramel does double duty with this gooey pie. Some of it gets stirred straight into the apple filling, so every forkful tastes like caramel rather than just pouring a little on top. The rest gets held back and drizzled over the pie once it's cool.

A streusel-topped pie asks a lot less of you than a double-crust pie does. You only roll out one crust, and the topping takes just 5 minutes to mix together in a bowl.

It also gives you a completely different eating experience. Streusel bakes into craggy, buttery clumps that go crisp at the edges and stay soft where they meet the apples - it's such a wonderfully unexpected topping for an apple pie.

If you've ever picked at the crunchy top of an apple crisp and left the fruit behind, this is the pie for you.

Instead of cooking caramel on the stovetop, this caramel apple pie uses soft caramel candies melted with heavy cream in the microwave instead.

It takes about two minutes and it's nearly impossible to ruin. You can make homemade caramel sauce if you want, or even use a jarred sauce, but there are some risks to those.

Here's how the three options compare:

• Soft caramel candies with cream (what this recipe uses). Melts smooth in the microwave, sets up thick enough to hold in the filling, and there's no scorching risk.
• Jarred caramel sauce. Faster still, but most jarred sauces are thinner, so the filling can run. If you go this route, it's best to pick one that's thick and made with real butter and cream.
• Homemade stovetop caramel. Wonderful flavor if you enjoy making it. It's just a much longer project for a result that's basically the exact same thing once it's baked into a pie.

Here's what you'll need to make this caramel apple pie with crumb topping:

For the pie filling:

• 30 soft caramel candies (about 1 cup)
• 4 tablespoons of heavy whipping cream
• 6 cups of peeled, cored, and thinly sliced Granny Smith or Pippin apples (about 6 to 7 apples)
• 1 tablespoon of lemon juice
• ½ cup of granulated sugar
• ¼ cup of all-purpose flour
• ¾ teaspoon of ground cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon of ground nutmeg
• Dash of salt
• 2 tablespoons of salted butter
• 1 (9-inch) unbaked pie crust, store-bought or homemade

For the brown sugar streusel:

½ cup of salted butter, cut into small pieces

1 cup of all-purpose flour

⅓ cup of packed light brown sugar

½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon

Choosing Your Apples

I used Granny Smith apples, but I've also used Pippin in the past. You'll need about six to seven of them to get to your six cups sliced. Both are tart and firm, and I think the tartness gives the right flavor with this recipe.

The caramel brings plenty of sweetness on its own, so a sharp apple keeps the filling balanced rather than cloying and overly sweet.

✅ If Granny Smith tastes too sour to you, swap in Honeycrisp, Pink Lady, or Golden Delicious for a sweeter, milder pie. All three hold their shape through a long bake. My favorite version combines half Granny Smith and half Honeycrisp, so you get tart bites and sweet bites in the same slice.

❌ I don't recommend Red Delicious, McIntosh, or Gala. They break down fast in the oven, and you'll end up with mushy, grainy apple pieces.

FIRST STEP: Preheat the oven to 425°F.

SECOND STEP: Slide the unbaked pie crust into the freezer while you put the filling together. A cold crust holds its shape better in a hot oven.

THIRD STEP: Peel, core, and thinly slice the apples, dropping them into a large bowl as you go. Squeeze the lemon juice over them and toss.

FOURTH STEP: Add the granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to the apples. Stir well until every slice is coated.

FIFTH STEP: Unwrap the caramels and combine them with the heavy whipping cream in a small microwave-safe bowl. Heat for 30 seconds, stir, then heat for another 30 seconds. Stir until smooth, adding 15 more seconds at a time if any lumps remain.

SIXTH STEP: Stir ⅓ cup of the melted caramel into the apples. Set the rest aside for drizzling later.

The warm caramel will seize into little clumps when it hits the cold apples. Nothing has gone wrong. Those clumps melt back into the filling as the pie bakes.

SEVENTH STEP: Mound the apple mixture into the chilled crust. Dot the 2 tablespoons of butter in small pieces over the top and set it aside.

EIGHTH STEP: In a small bowl, stir together the flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon for the streusel. Add the ½ cup of butter pieces and cut them in with two forks or a pastry blender until small clumps form.

Stop while the mixture still holds together when you squeeze a handful. If you keep working it past that point, it turns sandy, and will bake up flat.

NINTH STEP: Sprinkle the streusel evenly over the apples.

TENTH STEP: Bake the caramel apple pie with crumb topping for 40 to 45 minutes. Check on the pie after the first 15 to 20 minutes, and once the top and the edge of the crust have browned, cover the whole pie loosely with foil and keep baking for another 20 to 25 minutes.

ELEVENTH STEP: Let the pie cool completely.

TWELFTH STEP: Drizzle the reserved caramel over the top, reheating it briefly if it's stiffened up. Slice with a sharp knife and serve.

How to Tell When the Pie Is Done

Underbaked apple pie doesn't set, so the filling stays loose and runs the moment you cut it. It's the single most common way this pie goes sideways, and it's easy to avoid once you know what to look for.

You're waiting on three things at the same time:

• The filling is bubbling. Look at the outer edge where the apples meet the crust, since that's where bubbling shows up first and where you can actually see it through the streusel.
• The apples are tender. Slide a thin knife through a gap in the topping. It should meet almost no resistance.
• The topping and crust are golden brown.

If your timer has gone off and nothing is bubbling yet, the pie simply needs more time. Tent it with foil so the top doesn't darken too much, and keep checking it every five minutes.

Make It Ahead

This pie travels well, which makes it a good choice when you need to bring dessert to a dinner.

Bake it a day ahead and leave it covered at room temperature. Rewarm it in a low oven, covered loosely with foil so the streusel doesn't burn or get too dark.

Hold back the caramel drizzle until you're ready to serve. It reheats in the microwave in about 15 to 20 seconds and looks best when it goes on fresh.

The best way - hands down - is warm, with vanilla ice cream. The heat from the pie softens the caramel and the ice cream gently melts. It's truly decadent.

A dollop of whipped cream and a cup of coffee work well too.

More Apple Recipes To Keep Handy

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Apple Pie Filling Recipe

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Apple Pie Spice

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IN THE FRIDGE: Cover any leftover pie with plastic wrap or foil and refrigerate for up to two days.

IN THE FREEZER: Wrap the cooled pie in plastic wrap and then foil, or slide it into a heavy-duty freezer bag. It keeps for three to four months.