Caramel Apple Crumble Pie!
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A delicious twist on toffee apples, apple pie, and apple crumble… a yummy dessert perfect for Autumn – hello heaven!
Caramel apple crumble pie
So, I’ve had requests for many apple recipes over this Autumn season so far, and yes.. I’ve only just got round to it – however, this is DELICIOUS. It combines the delicious flavours of toffee apples (that we all know and love..), apple pie, and apple crumble.
How can that not sound delicious?! I had so much experimentation with this one due to apples producing so much liquid all of the time, and therefore ruining the pastry… but this recipe is tried and tested so many times over that its a success!
Similar recipes
This recipe is a different version to my apple & blackberry crumble pie and I am obsessed with it! The thing is, this one has caramel involved and as we all know…. that is perfectly acceptable in my books!
Don’t worry, I will be posting recipes for all of the desserts included in this one over time, but I thought that this would be a good idea for all of the requests I have received on Facebook for Halloween this year – ITS SO YUMMY!
Crumble mix
The crumble mixture is incredibly easy to make yourself. It’s a simple mixture of unsalted block butter, flour and sugar mixed together. This is something you can easily swap with a shop-bought version, but it’s incredibly easy to make yourself with store cupboard ingredients.
It’s important to use block butter, and not a spread of margarine as they are too soft. I find it best for the butter to be super cold, and cut into small cubes. I add this to a bowl with the flour and sugar and rub together to a breadcrumb texture with my fingertips.
Pastry
The sweet shortcrust pastry gives a nice lining to the dessert that everyone loves in a pie, as well as having the crumbly sweet & crunchy topping of the crumble is the perfect match to the gooey caramel apple layer in the middle. Hello heaven. You can use a shop bought shortcrust pastry if you want, there is no judgement here.
I use a mixture of butter, flour, egg yolk and icing sugar mixed with a smidge of cold water. This is super easy if you add all of this to a food processor, but you can also rub the flour, sugar and butter together with your fingers, and then add the egg yolk water and knead it together until smooth
It’s very important to blind bake the pastry so that you don’t get a soggy bottom. I prep my loose bottomed tart tin with flour and melted butter, and then I press my pastry in firmly. I line this with parchment paper and then fill it with baking beans. I bake for 15 minutes with the paper and beans, and five minutes without.
Caramel
The caramel is out of a tin, as its easier that way – and the thickness of it marries so well with the baking – and the sweetness of the caramel matches the tartness of cooking apples, overcoming my slight problem of not liking cooked apples some time (as they’re so tart!)
However, you can make your own, and I love to do this if I am going all of the way. My homemade caramel sauce is much easier to make than you think, and you an even make it whilst you pastry bakes. The caramel is technically optional, but honestly, it enhances the recipe SO MUCH, and you can drizzle even more on at the end.
Apples
I like to use cooking apples in a crumble, and this is quite common amongst the baking world. Cooking apples/bramley apples have a good texture to them, and withstand baking at a warmer temperature to still have some texture at the end of baking, and not just turn into mush.
You can use other apples, but I would skip the stage of simmering the apples before you add them to the pastry, and they may also be sweeter and soften more anyway.
Tips & Tricks
You can easily also just turn this into a delicious crumble, and completely forget about the pastry. But in all honesty, I like making this into a delicious pie. Serve it with some custard, cream, ice cream and more and it will please anyone!
- I use this tart tin
- I use these baking beans
- This recipe is best served fresh and still warm, but will last 3+ days in the fridge
- You can freeze the tart for 3+ months
Caramel Apple Crumble Pie!
Ingredients
Pastry Base
- 175 g plain flour
- 100 g unsalted butter (cold/diced)
- 1 tbsp icing sugar
- 1 egg yolk
Pie Filling
- 500 g cooking apple (peeled & cored weight)
- 100 g light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
- 100 g caramel
Crumble Mix
- 120 g plain flour
- 60 g caster sugar
- 60 g unsalted butter (cold/diced)
Instructions
For the Pastry
- Sift the flour, icing sugar, and add the diced butter, egg yolk, and 1tbsp of cold water into a food processor. Blitz quickly on the pulse setting until the mixture starts to bind, it shouldn’t take too long at all!
- Grease and flour a loose bottomed 9" tart tin.
- Roll the pastry out onto a floured surface to the thickness of 1-2 £1 coins .
- Press the pastry into the tin and trim & neaten the edges. Fill any gaps of the pastry with any excess pastry so its all covered! Refrigerate for 1/2 an hour!
- Preheat the oven to 200ºc/180ºc fan – cover the pastry with baking parchment and fill with baking beans/rice and bake the pastry ‘Blind’ for 15 minutes!
- Remove the parchment and the beans and bake for an extra 5-10 minutes or until the pastry is cooked through and turning golden! Leave to cool in the tin.
For the Filling
- Chop the peeled and cored apples into inch size pieces so they’re still reasonably sized. Add the apple to a large heavy based pan, along with the sugar, cinnamon and two tablespoons of water.
- Cook the apple in the pan, whilst stiring, over a medium heat for five minutes. After the five minutes, stop stiring and add the pan lid and leave to ‘simmer’ for another five minutes.
- You basically need the fruit to still have texture and firmness. If the apples are getting very soft quickly, turn the heat off and move onto the next step as you don't want it to be too liquid!
For the Assembly & Baking!
- Rub together the sugar, flour and butter until the mixture resembles bread crumbs. The butter needs to be cold for it to work!
- Add the apple into the pie case and carefully dollop over the caramel in small spoonfuls!
- Sprinkle over the crumble mixture. Bake the pie in the oven for 25-30 minutes until the crumble mixture on top is golden!
- Once baked, leave the pie to cool for about 30 minutes as its going to be very hot. Once cooled slightly, remove from the tin and enjoy warm! I add a scoop of vanilla or clotted cream ice cream… or, leave it to cool and also enjoy cold!
Notes
- When buying the apples, buy above the 500g as thats the chopped and peeled weight. You need to aim for about 650-750g of apples, to make sure that its enough!
- As you are cooking the fruit in a pan, it really can vary in time. Other hobs/heats could take a full 10 minutes longer than mine for example so keep an eye on it!
- I use this tart tin
- I use these baking beans
- This recipe is best served fresh and still warm, but will last 3+ days in the fridge
- You can freeze the tart for 3+ months
Enjoy!!
You can find my other Dessert & Halloween Recipes on my Recipes Page!
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J x
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Instead of one large pie, can these be made as individual small tarts and frozen?
Hi Jane
I’m making this in advance to serve the following day. Shall I leave in the tin I cooked in when refrigerating and reheat in the oven?
How long do you recommend reheating for in the oven?
Very excited to taste!
Perfect bake for autumn vibes and comfort nights in! Love this recipe and all of your other delicious dishes 🤩🥧
Hi Jane & staff,
Would it be possible to soften Biscoff spread and use that instead of buying caramel please? I’m making this as my contribution to our gardening committee annual dinner so want it to be nice as all your recipes are x
One of our family favourites. This and the Bakewell I cook regularly as your recipes are easy to follow and always turn out perfect. I’ve just ordered your book (honestly not a plug) to see what else I might be able to do. To be fair, I wouldn’t know who you are or have ordered your book without finding your videos online. So keep it up and I wish you every success in the future.
Oh thank you so much, that’s really kind of you to say! I hope you love the other recipes you try! x
Hi Jane, I’ve made this recipe before and it’s amazing. I’ve got a load of Bramley apples in the freezer, would they be ok in this recipe?
Yes, they’d be fine!
Hi Jane I was going to make this dessert today but wanted to check which process you prefer for making the tart pastry as the blog says use a food processor but your step by step on Instagram is done by hand? Thanks 😊
Both work!
Hi Jane and team
I’m looking to make this at the weekend
I have the carnation caramel drizzle (squeeze one) at home would this be ok to use??
Thanks
Happy baking
Yes, that works well!!
Wow this was delicious. My child ate it. And asked for more. And his a fuss pot. So seal of approval there also.
Hi, made this several times and it is an all time favourite!
Was wondering could I use pears instead of apples? X
Thanks x
You can do, but they require less baking time to stop them being mushy x
Hiya is it possible to freeze the pastry dough? Thanks
Hi Jane
This is such a popular pud in our household and Jane made it several times but could you tell me if you can freeze it before cooking ?
Many thanks
Hiya! Yes this should be fine! enjoy! x
HI,
I am looking to make this in the next few days but wanted to freeze it to heat on Chirstmas day.
Can you freeze this ? if so at what stage would you freeze? Before cooking or once all done and just thaw and heat in the oven on the day?
Hi Jane, absolutely love your recipes, whenever I want to make anything your are my first port of call, and you never fail me, everything always comes out as it should. I made this last month and it was delicious, everyone loved it, it was the best apple pie crumble I’ve had. Im doing a mini desserts theme for Christmas, mixture of brownies, cookies, cheesecakes and I really want to make mini apple crumbles. I have 4″ mini tarlet tins about and inch deep, do I need to adapt the recipe at all or just make as many as I can out of it. Obviously cooking time would be different, what would you suggest?
In the states. Would caramel ice cream topping work? We can’t get caramel in a tin.
Hiya! Dulce de leech works well, or a toffee sauce! Hope this helps x