BA's Best Apple Pie

This recipe for homemade apple pie delivers on every front. It’s got a perfectly flaky pie crust, no soggy bottom in sight, and a filling loaded with thinly sliced apples enrobed in a saucy (not gloopy or runny) glaze, hit with just the right amount of warming spice.

You’ll need a deep-dish pie plate to hold the four pounds of fruit packed in here, and we suggest being extra choosy when selecting apples for pie. Opt for sweet-tart firm baking apples like Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, or Jonagold in the fall, when apples are in season. The rest of the year, look to tart, reliable Granny Smith apples—and don’t be afraid to use multiple varieties in a single pie (in fact, we encourage it). Some apple varieties have tough skins, so we recommend peeling them all; if you know your apples are thin-skinned (and you know you like the texture of baked apple skin), feel free to leave the peels intact.

You’ll amp up the flavor of your pie with a syrup made from reduced apple cider steeped with a vanilla bean and a whisper of cinnamon, allspice, and cardamom (just enough to enhance the fruit but not overwhelm it). If you’d rather swap in vanilla extract, add 1 Tbsp to the apple pie filling just before scraping it into the pie pan. To finish, sprinkle demerara sugar over the top of the pie for extra sparkle and crunch.

Pastry chef and former BA senior food editor Claire Saffitz explains this apple pie recipe is “something you can’t rush.” It requires ample chilling, baking, and resting, so plan accordingly, particularly if you’re making it for Thanksgiving. Thankfully, like pecan and pumpkin pie, it can be made a full day in advance.

Looking for a different apple dessert? This apple crumb pie has a cozy cinnamon-brown-sugar crumble, while our Dutch Apple Pie gets a big nubby streusel topping. No pie dish? Everyone loves an Apple Pandowdy.