Crunch Top Apple Pie

Mmmmm I love apple pie...

I made this for Thanksgiving and it was a huge hit! The title of this recipe is Crunch Top Apple Pie, but I suppose that is false advertising because I didn't actually to the "crunch top." I just made the apple pie and ooooooh was it good!

This is a Paula Deen recipe. A lot of people joke about how much butter Paula Deen uses when she cooks, but this recipe surprisingly did not ask for a ridiculous amount of butter! Whenever I can, I like to look at online reviews of recipes I'm about to attempt... it is times like this when I am glad that I do that! There were MANY reviews of this recipe that suggested a slight change in the ingredients. The recipe calls for 3 1/2 cups peeled, chopped apples and one 16-ounce jar applesauce. However, after reading the overwhelming agreement among reviewers, I decided to follow their advice and only use 8 ounces of applesauce. So, my ingredients included 6 apples (3 red and 3 green), and only 8 ounces of applesauce.

Also, I have a bit of an obsession with cinnamon, so I MAY have added slightly more cinnamon than the recipe said to use. There were several reviews that suggested adding some nutmeg as well. It has been almost 4 weeks since I made this recipe, so I honestly can't remember if I added the nutmeg or not. If I did, then it was delicious! If I didn't, then I'm sure that addition would be delicious! :-)

Again, as you see from the pictures, I did not do the crunch topping or the lattice design mentioned in the recipe. And guess what? It was still amazing!

I used a Pampered Chef tool with this recipe that saved a GREAT deal of time and effort. I used the Apple Peeler/Corer/Slicer to cut up the apples, and not only did it peel the apples, but it made PERFECT slices for the pie!

The recipe was very easy to follow and I hope you try it out sometime! I was very happy with how it turned out, and everyone in my family loved it! It would be a great addition to your dessert table for Christmas this weekend!

Crunch Top Apple Pie

Prep time: 15 minutes  Cook time: 55 minutes  Yield: 6 to 8 servings

Dough and Filling
Dough for a double crust 9-inch pie (homemade, frozen, or refrigerated)
3/4 cup sugar
1 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Dash salt
3 1/2 cups peeled, chopped cooking apples
1 (16 ounce) jar applesauce
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp butter, chopped into small pieces

Crunch Topping
3 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 tbsp sugar
Dash salt
1 tbsp butter, at room temperature

1. Preheat oven to 425°F.
2. Line a 9-inch pie pan with half of dough. Combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl. Stir in apples, applesauce, and lemon juice. Spoon apple mixture into pie pan and dot with butter. Cut remaining crust into strips; arrange in a lattice design over top of pie. For crunch topping, combine flour, sugar and salt in a bowl. sing a fork, cut in butter until mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle over top of crust. Bake for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 350°F and continue to bake for about 45 minutes, or until crust and topping are golden brown.