Apple pie is one of my favorite pies in the whole world. I like to make apple pie all through the year, regardless of the season. Apples are, in my opinion, the perfect fruit, and the best way to use them is through apple pie.
Apple pie is usually made with classic pie dough, but why spend your time rolling and chilling the dough when you can make apple pie with a graham cracker crust?
This scrumptious spin on a classic dessert is made with homemade apple filling and baked inside a graham cracker crust. The entire cake is topped with a buttery, cinnamon streusel and it is to die for!
This type of apple pie will make you never want to go back to classic pie crust. It is warm, rich, and sweet.
The main reason why I love this pie as much as I do is that it reduces the preparation time by half, just with this delicious graham cracker crust.
Making Graham Cracker Crust
Making graham cracker crust is the easiest thing in the world. There is no way to go wrong with this one and the results will always be perfect.
To make the graham cracker crust you will need:
- Graham crackers
- Sugar
- Butter
Before you start, you have to process your graham cracker crust in a food processor until you have a coarse mixture.
You can go a bit beyond that, but do not turn your graham crackers into a fine powder. Normally ground is okay, but nothing beyond that.
Once you have your graham crackers ready and ground, combine them with sugar and melted butter. The mixture you get should have the consistency of wet sand.
Anything dryer will result in a crumbly pie shell, while on the other hand, a pie shell with too much butter will become way too greasy.
Transfer the mixture to a pie plate or cake pan and press firmly. Use a measuring cup or a glass to press down the crust firmly. You really must press it down firmly, as this will ensure it sticks together.
To Bake Or Not To Bake?
There is always some disagreement in the cooking community about whether to bake or not to bake the crust. When it comes to graham cracker crust, I do bake mine.
Baking allows for the butter and sugar to bind to the point that the crust is sure to fold together.
I find that graham cracker crust brushed with egg whites gives even better results, as it creates a thin layer that will keep the apple juices in without breaking the crust.
The baked crust will have a sturdier texture, but it will not be crumbly and will hold the pie together so that is easy to cut and serve.
Making The Filling
As with most of my recipes, I always tend to make everything from scratch. This one is no exception. I know you can buy apple pie filling, but I prefer to make my own.
The apple filling I am using for my pie is just a mixture of apples, lemon juice, cinnamon, sugar, and some flour. Start by peeling and slicing the apples.
Toss the apples with the remaining filling ingredients and just place them into the graham cracker crust. You will notice the apples are way higher than the graham crust, but it is completely normal.
During the baking, the apples will reduce in size and you will have a perfectly rich layer of apples. If you use fewer apples, then you will end up with a thin and flat cake.
Making The Topping
The topping is another easy thing to make, but without it, the pie would not be the same. This streusel topping gives a nice crunch to the apple pie, and without it, the pie would look just naked.
To make the topping, you will combine sugar, flour, cinnamon, and salt in a small bowl. Add the cubed butter and work it into the dry ingredients with your fingers.
You want to make sure the butter is incorporated through the dry ingredients and begins to clump together. Once the topping is clumpy, pop it into the fridge until baking time.
Graham Cracker Crust Apple Pie
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 55 minutes
Servings: 8
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 7 oz graham crackers
- 7 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg, beaten or 1 egg white
For the streusel topping:
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ tbsp cinnamon
- 4 tbsp cold butter, cubed
- 1 pinch of salt
For the filling:
- 6 apples
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp butter, cubed
Instructions
1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Grease and line a 9-inch cake or pie pan with parchment paper.
3. To make the crust, place graham crackers with sugar in a food processor. Process until you have almost fine crumbs.
4. Add butter and stir to combine, until you have a wet sand-like mixture. Transfer the mixture to a pie pan and press it down firmly.
5. Beat an egg or just egg whites and use it to brush the pie crust in a thin layer. Bake the crust for 10 minutes.
6. To make the filling, in a large bowl, toss together the apples with the rest of the ingredients.
7. To make the topping, in a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add cubed butter.
8. Work it in with your fingers until you have coarse crumbs.
9. To assemble the pie, place the apples in the pie crust. Top the apples with streusel topping and bake for 55 minutes.
10. Cool the pie completely before slicing and serving.
11. Serve the pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
Graham Cracker Crust Apple Pie
This graham cracker crust apple pie is a delicious twist on traditional apple pie that's perfectly crumbly, buttery, and all-around decadent!
Ingredients
For the crust:
- 7 oz graham crackers
- 7 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 egg, beaten or 1 egg white
For the streusel topping:
- ½ cup flour
- ½ cup sugar
- ½ tbsp cinnamon
- 4 tbsp cold butter, cubed
- 1 pinch of salt
For the filling:
- 6 apples
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tbsp flour
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp butter, cubed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Grease and line a 9-inch cake or pie pan with parchment paper.
- Make the crust, place graham crackers with sugar in a food processor. Process until you have almost fine crumbs.
- Add butter and stir to combine, until you have a wet sand-like mixture. Transfer the mixture to a pie pan and press it down firmly.
- Beat an egg or just egg whites and use it to brush the pie crust in a thin layer. Bake the crust for 10 minutes.
- To make the filling, in a large bowl, toss together the apples with the rest of the ingredients. Set the apples aside.
- To make the topping, in a mixing bowl, combine the flour, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Add cubed butter and work it in with your fingers until you have coarse crumbs.
- To assemble the pie, place the apples in a pie crust. Top the apples with streusel topping and bake for 55 minutes.
- Cool the pie completely before slicing and serving.
- Serve the pie with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
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