This easy apple crumb pie recipe uses fresh apples, a premade crust, and a simple buttery crumble topping made with flour, brown sugar, butter, and pantry seasonings. This semi-homemade apple pie has no top crust for a classic apple pie with minimal work.
Jump To (scroll for more)
- ❤️ Why You Will Love This Recipe
- 🥧Ingredients
- 👨🍳 How to Make Apple Crumb Pie (Step-by-Step)
- 🍎 What Are the Best Apples for Pie?
- 🥣 Apple Crumb Topping
- 💡 Pro Tips for Easy Apple Crumb Pie
- 🤔 How to Prevent a Soggy Bottom Crust
- 📖 Other Apple Recipes
- 🍽️ How to Serve Fresh Apple Pie
- ❄️ Pie Storage
- ❓FAQs
- 📖The Recipe Card
Featured Comment by Hquinzelle:
"This recipe is great. I made it twice, and it turned out fantastic both times."
❤️ Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Beginner-friendly: No homemade crust to fuss with – just one premade crust and a crumble topping. No top crust required.
- Real apple flavor: Uses fresh apples instead of canned filling.
- Time-saver: About 50 minutes bake time, plus cooling, for a pie that looks homemade without the extra work.
- Semi-homemade win: Perfect balance of convenience and from-scratch taste.
- Want more crumble topping pie? Check out Blueberry Crumb Pie.
🥧Ingredients
• Pie Crust
One refrigerated, unbaked pie crust. No need to make one from scratch – this is the easy path.
• Apple Pie Filling
- 4 to 6 apples (depends on size; most apples will work just fine)
- Pantry ingredients: sugar, flour, cinnamon
- Optional: nutmeg, lemon juice
• Crumb Topping
Flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cold butter – what you'd use for a classic streusel topping. Optional chopped nuts add crunch.
👨🍳 How to Make Apple Crumb Pie (Step-by-Step)
1. Prep the Crust and Topping
- Fit the refrigerated pie crust into a 9-inch pie pan – no need to prebake.
- Preheat the oven to 375°F.
- Mix the crumble topping: flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Cut in cold butter until crumbly.
2. Make the Apple Filling
- Peel and slice 4 to 6 apples (about 5–6 cups).
- Toss with sugar, flour, and cinnamon.
✅ Pro tip: Add lemon juice to prevent browning, or move fast and skip it.
3. Assemble and Bake
- Pour the apple mixture into the unbaked pie crust.
- Top evenly with the crumb topping.
✅ Pro tip: Baking on a preheated tray will help prevent a soggy crust.
- Bake at 375°F for 20 minutes, then check and cover the crust edge if needed – with a pie ring or a strip of foil to prevent over-browning.
✅ Pro Tip: A fully preheated oven helps the topping crisp and the filling set.
- Bake for a total of about 50 minutes, until golden brown.
- Let the pie cool and set up completely – about 3 to 4 hours before slicing.
For more detail, scroll on. Full instructions and step-by-step photos are in the Recipe Card below.
🍎 What Are the Best Apples for Pie?
Most apples will work just fine, so don’t overthink it. Pie doesn’t have to be perfect to be great. But if you want the best texture and flavor, some varieties hold up better during baking.
Best choices for baking:
Granny Smith, Gala, Honeycrisp, Braeburn, Jonathon, Jazz, Winesap
A mix of tart and sweet apples gives the best results.
My go-to combo:
Granny Smith and Gala
Poorer choices:
Red Delicious and McIntosh – they tend to get mushy and won’t hold their shape well.
🥣 Apple Crumb Topping
The apples may be the star, but this crumb topping is the scene-stealer. Buttery, cinnamon-sweet, and perfectly crisp – it bakes up golden every time and works on other fruit pies, crisps, or even muffins.
What’s in it: simple pantry staples – flour, brown sugar, cinnamon, salt, and cold butter. White sugar works too, but brown sugar adds more flavor. Optional nuts (walnuts, pecans, almonds) add crunch.
Cold butter is key. That’s what gives you a crumbly texture instead of a paste. Cube or shred it, then cut it in with a pastry cutter or fork until you’ve got loose, buttery crumbles – not dough.
✅ Pro Tip: Classic crumble ratio: 1 cup flour, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt, 6 tablespoons cold butter.
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💡 Pro Tips for Easy Apple Crumb Pie
- Don’t skip the apples – you’ll need 4 to 6, depending on size (about 5–6 cups when sliced).
- Lemon juice helps prevent browning, but moving quickly works too.
- Any pie crust works – refrigerated, frozen, or homemade.
- Premade crusts bake up crisp if you start on a fully preheated sheet or stone.
- A little nutmeg ( ½ teaspoon) adds warmth, but it’s totally optional.
🤔 How to Prevent a Soggy Bottom Crust
Nobody wants a soggy bottom, and your apples and baking setup can make a big difference.
- Use firmer apples. Softer varieties release more liquid when baked. Granny Smith and Honeycrisp are great choices because they hold their shape and don’t get too juicy.
- Bake on a fully preheated surface.
Set your pie dish on a preheated baking sheet or pizza stone. It helps melt the crust fat faster, sealing the bottom and keeping the filling from soaking in. Just place the sheet or stone in the oven while it fully preheats – before the pie goes in.
📖 Other Apple Recipes
Looking for more apple desserts? Try one of these easy favorites:
🍽️ How to Serve Fresh Apple Pie
Apple pie is best served warm. Add a scoop of vanilla ice cream and a drizzle of caramel sauce for the full experience.
To reheat a slice, microwave it for 20 to 30 seconds until warm.
❄️ Pie Storage
Keep your apple pie loosely covered with foil or plastic wrap.
- Room temperature: up to 2 days
- Refrigerated: 3 to 4 days
- Frozen: up to 4 months—slice, cool completely, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap and foil before freezing
❓FAQs
Yes. You can replace the fresh apples and their coating ingredients with one can of apple pie filling. It’s a shortcut, but it’ll still get the job done.
A standard pie dish is 9 inches wide and about 1¼ inches deep. Larger pans (9½ or 10-inch) exist, but this recipe is designed for the standard size.
•American apple pie has two crusts – one on the bottom and a vented or lattice-style top.•Dutch apple pie is also called apple crumb or apple crumble pie. It uses one crust and a buttery crumble topping. It’s loosely inspired by Dutch apple tarts.•French apple pie usually starts with cooked apples and may include raisins, cherries, or spices. It’s often topped with pastry or cookie-style dough and baked upside-down with the fruit on top.
A classic crumble topping uses simple pantry staples: 1 cup flour, ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 6 tablespoons cold butter. Cut in the butter until you have loose, buttery crumbles – not dough. Optional nuts like walnuts or pecans add crunch.
📖The Recipe Card
Easy Apple Crumb Pie (With Buttery Crumble Topping)
Video Slideshow
Ingredients
- 1 refrigerated pie crust - uncooked
- 5-6 cups cooking apples peeled and sliced - 4 to 6 apples depending on size
- ½ cup granular sugar
- ⅓ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice - optional
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg - optional
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup brown sugar - packed
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 stick cold butter (½ cup) - cold for the best crumb texture
Step-by-Step Instructions
Prep the Crust and Topping
- Preheat the oven to 375° and place a cookie sheet on the bottom rack for any overflow. You can place the sheet on the rack you are using to help prevent a soggy crust.
- Fit the refrigerated crust into a 9-inch pie pan and crimp the edges. No need to prebake.
- Start with 1 cup of all-purpose flour in a large bowl. Mix well with ½ cup brown sugar, ½ teaspoon cinnamon, and ⅛ teaspoon salt. Add one stick (½ cup) of butter cut into chunks. Using a fork or pie cutter, mix in the butter until evenly distributed—set aside.
Make the Apple Filling
- Peel and slice apples. Use 4 large or 5-6 medium apples. You need 5-6 cups of apple. Granny Smith and Gala are good choices—others discussed in the post.
- Mix ½ cup granulated sugar, ⅓ cup of all-purpose flour, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, then sprinkle over the apple slices—mix well to coat.
Assemble and Bake
- Pour apple mixture into the 9-inch uncooked pie crust.
- Top with the crumble topping mixture.
- Bake on the middle rack of the fully preheated 375°F oven. About 20 minutes in, check the pie. Cover the edges with foil or a pie ring if they’re browning too fast.
- Bake for a total time of about 50 minutes until golden brown. Let the pie cool and set up completely—about 3 to 4 hours before slicing.
Recipe Notes
Pro Tips
- Some good choices for apples are Honey Crisp, Granny Smith, Gala, Braeburn, Winesap, Jonathon, and Jazz. However, aside from Delicious and Macintosh, which lose some texture when baked, most apples will be fine.
- Use a standard pie pan, which is 9 inches in diameter and 1¼ inches deep.
- I use refrigerated pie crust. You can use frozen or homemade food.
- Be sure to fully cool the pie before cutting. It will take 3-4 hours.
- Store loosely covered at room temperature for up to 2 days. Refrigerated, it keeps for 3 to 4 days. Freeze for up to 4 months—just be sure it’s fully cooled and well wrapped.
Your Own Private Notes
To adjust the recipe size:
You can adjust the number of servings above; however, only the amount in the ingredient list is adjusted, not the instructions.
Nutrition Estimate (may vary)
Editor's Note: Originally Published May 18, 2012. Updated with expanded discussion and updated photos.
Lilianna G. says
I made this recipe with my friends in our college dorm kitchen, and it turned out absolutely delicious! The instructions were easy to follow, and the baking tips were super helpful. I highly recommend this recipe for anyone new to baking or just looking for a tasty homemade dessert.
Carroll says
This recipe sounds delicious and I'm looking forward to trying it next time I have company.
I noticed that salt is missing from the list of ingredients for the crumble topping. It's in the instructions but not the list.
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Carroll,
Welcome to the blog and thanks for the proof-read... fixed.
Dan
Anna S says
Mine was good except there was a lot of water that came out of the apples and it soaked the crust. Can I add corn starch to the apples and cook them before putting the pie together to prevent this next time?
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Anna,
Welcome to the blog.
The flour is generally enough but is on the lower end of the range. Amount increased.
Dan
Jill says
Hi Anna-
That should be ok. Another thing is make sure you use the right type of apple. I’ve made many apple pies that came out watery before I finally found the right type of apple to prevent this. I use Granny Smith. Happy baking :)
Brenda says
Just going In the oven this thanksgiving morning I also had the same problem with the topping not crumbling should have added more flour but I'll cook longer and protect the edges will update when done thanks for the quick recipe
Judy Uhl says
We love apple pie! I will have to make this. Is your pie shield adjustable? So many kinds on the market!
Dan Mikesell AKA DrDan says
Hi Judy,
This is just a good basic apple pie but that is a good thing.
The pie ring is old. I aways did the foil thing and my wife dug this out of a box from her childhood.
It is adjustable a bit and I have seen similar ones at William Sonoma several yrs ago and those cheap kitchen gadget shops at outlet malls. Search for pie rings or pie shields and you should come up with something.
Enjoy your pie.
Dan
Cheryl A Beaudoin says
Ok.. Thanksgiving meal was a success and so was the desert as I used part of this recipe in my desert creation. However, can someone please tell me why my flour/sugar/butter topping did not get more crunchy nor darker? It was still soft as when I put it on top for topping and didn't change? My thought is possibly because rather than making a full pie, I used more like a cupcake tin only a bit larger to make individual pies and it didn't take as long to bake. Maybe 17 minutes. Do you think that is what might have caused the crunch to not be crunch? And if so, what can I do so it is crunchy the next time I bake this. Everything else was great! so was the not so crunchy crunch part, just not crunchy. lol thank you in advance for help/suggestions..
Hquinzelle says
This recipe is great, I made it twice and it turned out fantastic both times.