Apple Pie with Puff Pastry
This easy apple pie using puff pastry delivers flaky, golden layers wrapped around warm cinnamon spiced apples, ready in under an hour with none of the fuss of homemade dough.
The Easiest Apple Pie You Will Ever Make
There is something magical about the smell of cinnamon spiced apples baking inside golden, flaky pastry. This apple pie with puff pastry takes everything you love about a classic apple pie and strips away the fuss of making dough from scratch. It is essentially an apple strudel recipe with puff pastry, built for busy weeknights and lazy Sunday baking alike.
If you have ever searched for an easy apple pastry recipe that does not skimp on flavor, this is the one to bookmark. The layers puff up dramatically in the oven, creating a golden, shattering crust around a soft, spiced apple pie filling with puff pastry doing all the heavy lifting.
Before we get cooking, the right tools and ingredients make a real difference here. A good sharp knife makes slicing the apples thin and even so they cook uniformly, and a sturdy rolling pin helps smooth out any seams in the pastry sheets for a cleaner rise.
Why Puff Pastry Works So Well
Unlike traditional pie dough, puff pastry is pre-laminated with layers of butter, which means it puffs and crisps almost effortlessly. This makes it perfect for apple and pastry puff desserts where you want maximum flakiness with minimum effort. It is one of the most forgiving puffed pastry apple desserts you can make, even if you have never baked before.
Chef's Tip: Keep your puff pastry cold right up until assembly. If it starts to soften and turn greasy, pop it back in the fridge for 10 minutes before continuing. Cold butter is the secret to that dramatic puff in the oven.
Choosing and Prepping Your Apples
For the best apple pie filling with puff pastry, reach for firm, tart apples like Granny Smith, or a mix of Granny Smith and Honeycrisp for a balance of tang and sweetness. Soft apples like Red Delicious tend to turn mushy and release too much liquid, which can make the bottom pastry layer soggy.
Slice your apples thin and even, about a quarter inch thick, so they cook through in the same amount of time it takes the pastry to turn golden. Tossing them with a bit of lemon juice not only brightens the flavor but also keeps them from browning while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
Building the Layers
This recipe comes together like a simple apple strudel: a bottom sheet of pastry, a generous mound of spiced apples, and a top sheet sealed carefully around the edges. Cutting a few slits in the top allows steam to escape, which keeps the pastry crisp instead of steamy and soft.
A few things that make a real difference:
- Leave a clean border around the edges so you have enough pastry to crimp and seal.
- Do not overfill. A thick, towering mound of apples can prevent the top layer from sealing properly.
- Brush generously with egg wash for that irresistible golden brown shine.
Ready to make it? Here is the full step-by-step recipe:
Apple Pie with Puff Pastry
This easy apple pie using puff pastry delivers flaky, golden layers wrapped around warm cinnamon spiced apples, ready in under an hour with none of the fuss of homemade dough.
Ingredients
- 2 sheets puff pastry sheets, thawed if frozen, such as store-bought all-butter puff pastry
- 4 apples, peeled, cored, and thinly sliced, Granny Smith or Honeycrisp work best
- 3/8 cup granulated sugar
- 2 tbsp brown sugar, packed
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg, optional but recommended
- 1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
- 1 tbsp cornstarch, to thicken the apple filling
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, for brushing
- 1 large egg, beaten, for egg wash
- 1 tbsp turbinado sugar, for sprinkling, optional
Instruction
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, toss the sliced apples with granulated sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, lemon juice, and cornstarch until evenly coated.
Unroll one sheet of puff pastry onto the prepared baking sheet and gently roll it out to smooth the seams.
Spoon the apple filling over the pastry, leaving a 1 inch border around the edges.
Brush the border with a little beaten egg, then lay the second puff pastry sheet on top and press the edges to seal, crimping with a fork if desired.
Cut a few small slits in the top layer to let steam escape.
Brush the entire top with the remaining beaten egg and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the pastry is puffed and deep golden brown.
Let the pie cool on the pan for at least 15 minutes before slicing, so the filling has time to set.
Equipment
- Baking sheet
- Parchment paper
- Rolling pin
- Mixing bowl
- Pastry brush
- Sharp knife
Notes
Serving and Storing Your Apple Pastry
This pie is best served warm, about 15 to 20 minutes out of the oven, when the filling has had a chance to set slightly but the pastry is still shatteringly crisp. A scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of lightly whipped cream turns it into a proper dessert.
If you have leftovers, store them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days. A quick 10 minute reheat in the oven at 350 degrees F brings the pastry back to life far better than a microwave ever could, which tends to leave it soft and a little sad.
A Few Easy Variations
Once you have mastered this base recipe, it becomes one of those easy apple pastry recipes you will return to again and again. Try swapping in pears for half the apples, adding a handful of raisins soaked in warm water, or a sprinkle of chopped walnuts for crunch. However you make it, this puff pastry apple pie proves that a stunning, bakery style dessert does not need to be complicated to be truly memorable.
