During my senior year of college, a friend and I decided to bake a homemade apple pie for fun one Friday afternoon. Since he rarely baked anything (and definitely had never baked apple pie from scratch!), I loaded the back seat of my car with apples, spices, my flour bin, plastic wrap, and a disposable pie plate before driving to his apartment.
When I arrived, my friend ran out to the street to help me carry everything upstairs, and at the sight of the ingredients on their kitchen table, his roommate decided he also wanted to learn how to bake apple pie. As I pulled out the recipe, they both looked at me expectantly…
And I realized they thought I was going to bake the entire pie for them! I laughed and shook my head, declaring that the best way to learn was by doing. I stood alongside them, showing them what to do and supervising as they worked.
They started by mixing together the dough for the pie crust, carefully cutting cold butter into the flour and stirring in teaspoons of ice water until the mixture came together. After shaping it into a circle and sealing it inside plastic wrap to chill in the refrigerator, they turned to the filling, slowing slicing the apples into uniform pieces and tossing those with lots of sugar and spices.
As they pulled the chilled dough out of the refrigerator, I realized I had completely forgotten to pack my rolling pin. “You wouldn’t happen to have one, would you?” I asked, already knowing the answer.
“Wait! Will this work??” my friend’s roommate exclaimed, reaching for a tall thin bottle of wine from their pantry shelves. With nothing to lose, we decided to give it a try (but firmly pressed the cork in a little farther first!)… And ended up with a perfectly flat and even disc of dough.
They gently nestled it into the pie plate, adding the apple filling on top, and popped the pie plate in the oven. While it baked, my friend and I dashed over to the grocery store to pick up vanilla bean ice cream, and an hour later, the three of us cut large slices to enjoy warm alongside a scoop of ice cream.
They both declared it was the best apple pie they had ever eaten… And not just because of the work they put into making it!
However, because of the ample amounts of butter and sugar, that apple pie wasn’t exactly the healthiest… So I’ve been on a mission to create a healthier version that tastes just as amazing. After months of testing and tweaking, I’ve finally perfected it with this Ultimate Healthy Apple Pie recipe!
Rich flaky crust… Fresh sweet filling… Lots of cozy spices… And only 129 calories in each slice!
I shared four slices with one of my neighbors, and about 15 minutes after I dropped it off, my neighbor texted me a picture of the empty plate. Her spouse had eaten all four pieces—she said it was that good!
That’s the best kind of compliment in my book! 😉
Let’s go over how to make this ultimate healthy apple pie! I learned a lot about the science of apple pie while developing this recipe, so I’m sharing that information and lots of tips with you to ensure your pie turns out perfectly, too!
Nerd Alert #1: Flour
To make the crust, you’ll start with white whole wheat flour (like this!). White whole wheat flour is made by finely grinding a special type of soft white wheat (hence the name!), whereas regular whole wheat flour comes from a heartier variety of red wheat. This gives white whole wheat flour the same health benefits as regular whole wheat flour along with a lighter taste and texture, closer to that of all-purpose flour, which lets the flaky texture of the pie crust truly shine!
Tip: Whole wheat pastry flour (like this!) is a great substitute! And if you live outside of the US (like in the UK or Australia), your regular “wholemeal” flour should be the equivalent of our white whole wheat flour. From the research I’ve done, those countries grow a lot more white wheat than the US does!
Nerd Alert #2: Butter
Although I grew up making pie crusts with many different ingredients—shortening, olive oil, butter, and sometimes a combination of those!—I’ve found my family and I truly love the flavor of an all-butter crust. It tastes deliciously rich!
So for this ultimate healthy apple pie, that’s what you’re going to do! You’ll work the butter into the flour, and I highly recommend using a pastry cutter (like this!) to do that. It makes the process a lot easier than two knives or the back of a fork!
It’s important to use very cold butter, straight from the fridge. When the butter melts in the oven, it creates flaky and tender pockets in the pie crust, so you don’t want it to soften or melt ahead of time.
Nerd Alert #3: Vanilla Extract
Vanilla isn’t usually an ingredient in pie crusts, but it’s a key ingredient in our healthier pie crust! There are two reasons for this. The first is that the alcohol helps create a more flaky texture in the pie crust by preventing the gluten from forming really long (aka tough!) strands. The second is that vanilla extract enhances butter’s rich flavor, so it makes our healthier pie crust taste just as rich and decadent as traditional extremely butter-laden ones!
Nerd Alert #4: Preparing the Crust
There are two key steps to preparing the crust in your ultimate healthy apple pie. The first part is chilling the dough. Since the butter warms up a bit while you work it into the flour mixture, chilling the dough re-solidifies the butter, which ensures you get that lovely flaky texture when you bake your pie.
Before chilling, shape the dough into a 1”-tall circle, and place that in between two very large sheets of plastic wrap. That’s because…
You’ll leave the dough between the plastic wrap when you roll it out! With this secret trick of mine, you won’t have to flour your work surface or your rolling pin, which makes clean-up so much easier.
Tip: This is the rolling pin I use! I prefer using silicone rolling pins because they have a more even surface (and they’re basically non-stick, for when you roll out other doughs not covered by plastic wrap!).
Nerd Alert #5: Apples
Time to start making the filling for your ultimate healthy apple pie! And of course, that begins with… The apples! There are a lot of debates circling around apple pie regarding which apples are the best ones to use, and here’s what my taste testers and I discovered.
We preferred a combination of Fuji, Gala, and Granny Smith apples.
Using pure Granny Smith apples resulted in a pie that tasted way too tart, and using all Fuji apples (my favorite variety for baking and eating!) produce a pie that tasted good—yet a little too “one dimensional.”
While we really enjoyed the Fuji + Granny Smith combination, my taste testers and I thought that adding Gala apples to the mix made the filling even better! They still provided a sweet flavor, similar to the Fuji apples, but they softened a tiny bit more. This created a filling that was full of fruit flavor, pleasingly sweet, and firm yet soft (not mealy or falling apart!).
You’ll cut your apples into thin ⅛”-thick slices, then cut each of those slices in half. Thin slices bake faster (and soften more!), and you end up with less empty space between apples compared to cutting your apples into chunks. Yes, it takes more time to cut your apple slices that thin—but I promise it’s worth the effort!
I also added a touch of water to the filling. I know—not exactly a traditional ingredient in apple pie! However, the water helped the apples soften a bit more. Then you’ll also mix in some cornstarch (like this!) to thicken the juice that the apples release while baking.
Nerd Alert #6: Spices and Sweetener
Of course, we can’t make the ultimate healthy apple pie without spices! Cinnamon (this kind is my favorite!) is the most important one, but I also added nutmeg (like this!) and allspice (like this!). Those other two spices create a richer, fuller, deeper flavor that really adds to the coziness. I highly recommend them!
As for the sweetener, you’ll skip the refined granulated sugar and use a bit of pure maple syrup (like this!) instead. You want the kind that comes directly from maple trees and only includes one ingredient: maple syrup. It’s generally sold in thin glass bottles or squat plastic jugs (like this!).
Because we’re using mostly really sweet red apples, I only add a teensy tiny bit… I find the filling is sweet enough without too much maple syrup! But if you prefer your pie on the sweeter side, you can definitely add more.
Nerd Alert #7: Assembling
You’ve now rolled out your dough to be at least 1” bigger than the pie plate’s top, so it’s time to carefully transfer it into the pie plate. I usually mist the pie plate with a little cooking spray first to help the bottom turn a bit more golden and flaky. There should be some overhang around the rim, so gently trim that off. (You can bake it as is or re-roll it and cut it into cute shapes with miniature cookie cutters! Although the exact ones I used are no longer sold in stores, these are really similar!)
Tip: This recipe was designed for a standard 9” pie plate—not a deep dish pie plate! The pie plate should only be 1 ⅜” tall. Although most stores seem to only carry deep dish pie plates these days, I found my standard 9” pie plates at Walmart (these ones!)
Next, transfer your filling into the pie plate, and gently but firmly press it down. I use my hands to do this. Much more efficient than a spoon or spatula! The apples shrink a bit as they bake, so it’s okay if it looks like there’s a small mound that extends above the pie plate’s rim!
Nerd Alert #8: Foil
Because we aren’t using a top crust, you must cover your entire ultimate healthy apple pie with foil. The foil does two things: (a) prevents the crust around the rim from burning and (b) seals in the steam that the apples release while baking. This softens the apples and also keeps the top layer of apples from drying out and turning crispy.
Nerd Alert #9: Baking
We’re getting close to the end! To bake your ultimate healthy apple pie, you’ll preheat the oven to 425°F and place a dark metal baking sheet on the middle rack of your oven while it preheats. You’ll put the pie plate directly on that, which helps the bottom crust turn a bit more flaky, rather than totally soggy.
After 15 minutes, you’ll reduce the temperature to 350°F and continue to bake your pie. (Don’t open the oven door!) For the final 10-15 minutes, you’ll remove the foil from the top to allow the crust to turn a beautiful golden brown.
I know it’s SO hard, but you must wait until your ultimate healthy apple pie cools completely to room temperature before slicing and serving. The apple filling is still setting while it cools, and the cornstarch continues to thicken the juice that the apples released while baking. It feels nearly impossible, but I promise it’s worth it!
Whew! Did you make it through all of those tips and tricks? Are you ready to start baking?? And when you make your own, remember to snap a picture and share it on Instagram using #amyshealthybaking and tagging @amyshealthybaking IN the photo itself! (That guarantees I’ll see your picture! 🙂 ) I’d love to see your ultimate healthy apple pie!
The Ultimate Healthy Apple Pie
Ingredients
FOR THE CRUST
- 1 cup (120g) white whole wheat flour (measured like this)
- ½ tsp salt
- 4 tbsp (56g) cold butter, cut into cubes
- 2 tsp nonfat milk
- 1 tsp pure maple syrup
- ¾ tsp vanilla extract
- 1-2 tsp ice water
FOR THE FILLING
- generous 2 ½ cups (305g) ⅛”-thick slices Fuji apple, cut in half (about 2 medium)
- generous 2 ½ cups (305g) ⅛”-thick slices Gala apple, cut in half (about 2 medium)
- heaping 1 ½ cups (175g) ⅛”-thick slices Granny Smith apple, cut in half (about 1 medium)
- 3 tbsp (24g) cornstarch
- 2 tsp ground cinnamon
- ¼ tsp ground allspice
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- 3 tbsp (45mL) water
- 1 tbsp (15mL) pure maple syrup
Instructions
- To prepare the crust, whisk together the flour and salt in a medium bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter, the back of a fork, or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. In a separate bowl, stir together the milk, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and ½ teaspoon of ice water. Sprinkle the liquid mixture over the flour mixture, and stir until fully incorporated. Continue to add ice water, ¼ teaspoon at a time, until the mixture comes together to form a dough.
- Place a large sheet of plastic wrap on the counter. Using your hands, form the dough into a 1”-thick circle. Place the dough in the center of the plastic wrap, and lay another large sheet of plastic wrap on top. Fold up the excess plastic wrap, and refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes. (If chilled longer than 1 hour, let the dough “thaw” on the counter for 5-15 minutes, depending on how much longer it was chilled, before rolling it out.)
- While the dough chills, prepare the filling. (NOTE: I typically wait to slice the apples until now to save time!) Toss together the apple slices, cornstarch, cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg until the spices are evenly distributed on the apples. Drizzle in the maple syrup and water, and toss the apples again until they’re evenly coated.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F, and place a dark metal baking sheet into the oven on the middle rack. Lightly coat a regular 9” pie plate (not deep dish!) with cooking spray.
- Leaving the dough between the sheets of plastic wrap, roll it out until it’s 1” to 2” wider than the top of the pie plate. Peel off the top layer of plastic wrap, and gently invert the pie dough into the prepared pie plate. Peel off the second layer of plastic wrap, and gently press the pie dough into place. Trim the overhang.
- Transfer the filling on top of the pie dough, and gently but firmly press down to eliminate as much space between the apples as possible. (I use my hands to do this!) Cover the top of the entire pie plate with foil, trying to “bump up” the center so it’s not touching the apple slices.
- Place the foil-covered pie plate on the dark metal baking sheet in the oven. Bake the pie at 425°F for 15 minutes. Without opening the oven door, reduce the temperature to 350°F, and continue to bake for an additional 40 minutes. Carefully remove the foil from the top of the pie plate, and continue to bake at 350° for another 15 minutes (for a total of 70 minutes) or until the outer crust is golden in color. Let the pie cool completely to room temperature before slicing and serving.
Notes
View Nutrition Information + Weight Watchers Points
You may also like Amy’s other recipes…
♡ Healthy Classic Apple Pie
♡ The Ultimate Healthy Apple Crumble
♡ Healthy Apple Pie Thumbprint Cookies
♡ Healthy Apple Pie Oatmeal Cookies
♡ Healthy Cinnamon Apple Cupcakes
♡ Healthy Small Batch Apple Crumble Bars
I am very interested in making this recipe! How long can the crust last in the fridge/freezer? I am planning to make this ahead.
I’m honored that you’d like to try my recipe, Hana! Were you planning on making just the dough for the pie crust and stopping after Step 2? Or were you planning to bake the entire pie and store that in the refrigerator instead? (Or something else!) I just want to make sure I give you the best possible advice! 🙂
Just the crust (stopping after Step 2). We made one batch this morning, and it was AMAZING!! Instead of all butter, I did some butter, some olive oil (and planning on coconut oil for the next one.) I lowered the amount of milk and water so then the oil wouldn’t make the crust too sloppy. Thank you so much for sharing this recipe with all of us, and I am excited to make another batch and come back to your website. Thank you for responding, too!
Oh my goodness!! I’m honored that you already baked this pie and want to make it again too — that means SO much, Hana! Thank you for taking the time to let me know! 🙂 I’ve made this pie crust dough, stopped after Step 2, and refrigerated it for 3 days without any issues. (It just requires more time to “thaw” on the counter until it becomes soft enough to roll out!) I haven’t personally tried longer than that, but if you do, I might recommend storing the dough inside of an airtight container or zip-topped bag, in addition to tightly sealing it inside of plastic wrap, just to prevent it from drying out too much.
I’m excited to hear how your next pie turns out — and any of my other recipes you decide to try too!
What could I say about this recipe? Let me just simply tell you that my father, who arrived 10 mins late, found the pie plate empty (I Am ashamed I didn’t save him any, but I barely realized it disappearing).
ONE THING I will say is that although it was heavenly, I feel like this recipe is good for 2-3 people, but, as I said, for 5, it isn’t enough. Next time I’ll definitely double the portions.
Oh my goodness, Agi! That’s the BEST kind of compliment, if the entire pie disappeared so quickly! (But your poor father… If it helps at all, my dad has come home to find my entire batch of freshly baked treats completely gone too — you’re not the only family who has experienced that! 😉 ) It means the world to me that you already think you’ll bake this pie again too. Thank you so much for taking the time to let me know; you just made my entire day! 🙂
Gurl. This pie is 1,485 calories. What did you even do to make it healthier? Use whole wheat flour which has just as many calories, just a little
More fiber? And use maple syrup which is still a sugar, the fact that it’s “natural” doesn’t make it not a sugar. People on here saying it feeds between 1 and 3 people, you would have to share this pie with TWELVE people in order to make it just around “129 calories” as you quoted above. I don’t even know how you came to that conclusion. If you want to make apple pie, make a delicious apple pie that’s great. But please, please don’t dilute people into thinking it’s “healthy” when it’s still just an apple pie. It is really irresponsible of you to call this not only a “healthier option” but the ultimate healthy apple pie? I’m not trying to be a jerk I just think it’s dishonest to your readers and irresponsible of you to not go more in depth and be upfront about how much this is just a regular (I’m sure very delicious) pie.
If you’re not trying to be a jerk, I’d hate to see you when you are. This apple pie is 1,485 calories (according to you). Most are 3,000-4,000+. Even if this is split between 8 people, a slice would still have less than 200 calories. Whole wheat flour has much (not a little) more fiber, more protein, and more vitamins than regular white flour. This recipe uses a pretty small amount of maple syrup as opposed to the cup of sugar in other recipes. So yes, she can call it healthy.
This pie was so good I topped it with some homemade whipped cream and it was to die for! I made it for Thanksgiving and everyone really enjoyed it! I added a bit more cinnamon to the filling just because I love cinnamon! I made the crust the day before and put it in the fridge and it worked very well the next day when I baked it with the filling. Definitely going to make this again! Thank you! Happy Thanksgiving! 🦃🍽
I’m incredibly honored that you made this recipe for such a special occasion, Ava! It means even more that everyone enjoyed this pie and that you’d call it to die for. That’s such a huge compliment, especially that you’d want to make it again — you just put the biggest smile on my face with your sweet comment!! ♡ Thank you SO much for taking the time to share. I hope you and your loved ones had a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Thank you for the no refined sugar apple pie recipe! Delicious! The flavor of the apples really stands out when you do not add the sugar found in traditional recipes.
I’m so glad you enjoyed this pie, Mary Ann! Thank you for taking the time to let me know! 🙂
Thanks For Sharing this Amazing Recipe. My Family Loved It. I will be sharing this Recipe with my Friends. Hope They will like it.
Hi Amy,
My husband and I really enjoyed this pie. I would love to try adding a crumb topping to it next time in order to make an apple streusel pie. Do you think I can use the streusel topping recipe from your crumble bars? Would I need to change my cooking time if I did that?
I’m so glad you and your husband enjoyed this pie Kally! I haven’t gotten a chance to try adding a crumb topping to it, but testing that out is actually at the very top of my to do list. Great minds must think alike! 😉
Since I haven’t yet tried it, I’m not personally sure of how using the streusel topping from my crumble bars would turn out and whether you’d need to modify the baking time (or anything else!). If you’d like to give that a try, you might want to double the ingredients if you’d like a generous crumb topping, just because it does make a fairly thin layer.
I’d love to hear how it goes if you do end up trying that!
Over the weekend, I gave this a go and I did double the crumb topping. I also kept the baking time the exact same. It turned out perfectly! Absolutely delicious! Thank you!
That’s fantastic!! I’m so happy it worked out. Thanks for taking the time to share Kally — that’s really helpful and great to know! 🙂
If I only have Pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon, do you think it will work & in what amounts? I’m so excited to try this recipe!
I really appreciate your interest in my recipe! I’m so sorry I’m just now getting back to you; I had to take a lot more time off than I anticipated to take care of some family things.
If you’d like to use pumpkin pie spice and cinnamon, then I’d recommend using 1 ¾ teaspoons of cinnamon and ¾ teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice (instead of the amounts of cinnamon, allspice, and nutmeg provided in the Ingredients list). That’ll alter this pie’s flavor a tiny bit, but it should still taste really close!
I’d love to hear what you think of this apple pie if you do end up making it!
I am seriously in shock at how good this is! Your recipe was so easy to follow. Not only is this recipe healthy, but it is ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS!!!! I cut myself a little slice about 10 minutes after taking it out of the oven, because to be honest, just looking at the top, it didn’t appear to be anything special. But WOW the inside is full of goodness, and the apples are PERFECT. Sorry if I sound overly excited. But thank you so much for sharing this recipe, you are so talented. I am just so amazed at how good this is, and no sugar! I did add 1 tbsp extra maple syrup to the apples in addition to the water. Thank you again!! 💕
I’m absolutely thrilled that you enjoyed this apple pie so much, Maureen!! Your sweet comment made my ENTIRE day — and you have nothing to apologize about! It truly means the world that you’d take the time to share your thoughts and let me know. Thank you so, so much!! ♡
Amy can I put a top crust on? I just really like your recipe but I would like to put a crust on top. If it’s okay do I change the baking time or temperature? Thank you
I’m so glad you enjoyed this apple pie, Pam! Thank you for taking the time to let me know. It really means a lot! 🙂
I haven’t gotten a chance to try putting a top crust on this apple pie yet, so I’m not personally sure and don’t want to lead you astray. I have a feeling it should be okay, though! I just can’t vouch for what adjustments (if any) that you’d need to make baking time.
If you do end up trying a top crust, I’d absolutely love to hear how that turns out!