Introduction: Apple Pie With Cinnamon Roll Crust

By
About: I'm a professional writer and an amateur sewist, builder, hot gluer, dremel user, crocheter, painter, paper crafter, and baker.

So, since Pi Day is approaching, I decided it was time to make another pi pie. Usually, I'm not a big fan of pie unless it involves peanut butter and/or chocolate, but apple pie really knows how to get me in a good mood. I love the swirl of cinnamon sugar and the soft apples. The other day, my sister shared with me a recipe that involved a cinnamon roll crust, and I decided to make that the base for this delicious pie. I made this whole pie from scratch! All by myself! For the first time!

Step 1: Ingredients

For the cinnamon roll crust (yields 2 crusts):

2 1/2 cups flour

1 cup (2 sticks) chilled butter

1 tsp salt 1 tsp + 1 tsp sugar (divided)

6 tablespoons ice water

1 tbsp melted butter

2 tsp ground cinnamon

For the filling:

4 Granny Smith apples, quartered, cored, and thinly sliced

1/3 cup butter

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp grated nutmeg

Step 2: Make the Crust

In a medium-sized bowl, mix your flour, sugar and salt until combined. Then cut your butter into little cubes and put them into the bowl. If you own a pastry cutter, now is the time to drag it out of your drawer and dust it off. I am not fortunate enough to have one, so I grabbed the biggest fork I could find. I used this comically giant fork to break up the butter into the flour mixture until it was mixed in pretty well.

Step 3: Make the Crust, Cont.

Put some cold water in a little bowl along with a couple of ice cubes. Let the water chill for a couple of minutes. Add four tablespoons of this water (minus the ice cubes!) to your butter/flour mixture. Now it's time to get your hands dirty. Mix the dough with your hands until it resembles dough.You can add up to two more tablespoons of ice water if needed, to make a total of six tablespoons. Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic and let chill for at least a half hour.

Step 4: Make the Crust, Cont.

After it has chilled, take one half of the dough and roll it out on a floured surface. Try and make it into a rectangular shape. Melt 1 tbsp of butter and brush it on the dough and then sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar on top. Roll the rectangle up. Grab some floss and slice 1/2" rounds, aka mini cinnamon rolls! Try and make 17-20 of them. Grab some more dough from the other half if needed.

Step 5: Make the Crust, Cont.

Flatten these little cinnamon rolls into the bottom of your pie pan, overlapping as necessary. Continue flattening until it covers the bottom and sides of the pan.

Step 6: Slice Apples

Now would be the time to preheat your oven to 375 degrees and slice your apples. Quarter, core and thinly slice them.

Step 7: Make the Filling

Place the apples evenly inside the crust. Now mix the brown sugar, melted butter, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium-sized bowl. Pour the mixture over the apples.

Step 8: Make the Top Crust

Get the other half of your dough out of your refrigerator. Roll it out on a floured surface. Make a disc slightly larger than 9" so you'll have a little overlap. Now would be a good time to use some of your extra dough (which you will have after you roll out the other half of the dough) to the edges of the crust. Place your disc over the top and pinch the edges. Cut a few slits (or a sad little pi symbol) on the top so the steam can escape.

Step 9: Bake

Bake for an hour or until the crust is golden and the apples are soft. Looks pretty yummy, right? It was! It was also a ton of work, but I'm here to tell you that it was worth it. Eat up! I bet this pie would be delicious with a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, but it's definitely fantastic as-is.