If you love caramel apples, then you will appreciate the way caramel and Granny Smith apples balance each other out in this delightful apple pie. It's truely one of the best apple pie recipes with perfectly cooked apples, tart and sweet flavors, and a buttery crumb topping.
Keep the pie crust cold in the refrigerator. Preheat the oven to 375°F.
In a large bowl, combine the filling (lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and flour). Peel the apples and cut around the core to get 1/4" thick slices. Toss the slices as you work with the filling to prevent them from browning.
Pour the apple filling into the pie crust and mix the crumble ingredients to form a crumbly paste. Use your fingers to break the dough over the surface of the apples as evenly as possible. Cover the rim of the crust with tinfoil to prevent burning and bake for 50 minutes. Remove the foil and apply the egg wash by dipping a brush into the yolk and white of an egg, then gently brushing along the rim of the crust. Continue to bake until the crumb topping is slightly brown,15 - 20 minutes longer.
For the caramel sauce, combine cream, brown sugar, honey, and vanilla in a medium saucepan. Simmer for 1 minute, then stir in the butter and continue to simmer for 4 minutes. Turn off the heat and allow the caramel sauce to cool.
Serve the pie warm (not hot) with the caramel sauce drizzled on top or on the side to keep the crumb crust from getting too saturated. Sprinkle flaky sea salt on top.
Notes
What is the difference between refined coconut oil and unrefined?
Refined coconut oil has no coconut flavor and is what you should use for high heat cooking as you would vegetable oil. I like refined coconut oil because it has a high smoke point and does not leave food greasy. It's also less processed than vegetable oil.
Can I use any apple in this pie?
I do not recommend substituting the apple variety in this recipe. If you want to use a sweeter apple, then I recommend leaving the caramel off completely and adding 1/4 cup sugar to the crumb topping. I also recommend reducing the amount of sugar in the filling to 1/4 cup. Also, go ahead and reduce the lemon juice to 2 Tablespoons in the filling.Make these changes and you will get a far more traditional apple pie - one that I've tested and love.
Make Your Own Crust
I have a fantastic butter crust recipe that's easy to make for the base of this pie.