Warm, chai spiced filling with tender apples and a flakey pie crust and lattice top. 
Well hello there! It has been too long. School has once again kept me busy this fall and my blog has once again been neglected. I have gotten to bake a decent amount though which is unusual … I’ve actually made those awesome Bakery Style Chocolate Chip Cookies 3 or 4 times because other chocolate chip cookies just don’t taste the same after having one of those sea salt sprinkled beauties.
But back to today’s topic …
I made my Grandma’s Apple Crumble Pie over the summer. It is the classic apple pie with the crumble top and 100% focused on cinnamon flavor. Today, I’m mixing it up with this Chai Spiced Apple Pie for the more adventurous bakers out there.
I love chai spiced anything … just ask anyone who knows me and they’ll tell you that I try to make a Chai Spiced version of everything … Scones, Biscotti, Snickerdoodles … and here I am again with a Chai Spiced Apple Pie. While some of my other experiments are only for true chai spice addicts, chai spices were just meant to be in an apple pie. The spices amp up that warm, cozy fall feeling in an already delicious fall dessert. Warm that slice of pie in the microwave, scoop some ice cream on top, and wham… delicious.
This recipe calls for two pie crusts… one for the bottom and one for the lattice top. If you struggle with pie crust, check out my Pie Crust Tutorial which walks you through making a pie crust step-by-step. This pie crust is the easiest one I have found… it doesn’t require chill time and it is so flakey and buttery.
So you will roll out your first piece of pie dough, press it into the pie dish, and then layer the apples and sugar/flour/spice mixture into the pie dish. Do not worry if the sugar/flour/spice mixture isn’t evenly distributed throughout all the layers…. just do your best and then everything will sort of meld together when you bake the pie.
This recipe gets a double wow factor because it also has a lattice top. Lattice tops really aren’t that difficult … but you don’t have to tell people that when they’re complementing you on how awesome your pie looks!
To make the lattice top, roll out your second piece of pie crust dough into a 12-inch circle. Then cut the circle into 1/2-inch wide strips. Picking up every other strip, arrange half of the strips vertically on top of the filling. Working from top to bottom, fold every other vertical strip back (top right picture), place the horizontal strip down (top right picture), and then replace the vertical strips back (bottom left picture). On the next horizontal strip, make sure you fold the vertical strips that you didn’t fold back the last time.
Trim the overhanging lattice work so that it just a bit shorter than the bottom crust (top left picture). Fold the bottom crust over the ends of the lattice work (top middle picture). Now crimp the edges by pinching the dough between your thumb and first finger (top right picture). Brush the entire top with egg wash (bottom middle picture). Make sure you use enough egg wash so you get a nice golden brown top. If you skimp on the egg wash, the lattice work will look very pale and doughy. Sprinkle with coarse sugar for a little sparkle on top (bottom right picture).
Lattice tops are really very easy once you know the steps!
This would be a great pie to bring to a party this fall for a fun version of a traditional fall dessert!
- 2½ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Tablespoon granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 16 Tablespoons salted butter, cold and cubed
- 6 Tablespoons cold water
- 4 granny smith apples (about 2 lbs)
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- dash ground black pepper
- Egg wash: 1 egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon milk
- Coarse Sugar (optional)
- Mix flour, sugar, and salt together with a spatula.
- Using a pastry cutter or 2 knives, cut the cold butter into the flour until it resembles coarse meal. The butter chunks should be as small or smaller than green peas.
- Mix in the cold water and stir with a fork until the mixture is raggedy.
- Transfer dough to a floured work surface and gently work the dough together with your hands. Split the dough into two equal pieces. Put one piece in the fridge while you work with the other.
- Flatten the dough into a disc and roll the dough out with a floured rolling pin into a 12-inch circle. As you are rolling the dough, turn the dough circle a couple times to make sure it is not sticking to the counter and add more flour to your work surface as needed.
- Transfer the 12-inch dough circle to a 9-inch pie dish. To transfer the dough without tearing it, loosely wrap the pie dough around your rolling pin and then unroll it over your pie dish.
- Trim the edges so there is only about ½ inch of overhang.
- Refrigerate while you prepare the filling.
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Peel the skin off of the apples. Cut the apple into quarters and then slice the quarters into 5 or 6 slices.
- Mix the granulated sugar, flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, allspice, and pepper together in a small bowl.
- Arrange one layer of the apple slices in the pie crust and then sprinkle some of the spice/sugar mixture over the layer of apples. Then add a second layer of apples and another layer of spice/sugar mixture. Continue until you are out of apples and spice/sugar mixture. Spread any excess spice/sugar mixture over the top of the apples.
- Roll out the refrigerated second piece of pie crust into a 12 inch circle.
- Cut the circle into ½ -1 inch wide strips.
- Picking up every other strip of pie crust arrange the strips vertically.
- For the first horizontal strip, pick up every other vertical strip and set them to the side. Lay down the first horizontal strip. Replace the vertical strips.
- For the following horizontal strips, fold every other vertical strip (alternating from the ones you picked up last time) over the last horizontal strip. Place the next horizontal strip down and then replace the folded vertical strips back over.
- Once you are done with the basket weave, trim the strips of dough so they are even with the bottom pie crust.
- Crimp the edges by first folding over the overhang of the bottom crust, and then pinching the edges between your thumb and first finger.
- Liberally brush the lattice and pie crust edges with egg wash. You don't need all the egg wash but use more than you probably think you should. Sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Place the pie on a baking sheet.
- Bake for 20 minutes and then with the pie still in the oven drop the temperature on the oven to 375°F and bake for another 25 minutes. If the lattice top starts browning too quickly, cover the pie with aluminum foil. I did not need to cover my pie with foil, but it depends on your oven.
- Cool on a wire rack for about 1½ hours.
- Store covered in the refrigerator.
Lovin’ the apple desserts? Try my Apple Frangipane Tart!
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Looks great on a cool fall day!