Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie marries sweet and tangy apples with a sweet and a crunchy crumble topping that’s so good, no one will believe it’s gluten free!
After my foray into the new-to-me wonder that is a gluten free oat pie crust, the next logical step was to see how a crumb top pie would fare using oat flour in lieu of all purpose flour. Naturally, I should bake a Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie, right? It’s simple leaps such as this that result in what could be the very best apple crumb pie that I’ve ever made. Truly.
What’s so special about this Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie?
I’ve been playing around with gluten free baking, trying to make it more accessible at home, as well as–let’s be honest–coming up with a finished product with better taste and texture. More specifically, I’m playing around with common pantry ingredients rather than specialty gluten free flour blends. Therefore, both the pie crust as well as the crumb topping in this Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie uses (gluten free) oat flour. The oat flour imparts a sweet, slightly nutty flavor that pairs beautifully with the freshest apples of the season.
Do you have to use the oat pie crust in the recipe?
Well, no, but you should. You can use a high quality gluten free pie crust of your choosing, but I highly, highly recommend baking the recipe as written. The gluten free oat pie crust really ties in so well with the crunchy crumb topping.
How do I make this pie vegan?
Easily! I also tested the recipe using Earth Balance Buttery Sticks to a make a vegan pie with excellent results. Go ahead and give it a try.
Kirsten Kubert
Yields One 9-inch deep dish pie
Serves 8
Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie marries sweet and tangy apples with a sweet and a crunchy crumble topping that’s so good, no one will ever know it’s gluten free!
30 minPrep Time
1 hrCook Time
1 hr, 30 Total Time
Save RecipeIngredients
- For the Pie:
- 1 recipe (1 disk) Gluten Free Oat Pie Crust
- 6 to 6 ½ C. (5 to 7 small) peeled, cored, and thinly sliced apples
- ½ C. granulated sugar
- ½ tsp. ground cinnamon
- 1/8 tsp. ground allspice
- 1/8 tsp. salt
- 1 Tbs. cornstarch
- 2 Tbs. chilled butter, cut into 8 cubes
- For the Crumb Topping:
- 1 C. gluten free oat flour
- ½ C. granulated sugar
- ½ C. packed light brown sugar
- 6 Tbs. chilled unsalted butter, cut into cubes
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Roll the pie crust large enough to fill a 9-inch deep dish pie plate with 1-inch hanging over the rim of the plate. Fold the overhanging dough under until flush with the rim of the pie plate. Crimp as desired.
- Toss the sliced apples with the granulated sugar, cinnamon, allspice, salt, and cornstarch until evenly coated. Let filling stand while preparing the crumb topping.
- Prepare the topping by whisking the flour, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together to combine. Work the chilled butter in with clean fingers or a pastry cutter until it is the size of small peas. The crumble is ready if it holds together when squeezing a small handful together. Squeeze the crumble into several large clumps. Freeze the crumble while assembling the pie.
- To assemble the pie, spoon the apple mixture into the chilled pie shell. Be sure to scrape all of the juices remaining in the bowl over the pie filling. Level the filling with the back of the scraper or a spoon. Scatter the 2 tablespoons of chilled butter evenly over the filling. Lightly cover (“tent”) the filled pie with aluminum foil. Place the pie onto a stainless steel baking sheet.
- Bake the foil covered pie on the baking sheet on the center rack of the oven for 20 minutes. Remove the pie from the oven and reduce the heat to 375 degrees F. Temporarily remove the pie from the oven. Carefully remove the foil. Take the crumb topping out of the freezer. Break the crumb topping over the pie filling, scattering it around the entire exposed surface of the pie filling while doing so. Be careful to spread the filling all the way to the interior edges of the pie crust to seal in the filling.
- Return the pie to the oven and continue baking at the lower temperature for 35 to 40 minutes or until filling is bubbly, with the crumb topping and edge of the pie crust is a medium brown in color.
- Remove the pie and baking sheet from the oven. Transfer the pie to a wire rack to cool before serving.
Notes
Recipe Notes: Firm yet sweet varieties of apples work best in this recipe. I like to use a mix of Gala, Courtland, Ida Red, Ruby Mac (or Macintosh), and Honeycrisp.
Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie freezes beautifully! Simply prepare the crust and fill with the fruit filling. Wrap the entire pie—including the pie plate—in a double thickness of plastic wrap. Cover the surface of the pie with aluminum foil. Prepare the crumb topping as directed in the recipe. Transfer the topping to a zippered freezer bag and freeze alongside the wrapped pie. When ready to bake, unwrap the pie and bake as directed in the recipe. Set the frozen crumb topping on the counter while the pie is baking for the initial 20 minutes at the higher temperature. Top the pie and continue as directed in the recipe, extending the overall baking time by about 15 to 20 minutes.
Recipe Notes:
Firm yet sweet varieties of apples work best in this recipe. I like to use a mix of Gala, Courtland, Ida Red, Ruby Mac (or Macintosh), and Honeycrisp.
Gluten Free Apple Crumb Pie freezes beautifully!
Simply prepare the crust and fill with the fruit filling. Wrap the entire pie—including the pie plate—in a double thickness of plastic wrap. Cover the surface of the pie with aluminum foil. Prepare the crumb topping as directed in the recipe. Transfer the topping to a zippered freezer bag and freeze alongside the wrapped pie. When ready to bake, unwrap the pie and bake as directed in the recipe. Set the frozen crumb topping on the counter while the pie is baking for the initial 20 minutes at the higher temperature. Top the pie and continue as directed in the recipe, extending the overall baking time by about 15 to 20 minutes.
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