I have a weakness for candy apples. I don’t think I ever had one as a kid. I’m not sure why, but I just never had one until after I was married and decided to make my own. When I took that first bite, I think I fell in love. Caramel and apples are meant for each other, and caramel apples are meant for me. I know that it is probably horrible for my teeth, but I love the chewy stickiness of the caramel that is sometimes hard to chew. This pie has every thing that a good caramel apple has. The crust is a graham cracker crust with a layer of caramel that soaks in and makes the crust kind of chewy, just like the caramel on a candy apple. The filling is a basic apple pie filling, but in the spirit of feasting, lets go all out and add another layer of cream cheese filling, ok? Top it all off with whipped cream, more caramel, chopped pecans, and you have very decadent pie modeled after a candy apple.
When I made this, I had a really hard time cutting and serving the pie because of the caramel in the crust. So here are some tips for getting the pie to slice easily. Learn from my mistakes.
1. When you drizzle the caramel on the crust, stay in the center. Don’t drizzle it at the edge of the circle or up the sides of the crust. I went a little crazy with the caramel and as a result, it was really thick at the bend in the pie crust and difficult to slice.
2. Don’t over bake the crust. I baked my crust for about 7 minutes before filling it, but I felt that after I baked the whole pie, it was over cooked. It was still yummy, I just think it would have been easier to cut if it wasn’t cooked so long. I would recommend freezing it before filling it and then just letting it bake with the rest of the pie.
3. Use a sturdy pizza cutter to slice through the crust. Then run a knife around the outside of the crust to free the sides. Then use a pie server to slide the piece out.
4. Slice all the pieces in the pie before topping with whipped cream. If you break through the crust before topping the pie, the topping will look prettier when you actually remove the piece from the pan.
5. As you can see in the picture, I did manage to get some good slices. But if you are too lazy and its just you and your husband, take two forks and just dig in straight from the pie dish.
Ingredients:
Crust:
- 1 1/2 C. graham cracker crumbs
- 3 TBSP. Sugar
- 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
- 1/3 C. butter, melted
- 1/2 C. caramel ice cream topping (or just eyeball it)
- 1/2 C. coarse chopped pecans
Apple Filling:
- 5 granny smith apples (peeled, cored, and sliced thin)
- 5 TBSP. butter
- 1/2 C. brown sugar
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1 tsp. cinnamon
Cream Cheese Filling:
- 8 oz. cream cheese
- 1/4 C. sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 TBSP. lemon juice
- 1 tsp. vanilla
Topping:
- 3/4 C. whipping cream
- 3 TBSP. powdered sugar
- caramel ice cream topping for drizzling
- coarse chopped pecans for topping
Directions:
1. For the crust: combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and cinnamon. Mix with the melted butter and pat into a pie pan. Press crust down and up the sides. Drizzle the caramel over the base of the crust, but not up the sides of the crust. Top caramel with a layer of chopped pecans. Place in freezer until the filling is ready.
2. For the filling: Melt butter in a large skillet or pot over medium heat. Add the brown sugar, salt, and cinnamon. Stir to combine. Add apples and cook until soft and tender, stirring often.
3. Meanwhile, in an electric mixer or with a hand beater, beat the cream cheese and sugar until smooth and fluffy. Add the egg, lemon juice, and vanilla and beat again until combined.
4. Preheat oven to 350 F. Remove the crust from the freezer and place on a rimmed cookie sheet. Fill with apples. Top apples with cream cheese mixture. Bake for 30-40 minutes or until a knife comes out clean when poked in the middle of the cream cheese filling. Half way through, cover with tin foil so the crust doesn’t burn. Don’t let it cook more than 45 minutes because it will over cook the crust. If the cream cheese filling still feels gooey, just let it the pie rest on the cookie sheet outside the oven for a while and it should set up and finish cooking.
5. Let the pie settle and chill in the fridge for at least 4 hours. Cut the pie slices, but leave in pan until ready to serve. Whip the cream and powdered sugar. Top the pie with the whipped cream, drizzle with caramel, and sprinkle with chopped pecans.
Recipe idea adapted from MiMi Hodge, winner of The Pie of Emeril’s Eye Contest, featured on The Kitchn
