Caramel Apple Crumble Pie

Caramel Apple Crumble Pie — Apple pie meets apple crumble in this easy caramel apple crumble pie recipe. This apple pie is dense, rich, and is packed with caramel apple flavor!

Easy Apple Crumble Pie Recipe

I almost didn’t make this apple pie with crumb topping  But it took me all of five minutes to put it together and I’m so glad I did.

I was working in the kitchen Thanksgiving morning and realized that the pumpkin dessert I had made a few days before the holiday somehow all had been eaten. Hmmm, how did that happen? I was out of pumpkin puree because I used my last can to bake a pumpkin pie for Skylar’s school’s Thanksgiving celebration, held the day before.

I looked in my cupboard and saw a can of apple pie filling and figured I could do something with it. I was going to make Caramel Apple Bars but remembered the frozen pie crust I used for the pumpkin pie was sold in a two-pack and I had a spare pie crust in the freezer waiting. Some girls have all the luck.

In literally three minutes, I made the pie filling by melting one half stick of butter, and then added brown and granulated sugar, one egg, vanilla, cinnamon, and pinches of allspice, ground cloves and whisked.

Then I added flour, oats, and gently stirred in the apple pie filling. I enjoy the heartiness, chewiness, and texture that oats lend to apple crumbles, and my goal for this caramel apple pie was to be more like an apple crumble than just another plain old apple pie. There was nothing plain about this.

I poured the filling into the frozen crust straight from the freezer without even thawing it, and filled it right up to the brim. The filling domed and puffed a bit while baking, and for a minute I was a bit worried it may overflow, but all was well. As the pie cooled, the filling relaxed and sank down, leaving behind rich density and fullness with each bite.

For the almost one hour that the pie baked, my house smelled like a bakery from the pie crust and oats, as well as a fragrant apple orchard. And the cinnamon-sugar and buttery caramely scents wafting were aromatherapy torture because all I wanted to do was dive into my oven.

Between the flour and oats, brown sugar and cinnamon, I got my wish for apple-pie-meets-apple-crumble. This apple pie with crumb topping has apple crumble tendencies with streusel-like texture and warm cinnamon-sugar notes, yet it’s all contained in a neat and tidy pie crust package, perfect to catch the sweet juices released from the apples as they bake.

Caramel and apple is a perfect pairing, and for me, the more caramel, the merrier. Two dimensions of caramel are present. First, the butter and brown sugar in the filling caramelize while baking, giving a depth of flavor that reminds me of one of favorite frostings of all time, this Vanilla Caramel Glaze. Then, prior to serving, I drizzled caramel sauce over the top for an extra boost of sweet buttery caramel intensity.

Homemade Dark Rum Caramel Sauce would have been heavenly, as would have Vanilla Caramel Glaze, but I was pressed for time on a busy Thanksgiving day morning in the kitchen. I used Trader Joe’s Fleur de Sel Caramel sauce, with no complaints.

If you ever need a quick pie to make, with less than five minutes of active work time, that yields luscious and rich results, this is the one.

What’s in Caramel Apple Crumble Pie? 

To make this apple pie with crumb topping, you’ll need: 

• Unsalted butter
• Egg 
• Granulated sugar
• Light brown sugar
• Vanilla extract
• Spices
• Salt
• All-purpose flour
• Rolled oats
• Canned apple pie filling
• Frozen pie crust (or homemade pie crust if you’re up for it)
• Caramel sauce

How to Make Apple Crumble Pie

To make this apple crumble pie recipe, simply follow these basic steps.

1. You’ll first need to melt the butter.
2. Then stir in the egg.
3. Add in the sugars, vanilla, spices, and salt and whisk until combined. 
4. Add the flour and oats, followed by the apple pie filling.
5. Pour the mixture into the frozen pie crust and bake until golden on top and the filling is set. 
6. You’ll need to let this apple crumble pie rest for 30 minutes before slicing and serving it. I highly recommend topping it with a drizzle of caramel sauce and a scoop of ice cream! 

Can I Use Homemade Apple Pie Filling? 

You could of course make your own pie crust, as well as peel and core your own apples for the filling, but on a day about giving thanks and being thankful, I was grateful that I pulled this off on the fly.

Oftentimes it’s the things I make without a recipe, and just on a whim, that end up being our favorites.

Can I Use Instant Oats in the Filling? 

No, neither quick cook nor instant oats will work in this apple pie with crumb topping. You must use rolled oats (aka old-fashioned oats). 

Can I Make This With a Different Canned Filling? 

Oh, that’s a fun idea! I’ve only made this caramel apple pie using canned apple pie filling, but now I’m curious to make this with canned peach pie filling, canned cherry pie filling, and more. However, since I’ve not yet tried those variations myself I can’t say for sure if they’ll work with this recipe. 

Can I Freeze Apple Pie? 

Yes, you can freeze the entire pie once it’s cooled or slice and freeze portions individually. To freeze apple pie, wrap it in a few layers of plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil. To thaw the pie, set it in your fridge overnight. 

Tips for Making Caramel Apple Crumb Pie

When adding the spices to this apple pie with crumb topping, I made sure to use the spices in enough quantity so that they’d pop and complement the dish, rather than just getting lost. With that said, you’re welcome to alter the amount of spices you add to this apple crumble pie to suit your own tastes. 

Also, if you don’t tend to keep allspice or cloves around, feel free to add extra cinnamon, or try ground ginger or pumpkin pie spice instead. Use what you have on hand and don’t make a special trip to the store just for spices. 

Lastly, before baking this apple crumble pie I placed the pie plate on a baking sheet as insurance against overflow. My pie didn’t overflow, but you can never be too safe! 

Save Saved Review Print

4.44 from 55 votes

Caramel Apple Crumble Pie

By Averie Sunshine

Apple pie meets apple crumble in this easy caramel apple crumble pie recipe. This apple pie is dense, rich, and is packed with caramel apple flavor!

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 50 minutes minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes minutes

Servings: 10

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Ingredients  

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• ▢ ¼ cup unsalted butter, melted (half of one stick)
• ▢ 1 large egg
• ▢ ¾ cup granulated sugar
• ▢ ¼ cup light brown sugar, loosely measured
• ▢ 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• ▢ 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon allspice
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ▢ ¼ teaspoon salt, optional and to taste
• ▢ ¾ cup all-purpose flour
• ▢ ¾ cup whole rolled old-fashioned oats, not quick cook or instant
• ▢ one 21-ounce can apple pie filling, I used Comstock More Fruit Cinnamon ‘n Spice Apple filling
• ▢ one 9-inch frozen pie crust, or make your own using your favorite recipe
• ▢ caramel sauce or caramel ice cream topping, optional but recommended for drizzling*
• ▢ ice cream or whipped topping, optional

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Instructions 

• Preheat oven to 350F. In a large microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter, about 1 minute on high power.
• Allow the butter to cool momentarily so you don’t scramble the egg; then add the egg, sugars, vanilla, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, salt, and whisk to combine until batter is smooth (All spices and salt should be added to taste and use what you have on hand; omitting what you don’t have and mixing and matching with other spices such as ginger or pumpkin pie spice is okay).
• Add the flour, oats, and stir to incorporate. Fold in the apple pie filling.
• Pour filling mixture into frozen pie crust (I didn’t bother pre-thawing it)and lightly smooth filling with a spatula. It’s okay to fill pie crust up nearly to the brim; I did and it did not overflow. As insurance, place pie crust on a baking tray so if it does overflow a bit, it won’t pool in the bottom of the oven.
• Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, or until top has just set and is not jiggly, and is golden. I baked mine for about 54 minutes and when I took it out of the oven, the filling had risen and was a bit domed and puffed, and as pie cooled, the dome sank and it flattened out.
• Allow pie to cool for at least 30 minutes before slicing and serving. Prior to serving, optionally drizzle with caramel sauce or serve with ice cream.

Notes

• *For the caramel sauce, you can use store-bought, or make your own. My favortie caramel sauce recipes are: The Best and Easiest Salted Caramel Sauce, Dark Rum Caramel Sauce, and Vanilla Caramel Glaze.
• Pie should be kept covered and will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. I prefer refrigerating it rather than keeping it at room temperature and I store my pie inside a large two-gallon sized plastic food storage bag in the refrigerator.

Nutrition

Serving: 1, Calories: 356kcal, Carbohydrates: 61g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 12g, Saturated Fat: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g, Cholesterol: 37mg, Sodium: 201mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 40g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Originally published November 2012. Republished October 2019.