Healthy Recipes Healthy Cookie & Dessert Recipes Healthy Pie Recipes Deep-Dish Apple Pie 4.6 (7) 7 Reviews With all that delicious fruit an apple pie should be healthy, but the truth is a slice can have as much as 750 calories. For the most part, the culprit is the crust. We use whole-wheat pastry flour to add fiber and lower the saturated fat by replacing some of the butter with canola oil. The brown sugar-sweetened filling in this pie is made with two kinds of apples for the perfect balance. A slice has half the calories of a typical version—sweet! By Stacy Fraser Updated on June 22, 2022 Print Share Share Tweet Pin Email Photo: Ken Burris Cook Time: 1 hrs 15 mins Additional Time: 2 hrs 45 mins Total Time: 4 hrs Servings: 10 Yield: 9 -inch deep dish pie Nutrition Profile: High Fiber Low Sodium Jump to Nutrition Facts Here are a few tricks to get a healthier pie without sacrificing flavor: 1. Keep the saturated fat in the crust to a minimum. Butter doesn't have to be totally off limits, just use less of it. In this recipe, reduced-fat sour cream replaces some of the butter, which keeps the dough moist and tender, without adding tons of saturated fat. And we follow the basic rules of great pastry: always use chilled butter and ice-cold water, use a light hand when working with the dough and let the dough chill before rolling it out. Ken Burris 2. Add some fiber by using a mixture of whole-wheat flour and all-purpose flour in the crust. There's a fine balance between making your pie crust healthy and making your pie crust taste like cardboard. The results can be less than appetizing if you use all whole-wheat flour, but in this recipe, we use a mix of traditional all-purpose and whole-wheat pastry flour. The pastry flour adds fiber, but keeps the texture tender, and by blending it with all-purpose you get a less wheaty taste. 3. Choose apples for flavor and texture. And use plenty of them! Apple pie should taste good, but not feel like mush in your mouth. We like to use a mix of McIntosh and Granny Smith in this apple pie recipe. The McIntosh add a nice tangy flavor while the Granny Smith apples also taste good, but break down less when they cook, giving the filling a more toothsome texture. And since this is apple pie, use plenty of fruit. We made this version deep-dish so there's extra room for the filling (and more apples means an added bump of soluble fiber). Ken Burris 4. Keep your sugar in check. Apple pie is about apples. Why drown them in sugar? Cook down a portion of the apples for the filling before adding them to the crust. Why? Well, so the crust doesn't collapse and crack as much while it's baking (the filling won't shrink as much if some of it is already precooked) and it concentrates the natural flavors and sugar of the apples, so you don't have to add as much sugar to your filling. Ken Burris Ingredients Crust 1 1/4 cups whole-wheat pastry flour, (see Ingredient Note) 1 ¼ cups all-purpose flour 2 tablespoons granulated sugar ½ teaspoon salt 4 tablespoons cold unsalted butter ¼ cup reduced-fat sour cream 3 tablespoons canola oil 4 tablespoons ice water Filling 6 cups thinly sliced peeled McIntosh apples, (about 2 pounds) 6 cups thinly sliced peeled Granny Smith apples, (about 2 pounds) ⅔ cup packed light brown sugar 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 ¼ teaspoons ground cinnamon, divided ⅛ teaspoon ground nutmeg Pinch of ground allspice Pinch of salt 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon granulated sugar 1 large egg white, lightly beaten, for brushing Directions To prepare crust: Whisk whole-wheat flour, 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour, 2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Cut butter into small pieces and, with your fingers, quickly rub them into the dry ingredients until the pieces are smaller but still visible. Add sour cream and oil; toss with a fork to combine with the dry ingredients. Sprinkle water over the mixture. Toss with a fork until evenly moist. Knead the dough with your hands in the bowl a few times--the mixture will still be a little crumbly. Turn out onto a clean surface and knead a few more times, until the dough just holds together. Divide the dough in half and shape into 5-inch-wide disks. Wrap the dough in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. Meanwhile, make filling: Combine apples, brown sugar, lemon juice, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice and pinch of salt in a large bowl. Reserving 4 cups, transfer the rest of the apple mixture to a Dutch oven. Cook over medium heat, stirring, until the apples are tender and beginning to break down, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat, stir in the reserved apples and 2 tablespoons flour; let cool for about 30 minutes. To assemble & bake pie: Position a rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 425 degrees F. Remove the dough from the refrigerator; let stand for 5 minutes to warm slightly. Roll one portion between sheets of parchment or wax paper into a 13-inch circle. Peel off the top sheet and invert the dough into a 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie pan. Peel off the remaining paper. Scrape the filling into the crust. Roll the remaining portion of dough between sheets of parchment or wax paper into another 13-inch circle. Peel off the top sheet of paper and invert the dough onto the fruit. Peel off the remaining paper. Trim the crust so it overhangs evenly. Tuck the top crust under the bottom crust, sealing the two together and making a plump edge. Flute the edge with your fingers. Combine 1 teaspoon granulated sugar and the remaining 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon in a small bowl. Brush the crust with egg white and sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar. Cut 6 steam vents in the top crust. Bake the pie on the bottom rack for 20 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue baking until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling, 25 to 35 minutes more. Let cool on a wire rack for about 1 1/2 hours before serving. Tips Make Ahead Tip: Prepare the crust (Step 1), wrap tightly and refrigerate for up to 2 days or freeze for up to 6 months. Equipment: 9 1/2-inch deep-dish pie pan Ingredient Note: Whole-wheat pastry flour, lower in protein than regular whole-wheat flour, has less gluten-forming potential, making it a better choice for tender baked goods. You can find it in the natural-foods section of large supermarkets and natural-foods stores. Store in the freezer. Print Nutrition Facts (per serving) 345 Calories 10g Fat 62g Carbs 4g Protein Show Full Nutrition Label Hide Full Nutrition Label Nutrition Facts Servings Per Recipe 10 Calories 345 % Daily Value * Total Carbohydrate 62g 22% Dietary Fiber 5g 17% Total Sugars 33g Added Sugars 17g 34% Protein 4g 9% Total Fat 10g 13% Saturated Fat 4g 19% Cholesterol 15mg 5% Vitamin A 200IU 4% Vitamin C 8mg 9% Folate 51mcg 13% Sodium 147mg 6% Calcium 34mg 3% Iron 1mg 7% Magnesium 13mg 3% Potassium 213mg 5% Nutrition information is calculated by a registered dietitian using an ingredient database but should be considered an estimate. * Daily Values (DVs) are the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume each day. Percent Daily Value (%DV) found on nutrition labels tells you how much a serving of a particular food or recipe contributes to each of those total recommended amounts. Per the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the daily value is based on a standard 2,000 calorie diet. Depending on your calorie needs or if you have a health condition, you may need more or less of particular nutrients. (For example, it’s recommended that people following a heart-healthy diet eat less sodium on a daily basis compared to those following a standard diet.) (-) Information is not currently available for this nutrient. If you are following a special diet for medical reasons, be sure to consult with your primary care provider or a registered dietitian to better understand your personal nutrition needs. Powered by the ESHA Research Database © 2018, ESHA Research, Inc. All Rights Reserved