Gluten-Free Apple Pie

I drove to Grinnell Saturday. Roger was in the garden — the garden that is his whole world now, the 81-year-old man who tends six tomato plants and twelve sunflowers with the same care he once gave four hundred acres. He's slower but he's still Roger. He still watches the crop reports. He still calls Jack on Wednesdays.

I made caramel apples this week — the fall version, the one that fills the kitchen with the smell that means this time of year, this stage of life, this specific Tuesday when the stove is warm and the family is fed and the feeding is the point. Kevin ate seconds. The man always eats seconds. The eating is the approval and the approval is the marriage.

The trees along the highway are turning — maples red, oaks gold, the Bradford pears doing their useless purple thing. Iowa falls are short and violent and beautiful. The kitchen shifts to slow mode: crockpots, Dutch ovens, the oven at 375 from September through April. The fall cooking is the cooking of a woman settling in for the long season.

The caramel apples were a start, but they weren’t the whole thing — they were the warm-up, the kitchen announcement that the slow season had arrived. After driving to Grinnell and back, watching Roger in his garden with those six tomato plants and that quiet kind of purpose, I came home and I wanted something that took time, something that asked something of me. This gluten-free apple pie is that recipe. The oven at 375, the smell of cinnamon and butter, Kevin already hovering before it’s out of the pan — that’s the whole fall right there.

Prep Time: 30 min | Cook Time: 55 min | Total Time: 1 hr 25 min | Servings: 8

Ingredients

For the crust:
2 1/2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour blend (with xanthan gum)
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cubed
6–8 tbsp ice water
For the filling:
6 medium apples (Granny Smith or a mix of Honeycrisp and Braeburn), peeled, cored, and sliced 1/4 inch thick
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tbsp gluten-free all-purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp allspice
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
1 tsp coarse sugar, for topping

Instructions

Make the crust. Whisk together the gluten-free flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the cold butter using a pastry cutter or your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse pea-sized crumbles. Add ice water one tablespoon at a time, mixing just until the dough holds together when pressed. Divide into two discs, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Prepare the filling. Toss the sliced apples with sugar, gluten-free flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and lemon juice in a large bowl. Set aside and let the mixture rest for 10 minutes so the apples begin to release their juices.
Preheat and roll. Preheat your oven to 375°F. On a lightly floured surface (use gluten-free flour), roll one dough disc into a 12-inch circle. Carefully transfer to a 9-inch pie dish, pressing gently into the bottom and sides. Trim any excess dough to a 1/2-inch overhang.
Fill the pie. Pour the apple filling into the prepared crust, mounding slightly in the center. Dot the top of the filling with the small pieces of butter. Roll the second dough disc into a 12-inch circle and lay it over the filling. Trim, tuck the edges under the bottom crust overhang, and crimp to seal. Cut 4–5 small slits in the top crust to vent steam.
Egg wash and bake. Brush the top crust evenly with the beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Place the pie on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any drips. Bake at 375°F for 50–55 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the filling is bubbling through the vents. If the edges brown too quickly, cover them loosely with foil after 30 minutes.
Cool before slicing. Transfer the pie to a wire rack and cool for at least 2 hours before slicing. The filling needs time to set — cutting too early means a runny pie, and this one deserves to hold together properly.

Nutrition (per serving)

Gluten-Free Apple Pie — The Oven Goes On in September and Doesn’t Come Off Until Spring