Looking for a showstopper pie to show off to your immediate family that you already live with this Thanksgiving? Look no further than this Salted Caramel Rose Apple Pie. Beautiful and delicious, this pie is sure to impress your instagram feed.
If you’re thinking “wow that pie looks so pretty but it looks like it takes a long time”… it does lol. But with that being said I think most of us have a lot of extra free time on our hands to create beautiful things. I’ve tried to take the time I’ve gained in quarantine to do the things I usually wouldn’t have time to do. So put on your favorite new album, tune out the news for a few hours and slip into your own apple slicing paradise.
Make the pie crust
Grease a medium bowl. Add the flour, sugar and salt to a food processor. Pulse a few times until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the butter becomes small balls. Add the ice water and pulse until the mixture starts to form into a dough. Remove from the food processor and form into a ball. Place in the grease bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Place in the fridge for at least an hour.
Make the Salted Caramel Sauce
Add the sugar to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Heat the sugar and stir constantly until the sugar starts forming clumps. Keep stirring until the sugar forms into a brown liquid. Add the butter and stir constantly until the butter melts. This will cause the sugar to bubble aggressively. Be careful during this step. Once the butter melts add the cream slowly. Continue to stir and let thicken for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Slice the apples using a mandolin
Core the apples and cut into quarters. Using a mandolin slice the apples into thin strips. It may take a couple tries to get the thickness correct. Apples sliced too thick will break when rolled. Apples sliced too thin will just fall apart. The apple slices should be able to roll up nicely when they are at the right thickness. I use this Benriner Mandolin. It’s easy to adjust and use!
Coat the apple slices
Add the apple slices to a medium bowl. Add the cinnamon, sugar and lemon juice. Very carefully mix the apples to coat them. The slices are fragile so it’s important to do this step slowly and carefully.
Form the crust
Grease a pie dish with butter. Flour a pastry slab or flat surface and rolling pin. Place down the pie dough and roll out into a large circle, around 1/4 inch thick. Place the rolled out dough into the pie dish. Press down the sides until it is flat all around. Cut off the excess dough using a sharp knife, leaving a 1/2 inch overhang. Fold the dough in 1/2 inch to create the crust. Using your fingers create waves in the crust. (optional)
Add the caramel to the crust
Add the caramel to the bottom of the crust, reserving around 1/3 cup of caramel to drizzle on after. Spread the caramel out with a spatula to coat the bottom of the pie. It should be around 1/2 inch thick. If your caramel has thickened, heat it back up over medium low heat to turn it back into a liquid.
Make the apple roses and add them to the pie
Line up 5 of the apple slices on a flat surface (pictured below). Roll the apple slices up to form a rose. Stick the roses into the caramel. Repeat until the caramel rose apple pie is filled with the apple roses.
Drizzle the remaining caramel
Drizzle the remaining caramel over the top of the pie. In a small bowl combine the egg and water to create an egg wash. Using a baking brush coat the edges of the pie with the egg wash. This will make the edges crispy and golden brown.
Bake the pie
Bake the pie at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on it. If you notice the apples or crust starting to get to dark, remove from the oven and cover with aluminum foil. Make sure to use kitchen mittens if you do this step to avoid getting burned.
Serve and enjoy!
Let the pie set for at least a half hour so the caramel can firm back up. If you can’t wait it will be delicious but most likely will fall apart when you cut it. Serve this caramel rose apple pie with ice cream or whipped cream and enjoy!
Tips and tricks
- Get an extra apple. If you don’t have experience using a mandolin, get an extra apple to practice on. It can take some practice to get the hang of it, and you don’t want to run out of apples half way through.
- Don’t throw away scraps until the end. Get comfortable with not every slice coming out perfectly. Save the extras and then at the end you can use the scraps to fill in the centers of roses that might not be as tight.
- Be careful and use the right tools. The mandolin is very sharp, so be careful when using it. Use the tool that sticks into the apple to keep your fingers away from the blade.
- Make the pie crust and caramel ahead of time. This pie can take up your whole afternoon. Make sure you allow yourself the time to make it so it’s not stressful. To save on time you can make the pie crust and caramel in advance. The pie crust can be made up to 2 days in advance and the caramel can be refrigerated up to one month. Just heat the caramel back up to a liquid when ready to use.
Looking for more recipes to make for Thanksgiving? Check out these!
- Harvest Salad with Apple Cider Vinaigrette
- Smoked Gouda Mac and Cheese with Charred Poblanos
- Coffee Coffee Buzz Buzz Buzz Cookies
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Ingredients
Pie Crust
- 1¼ cup all purpose flour
- 6 tablespoons ice water
- 1 stick unsalted butter
- ½ teaspoon granulated sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Salted Caramel Sauce
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature cut into pieces
- ½ cup heavy cream
- 1 teaspoon salt
Rose Apple Pie
- 5 firm apples (I used concord)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar
- juice from half a lemon
Egg Wash
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
Make the Pie Crust
- Grease a medium bowl. Add the flour, sugar and salt to a food processor. Pulse a few times until combined. Add the butter and pulse until the butter becomes small balls. Add the ice water and pulse until the mixture starts to form into a dough. Remove from the food processor and form into a ball. Place in the grease bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel. Place in the fridge for at least an hour.
Make the Salted Caramel
- Add the sugar to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Heat the sugar and stir constantly until the sugar starts forming clumps. Keep stirring until the sugar forms into a brown liquid. Add the butter and stir constantly until the butter melts. This will cause the sugar to bubble aggressively. Be careful during this step. Once the butter melts add the cream slowly. Continue to stir and let thicken for 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.
Assemble the Pie
- Core the apples and cut into quarters. Using a mandolin slice the apples into thin strips. It may take a couple tries to get the thickness correct. Apples sliced too thick will break when rolled. Apples sliced too thin will just fall apart. The apple slices should be able to roll up nicely when they are at the right thickness.
- Add the apple slices to a medium bowl. Add the cinnamon, sugar and lemon juice. Very carefully mix the apples to coat them. The slices are fragile so it's important to do this step slowly and carefully.
- Grease a pie dish with butter. Flour a pastry slab or flat surface and rolling pin. Place down the pie dough and roll out into a large circle, around 1/4 inch thick. Place the rolled out dough into the pie dish. Press down the sides until it is flat all around. Cut off the excess dough using a sharp knife, leaving a 1/2 inch overhang. Fold the dough in 1/2 inch to create the crust. Using your fingers create waves in the crust. (optional)
- Add the caramel to the bottom of the crust, reserving around 1/3 cup to drizzle on after. Spread the caramel out with a spatula to coat the bottom. It should be around 1/2 inch thick. If your caramel has thickened, heat it back up over medium low heat to turn it back into a liquid.
- Line up 5 of the apple slices on top of eachother, pictured above, on a flat surface. Roll the apple slices up to form a rose. Stick the roses into the caramel. Repeat until the pie is filled with the apple roses.
- Drizzle the remaining caramel over the top of the pie. In a small bowl combine the egg and water to create an egg wash. Using a baking brush coat the edges of the pie with the egg wash. This will make the edges crispy and golden brown.
- Bake the pie at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on it. If you notice the apples or crust starting to get to dark, remove from the oven and cover with aluminum foil. Make sure to use kitchen mittens if you do this step to avoid getting burned.
- Let the pie set for at least a half hour so the caramel can firm back up. If you can't wait it will be delicious but most likely will fall apart when you cut it. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream and enjoy!
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