What’s more iconic than apple pie in fall? I’m serious, can you think of anything better than apple pie in fall? Because I can!
Introducing this gooey frangipane vegan apple pie with the most crispy and buttery crust. Oh, and I almost forgot, it’s topped with flaked almonds and creamy vanilla soft serve!
This crispy buttery vegan pie crust is spread with a thick layer of frangipane, aka almond croissant filling and piled high with tons of gooey caramelized spiced apples. And, it gets even better, once it’s out of the oven, it’s topped with some extra slivered almonds for extra crunch!
The filling and apples become super soft and gooey and caramelized in the oven and pair perfectly with the crisp buttery crust. If you make one pie this fall or thanksgiving, it’s gotta be this!
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How to Make this Vegan Apple Pie
Why this Vegan Apple Pie is Healthy
Vegan Apple Pie Ingredients
I’ll leave the full list of ingredients for this vegan apple pie here, along with substitutions for certain ingredients and what you can use instead! The full recipe with measurements can be found in the recipe card below.
- Spelt flour: is what will be used for the buttery crust. It has the perfect nutty flavor that pairs perfectly with the caramelized apples.
- Arrowroot Starch: helps bind the pie crust and give the edges the perfect crisp
- Honey: is the main sweetener in this recipe, but any syrup such as maple or date syrup works well.
- Apples: I recommend going with honey crisp, pink lady or gala apple for the perfect tart and sugary-sweet combination.
- Lemon Juice: helps add depth of flavor and a necessary tartness to the pie.
- Spices: because no apple pie is complete without loads of delicious spices to boost flavor and give it a comforting fall flavor!
- Almond Butter: this vegan apple pie is filled with this most decadent layer of frangipane, and almond butter helps replace the butter in traditional frangipane while also adding in some extra almond flavor! Win win!
- Cashew Milk: is what is used to thin out the frangipane so it’s not too thick. And I mean thick, not thicc 😉
Can I Substitute…
- Spelt Flour: whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour and even a 1:1 GF flour should work for this pie crust.
- Arrowroot Starch: cornstarch or potato starch makes a great substitute.
- Honey: date syrup, maple syrup or even a sugar-free syrup will work well.
- Cashew Milk: Feel free to use any plant milk of choice, such as almond, oat or soy milk etc.
How to Make this Vegan Apple Pie
I’ll outline the steps to make this pie here, but the full instructions can be found in the recipe card below.
Make the Pie Crust
- Begin by adding in the spelt flour, baking soda and salt. Mix well.
- Next, cut the 10 tbsp of vegan butter into small pieces and dump it into the bowl with the flour mixture. Using your hands or a pastry cutter, gently cut the butter into the flour until it looks like tiny beads of dough. It will have a rough beaded sandy look. Cutting the butter into the flour simply means using your hands to rub the butter into the flour until the butter pieces are super small and resemble coarse sand.
- Then, you can pour in the ice water and apple cider vinegar. I recommend sticking with less than more water, but if you find the dough too dry, add in an extra 1-2 more tbsp of ice water. Using a spatula or your hands, mix the water into the butter and flour mixture until a shaggy dough forms. Continue to mix and knead until the dough looks smooth. At this point, you could refrigerate the dough until you’re ready to roll it out, or you could store it in the fridge for up to a week. Meal prepped pie anyone??!
Make the Caramelized Apples
- Begin by slicing the washes and dried apples. You don’t need to core or peel the apples, simply cut the apples around the core until you have four pieces. Then, using a sharp knife, slice each piece into super thin pieces about ⅛” thick or even 1/16” thick.
- Add the apples into a large pan, the bigger the better, that way you can stir the apples without any of them falling on the stove. Pour in the lemon juice, honey and spices into the pan as well.
- Then, turn the pan onto medium-high heat and let the apples cook, stirring occasionally so they don’t stick, until they begin to become soft and turn slightly golden-brown. This should take anywhere between 6-10 minutes.
- Once the apples are done, you can store them in a container to use the next day (again, pie prep ;)) or you can use them immediately in the pie.
Make the Frangipane (aka my fave part)
- The frangipane is super simple to make. Simply whisk together all of the ingredients, almond butter, almond flour, honey, salt, almond extract and cashew milk. If the paste looks too thick, you can add in an extra 1-2 more tbsp of cashew milk.
Assembly – you’re almost done!
- Preheat the oven to 375° and get out a standard pie pan or dish.
- Take the chilled pie dough and gently unwrap from the plastic wrap. Carefully, transfer the pie dough over the pie pan, laying it in the center of the pan. Once it’s centered, you can press down the dough in the middle of the pan and press the dough around the sides of the pan. Once the dough is nicely pressed into the pan, you can trim off the excess pie dough around the edges of the pan. Don’t throw it out, you can bake the trimming on parchment paper for 12 minutes, it makes the most delicious cracker!
- Next, spread all of the frangipane paste evenly over the bottom of the pie crust. Be gentle, because you could tear the pie crust if you’re too rough with the spoon or spatula.
- Then, add the caramelized apples on top of the frangipane paste. Make sure there are no gaps with the apples and that they are spread out in an even layer. To make the pie look pretty, you can take some of the apple slices and gently curl them in different directions to make the apple layer look more aesthetic!
- Bake the pie in the oven for 30 minutes until the crust is golden-brown and the kitchen is fragrant! Yes, use your nose to tell when the pie is done! Once the pie is done baking, let it cool for 20 minutes before topping with slivered almonds. Serve with vanilla greek yogurt or vegan vanilla soft serve.
If you ever find yourself lost or stuck while making this recipe, feel free to shoot me a DM on Instagram, I’ll get back ASAP and walk you through!
Can I Meal Prep This Frangipane Apple Pie
You can absolutely prepare this vegan apple pie ahead of time. Simply make the crust ahead of time and shape it into a rectangle block and store in the fridge. Additionally, you can make the frangipane ahead of time as well and store in the fridge. I wouldn’t recommend trying to prep the apples ahead of time, as they will begin to brown.
Why this Vegan Apple Pie is Healthy
You’re probably reading the title and wondering how a vegan apple pie with buttery crust, gooey frangipane and caramelized apple could ever be healthy. But I’m here to tell you that this pie is healthy! Yes, you heard that right, this pie is healthy.
Here’s why. It’s packed with tons of nutritious plant-based foods like apples, spelt flour, almond butter, honey etc. which are all linked to a host of benefits. I’ll leave a few key benefits of each of these amazing foods below.
Benefits
- Spelt flour: you might be wondering if spelt flour is any better than regular wheat flour – the answer is YES! Spelt is an excellent source of slow-burning carbs and dietary fiber. It is particularly rich in iron, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc, and niacin – Vitamin B3. Additionally, spelt has a high protein count per cup than wheat flour, plus more soluble fiber. Soluble fiber has been shown to help improve cholesterol levels that the body absorbs in the bloodstream.
- Apples are packed with polyphenols, which are found mainly in the skin – so keep it on! There are many different types of polyphenols, but the ones in apples have been linked to reducing blood pressure, cholesterol, and helping with lowering the risk of diabetes. Oh, and before I forget, polyphenols contain antioxidants, which are AMAZING for your skin!
- Almonds: have a host of vitamins and minerals, with high concentrations of Vitamin E. Just 1 ounce of almonds provides 37% of the RDI. Several studies have linked Vitamin E intake with lower risk of heart disease, cancer and Alzheimers. They are also a great source of healthy fats, manganese and magnesium, which are all great for reducing blood pressure levels.
- Honey: is widely known to be amazing for it’s healing properties and vitamins. However, the one aspect of honey I like to highlight is the host of phytonutrients this natural “syrup” contains. Phytonutrients are powerhouses in plants that protect it from harm and help heal any wounds. These phytonutrients are responsible for the antioxidants and antibacterial properties that honey has. Which is why when we ingest honey it has been shown to have immune boosting and anti-cancerous properties.
Important Factor About Honey
- I want to stress that these benefits are only shown in raw honey. These benefits are completely destroyed in honey when it’s heavily processed. Make sure to buy your honey locally and from a source you trust!
More Decadent Desserts
Find more decadent desserts perfect for fall by clicking the links below!
- Fluffy Pumpkin Spice Donuts – you will fall in love with not only how fluffy these donuts are but also how decadent the caramel glaze is.
- Healthy Peach Cobbler – feel free to substitute the peaches with pears to make this more fall friendly!
- Snickerdoodle Banana Bread – think of this bread as a snickerdoodle cookie and fluffy banana bread all in one delicious loaf of bread.
If you make this recipe, be sure to tag me in your story or post at @munchingwithmariyah on Instagram – I love seeing your recreations!
PrintThe Best Vegan Apple Pie
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Yield: 8 slices 1x
- Category: Dessert
- Cuisine: American
Description
This crispy buttery vegan pie crust is spread with a thick layer of frangipane, aka almond croissant filling and piled high with tons of gooey caramelized spiced apples. And, it gets even better, once it’s out of the oven, it’s topped with some extra slivered almonds for extra crunch!
Ingredients
Vegan Pie Crust
- 2 cups (176g) Spelt flour
- ¼ cup (30g) Arrowroot powder
- ½ tsp Pink Salt
- 10 tbsp (140) Vegan Butter, unsalted
- 1 tbsp Honey
- 6 tbsp Cold water
Caramelized Apples
- 5 medium Honey Crisp Apples
- 1 tbsp Lemon juice
- 1 tbsp Honey or Date syrup
- 2 tsp Cinnamon
- 1 tsp Nutmeg
- ½ tsp each Ginger, Clove and Salt
Frangipane
- ⅓ cup Almond flour
- ¼ cup Almond butter
- ¼ cup Honey or Date syrup
- 1 tsp Almond extract
- ⅛ cup Cashew milk
Instructions
Vegan Pie Crust
- Begin by adding in the spelt flour, baking soda and salt. Mix well. Next, cut the 10 tbsp of vegan butter into small pieces and dump it into the bowl with the flour mixture. Using your hands or a pastry cutter, gently cut the butter into the flour until it looks like tiny beads of dough. It will have a rough beaded sandy look. Cutting the butter into the flour simply means using your hands to rub the butter into the flour until the butter pieces are super small and resemble coarse sand.
- Then, you can pour in the ice water and apple cider vinegar. I recommend sticking with less than more water, but if you find the dough too dry, add in an extra 1-2 more tbsp of ice water. Using a spatula or your hands, mix the water into the butter and flour mixture until a shaggy dough forms. Continue to mix and knead until the dough looks smooth. Roll the dough out into a large circle, bigger than your pie pan – mine was about 2 feet in diameter.
- At this point, you could refrigerate the dough, wrapped in plastic wrap, until you’re ready to roll it out, or you could store it in the fridge for up to a week, wrapped in plastic wrap.
Caramelized Apples
- Begin by slicing the washes and dried apples. You don’t need to core or peel the apples, simply cut the apples around the core until you have four pieces. Then, using a sharp knife, slice each piece into super thin pieces about ⅛” thick or even 1/16” thick. Add the apples into a large pan, the bigger the better, that way you can stir the apples without any of them falling on the stove. Pour in the lemon juice, honey and spices into the pan as well. Toss the apples to coat and let them sit for about 15 minutes to macerate and draw out the juice.
- Then, turn the pan onto medium-high heat and let the apples cook, stirring occasionally so they don’t stick, until they begin to become soft and turn slightly golden-brown. This should take anywhere between 6-10 minutes. Once the apples are done, you can store them in a container to use the next day (again, pie prep ;)) or you can use them immediately in the pie.
Frangipane
- The frangipane is super simple to make. Simply whisk together all of the ingredients, almond butter, almond flour, honey, salt, almond extract and cashew milk. If the paste looks too thick, you can add in an extra 1-2 more tbsp of cashew milk.
Assembly
- Preheat the oven to 375° and get out a standard pie pan or dish. Take the chilled pie dough and gently unwrap from the plastic wrap. Carefully, transfer the pie dough over the pie pan, laying it in the center of the pan. Once it’s centered, you can press down the dough in the middle of the pan and press the dough around the sides of the pan. Once the dough is nicely pressed into the pan, you can trim off the excess pie dough around the edges of the pan. Don’t throw it out, you can bake the trimming on parchment paper for 12 minutes, it makes the most delicious cracker!
- Next, spread all of the frangipane paste evenly over the bottom of the pie crust. Be gentle, because you could tear the pie crust if you’re too rough with the spoon or spatula. Then, add the caramelized apples on top of the frangipane paste. Make sure there are no gaps with the apples and that they are spread out in an even layer. To make the pie look pretty, you can take some of the apple slices and gently curl them in different directions to make the apple layer look more aesthetic!
- Bake the pie in the oven for 30 minutes until the crust is golden-brown and the kitchen is fragrant! Yes, use your nose to tell when the pie is done! Once the pie is done baking, let it cool for 20 minutes before topping with slivered almonds. Serve with vanilla greek yogurt or vegan vanilla soft serve.
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