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Savor Fall’s cozy and warm flavors with this Apple Ginger Pie, topped with a crunchy oat streusel and nestled in a buttery, flaky crust. It’s a delicious twist on the classic apple pie, perfect for enjoying fresh or saving for later.
A Triple Dose of Ginger for Cozy Fall Flavors
Apple pie is a classic dessert, but if you want to bring a bold twist to the traditional, this Apple Ginger Pie with Oat Streusel Topping is just the ticket. With three layers of ginger flavor—ground ginger, freshly grated ginger, and candied ginger, each bite offers a warm, spicy complexity that perfectly balances the sweet-tart apple filling. The oat streusel topping adds a comforting, nutty crunch, and the all-butter pie crust brings it all together with a golden, flaky foundation.
Would that be too much ginger?
Not at all! Despite having three different forms of ginger in this pie, the ginger doesn’t overwhelm the apple pie at all. The fam really enjoyed this pie a lot!
The best apple to use
For this Apple Ginger Pie, a mix of sweet and tart apples best balances the ginger and spices. Try combining Granny Smith apples for their tartness and firm texture with a sweeter, juicier variety like Honeycrisp, Fuji, or Braeburn. This blend gives you both structure and a natural sweetness that complements the warming spices without making the filling too soft or overly sweet.
No blind baking (par-baking) of the pie crust
Instead of par-baking the crust, I baked the pie on a hot baking stone. This approach allows the crust to cook quickly and evenly, avoiding a soggy bottom. Start by preheating the stone at 400°F, bake the pie for 30 minutes at this high heat, then reduce the temperature to 350°F for an additional 80 minutes. This long, slow bake ensures the apples and filling bubbles become tender, signaling perfectly cooked.
Apple Ginger Pie with Oat Streusel
Ingredients
For the pie crust: (Use any one of these- you only need one crust)
- 1 9-inch homemade all-butter pie crust or store-bought 9-inch deep-dish pie crust
- 1 9-inch sourdough discard pie crust
Oat streusel:
- 102 g all-purpose flour
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- 50 g light brown sugar
- ¼ tsp salt
- 60 g rolled oats
- 78 g unsalted butter cold, diced
Filling:
- 3 lbs apples cored, thinly sliced
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter melted
- 71 g light brown sugar
- 30 g tapioca flour
- 1 Tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 80 g candied ginger diced, see notes
Dust: (to create barrier between the filling and the crust)
- 1 tsp all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp sugar
Instructions
If you choose to make your own pie crust:
- If you plan to make all-butter pie crust from scratch, you can use this my favorite all-butter pie crust recipe.
- If you are a sourdough baker and has lots of discard, you can use some to make this sourdough discard pie crust
Prepare the oat streusel: (can be prepared the day or several days before)
- Combine all-purpose flour,ground cinnamon, light brown sugar, and salt in a mixing bowl. Add the cold diced butter pieces and vanilla extract.
- Rub the flour mixture against the butter pieces until you no longer see the butter. You will have moist uneven sizes of clumps. Add oats and toss around to roughly combined
- Transfer the streusel and store in an air-tight container in the fridge for a minimum of 1 hour and up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 2 months. I recommend chilling the streusel for at least 1 hour in the fridge or 30 minutes in the freezer if you are pressing for time. It hardened after you chilled it. You can just break large clumps into smaller clumps when you are ready to use it
Prepare the filling:
- Peel and core the apples. Cut the apple into 1/4-inch thick slices. Combine melted butter, brown sugar, tapioca flour, apple cider vinegar, ground ginger, freshly grated ginger in a large mixing bowl. Add apple slices and diced candied ginger, and toss to combine
Assembling:
- 15 minutes before you plan to bake, set your oven rack at the lowest and put a baking stone or baking steel or inverted baking pan on the rack and start preheating the oven at 400 F (200 C) for conventional oven, 380 F (190C). We want the baking stone/baking pan hot and nice to prevent soggy crust
- Combine dust ingredients: flour + sugar and scatter the combo at the bottom of the pie crust. This creates a barrier between the filling and the bottom crust. This also helps to prevent soggy crust
- Scrape 1/2 of the filling into the pie crust and use a spatula to kinda flatten the filling to make sure there is not much gap in between the filling. Then pile on the rest of the filling and do the same
- Scatter 1/2 of the streusel on top of the filling. Breaking some large clumps into smaller clumps if necessary. Press them down a bit on the filling. Scatter the rest evenly on top of the filling. Just gently press them down a bit. It may seem like lots of streusel, but trust me, it's not. It's the perfect amount after baking
- Line another baking pan with parchment paper and put the assembled pie on top. This is to catch any juices bubbling over during baking
Bake the pie:
- Place the baking pan with the assembled pie on top of the baking steel/stone/inverted pan and bake for 30 minutes
- After 30 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350 F and loosely tent with aluminum foil, shiny side facing up, bake for another 60 minutes or until the juices are bubbling.
Cool down:
- Remove the baking pan from the oven and place on top of a cooling rack and let it cool down for at least 6 hours before cutting into it. If you slice the pie when it's hot, it's going to fall apart
Store:
- You can store the pie, covered, at room temperature for about 2 days.
Marv’s Recipe Notes
*Nutrition facts are just estimates and calculated using online tools*
Store the pie
1. If you plan to finish the pie within a couple of days, cover it loosely with foil or plastic wrap and store it at room temperature. For longer storage, cover the pie and refrigerate it for up to about 5 days. The filling and crust will stay fresher, though the crust might lose a bit of its crispness.
2. For even longer storage, freeze the pie. Make sure they have cooled down completely before you plan to freeze. You can freeze the entire pie (still on the pie plate). Wrap with a plastic wrap and then a double layer of aluminum foil to prevent a freezer burn. I like to cut into slices and then wrap each one with plastic wrap and another layer of aluminum foil. Put them in freezer friendly bag. They can be kept frozen for up to 2 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating
The best way to reheat pie
I don’t recommend using a microwave because it makes the crust turn soggy. I recommend an oven or toaster oven, here’s how: 1. If you freeze the whole pie, preheat the oven to 350 F (180 C). Place the pie (still frozen or thawed) on a baking sheet. Cover loosely with foil to prevent the topping from over-browning and bake for 15-20 minutes (25-30 minutes if frozen), or until warmed through and bubbly.
2. If you plan to reheat individual slices, you can use a toaster oven at 350 F (180 C) for 8-10 minutes. This keeps the crust and topping crisp.
