Science Behind the Apple Pie

I experimented with making a Dutch Apple Pie and I spent hours, even days studying and preparing to craft this complex dessert without refined sugar. Sugar’s role in an apple pie is not only taste. It is also responsible for browning the edges of the crust, adding moisture to and caramelizing the rich, gooey filling. 

My blog and recipes are usually focused on sugar only, but I really wanted to share everything I learned from researching apple pie recipes! I found it so interesting!

If sugar’s role is compromised when replacing it with a natural sugar, other ingredients have to step it up to ensure the texture and structure is perfect. I took a deep dive and learned about what all of the ingredients in a dutch apple pie do.

Let’s start with the crust. I learned that pie crusts usually follow the 3:2:1 ratio of three parts flour, 2 parts fat, and 1 part water. Although adding more fat would create a flakier pie crust.

Chilled vodka in pie crust creates an even flakier result. I haven’t tested this out yet, but if 1 tbs of water is replaced with 1 tbs of vodka, the dough gets the moisture it needs to form a nice dough, but it evaporates in the oven resulting in a super flaky crust. The alcohol limits gluten development because it doesn’t hydrate flour proteins like water. Apple cider vinegar can be a substitute for vodka. 

Using very cold butter is key. Dicing it up into small, pea-sized bits and coating the bits in flour before making the dough helps create the steam pockets, which create a flaky crust.

Using the Fraisage technique can also help create a flakier crust. I used this technique when I tested out my refined sugar-free Dutch Apple Pie recipe. Fraisage is a French technique where the dough is smeared by the heel of your hand and folded back onto itself. You repeat this technique of smearing and folding until a dough ball is formed. When rolled out, the dough had thin layers of butter. During baking, the water in the butter turns to steam and the dough is left with little steam pockets.

Now, I will share what I learned about apples. According to Cook’s Illustrated, If you bake a pie with raw apples, the high oven heat causes pectin in the apples to break down. Pectin is the ‘glue’ that holds the apple's cells together. When it breaks down, you are left with a watery apple filling, with textureless apples. By cooking the apple filling on the stove prior to baking, we can prevent this. Cooking them between 140-160 degrees activates a natural enzyme called pectin methylesterase. It modifies pectin molecules and makes them resistant to breaking down at higher temps. After this controlled heat treatment, apples can withstand the high temperatures of the oven. This means they can soften but won’t become mushy, while retaining their shape and texture as the pie bakes in the oven.

Using certain apples matters too. If you use tart apples that are high in pectin and acidity, your apples will hold their shape and texture better than apples low in pectin. I read through a few apple pie recipes and found the best apples to use are granny smith, northern spy, honeycrisp and gala.

Using the right amount of apples is also very important. Apple pies deflate as they cool from baking. You need way more apples than you think - roughly 4-5 lbs, or 10-12 apples! I was surprised by this number.

You want thin slices of apples from ⅛”-¼” thick, so they aren’t too crunchy and not too soft. Some recipes say if you layer your individual apple slices in the pie dish, you can prevent some deflating since you aren’t leaving any room between your apples. I forgot to do this step when I made an apple pie, and my filling didn’t seem to deflate much! 

For me, this pie was an intense and exciting learning process! If you test out my recipe or try making a refined sugar-free Dutch Apple Pie yourself, I’d love to hear how it turns out (and what tips/tricks you discover). I’m not a professional baker, (I am a fashion designer, actually!) and I am still learning along the way! If you want me to test out your favorite recipe, let me know!

Bye!