Homemade apple pie with a healthy twist. Flaky pastry loaded with sweet apples and cinnamon and a lattice pastry top. At just 200 calories a slice, this Healthy Apple Pie has all the comforting flavour you know and love, but a little bit lighter.
An apple pie is perfect for any occasion. This healthy apple pie still has all that sweet apple pie flavour, but lightened up a little. A traditional slice of apple pie has between 300-400 calories, so this is a lighter option. The world healthy is of course subjective, but when compared to a more traditional store bought pie, this is much lighter. But it doesn't compromise on flavour.
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Why should you try it?
- All the same flavour - This pie does not sacrifice on taste. It still has the delicious flaky pasty and sweet cinnamon apples, but with a few lighter changes.
- Lightened up - We haven't used any crazy ingredients to lighten this up. Just a little maple syrup instead of granulated sugar, and a pastry top swap.
- Delicious comfort food - When it comes to dessert, apple pie has to be the most comforting. It's the perfect summer dessert and delicious with ice cream.
- Can be adapted to use other fruit - Why stop at apples! You could use an apple and pear combo, or even use berries instead.
What you will need
- Shortcrust pastry - Yes, we cheated. We honestly can't taste the difference with store bought pasty compared to making our own. So, we save ourselves a lot of time and buy it ready made. Feel free to make your own!
- Apples - You want to use a firm, drier apple to make apple pie because whilst they will soften up when cooking, they won't turn mushy like a softer juicier apple would. We use Granny Smith apples because they are the right firmness and a perfect balance of sweet and tart too. If you love really sweet apple pie, then use Braeburn or Golden Delicious apples.
- Cinnamon - Apples and cinnamon are just the perfect combination. You could swap it for nutmeg or ground ginger, or use a mixture of the three.
- Maple syrup - This is how we have sweetened our apple pie. We have used just a little, as it is very sweet and has a strong flavour. You could swap it for honey or another liquid sweetener if you prefer.
- Vanilla - This adds some warmth to the healthy apple pie. Use vanilla extract, rather than essence, as you will get a more natural flavour.
- Cornflour - This is used as a thickener in the pie. You mix it with the apples before they go in to the pastry and it thickens up the pie filling juices.
- Egg - This is brushed on at the end to give the pie that beautiful golden glaze.
Step by step
One: Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. In a bowl, mix the sliced apples, maple syrup, vanilla, cornflour and cinnamon until all the apples are coated.
Two: Roll out the dough and put into a greased pie dish. Cut around the edges and save the leftover pastry. Prick the base of the pastry with a fork. Lay the apple slices on the bottom of the pastry and build up in layers.
Three: Roll out the remaining pastry and cut into thin strips. Lay the strips in a lattice pattern over the top of the apples. Cover in foil and cook for 20 minutes. Remove from the oven, brush the egg over the pasty and return to the oven, Cook for a further 20-25 minutes, until golden brown.
Four: Cool for at least 30 minutes before serving
Health benefits
Let's us start off by saying that this is still a sugary pie. There is pastry and there is maple syrup coating the apples, but we have tried to make a couple of little lighter changes.
Firstly, apples are super nutritious. They are a good source of fibre, potassium and vitamin C and K. Apples have also been linked to a lower risk of heart disease. One reason for this may be that apples contain soluble fibre, and this can help lower your blood cholesterol levels.
Apples also contain polyphenols, which have antioxidant effects. However, many of these are in the peel, so if you peel the apples they they won't have the same benefits.
As you can see on the pictures of the pie, we have used a lattice effect on top. We could have covered it in pastry to make a lid, however we went with strips of pastry because it means using less pastry and also we think it looks prettier.
Apple pie needs to be sweet. Whilst the apples are naturally sweet, especially when baked, we added a little bit of maple syrup to add extra sweetness. Apple pie would usually be loaded with granulated sweetener, so by using a little maple syrup with have saved a few calories in this pie.
Variation
This is a really good basic fruit pie recipe that you can adapt. You could use half apples and pears for a nice autumnal mix. You could also do a berry mix of blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and blackberries. Or a stone fruit pie with peaches and nectarines.
Instead of using cinnamon, you could swap it for ground ginger or mixed spice, or even use a mixture of the three.
What to serve with it
Now, this is a source of great debate - especially in our house. Whilst you could just eat it by itself, straight out of the pan, it is delicious with vanilla ice cream or custard. Custard for a warming and comforting winter dessert and ice cream in the summer. Let us know in the comments what you like to serve apple pie with.
If you are looking for a hot drink to have this with as a bit of an afternoon pick-me-up, then why not they our Chai Tea Latte, Cinnamon Coffee or Slow Cooker Hot Chocolate.
FAQs
You can keep apple pie at room temperature for up to 2 days. You can then keep it in the fridge for an additional 2 days. Keep it covered with foil loosely. You can also freeze apple pie. Wrap it tightly with foil and place in a large freezer bag - it will keep in the freezer for about 3 months. Defrost it in the fridge and then warm it in the oven for about 30 minutes.
If you want to make this even lighter, then you can leave out the maple syrup and you will just have the natural sweetness from the apples.
You don't have to add the egg wash to the pastry, but it does make it nice and golden.
No, there is no need to cook the apples in a pan first. They are cooked in the pastry in the oven for 45 minutes, and if they are sliced thin enough this is plenty of time.
Yes, the foil is an important part of this recipe. Because we have added a lattice top, rather than a full pastry cover, the foil seals in the steam that the apples release while baking. This softens the apples and also keeps the top layer of apples from burning.
It is actually far easier than it looks. You lay half of the pastry strips down on top of the apples one way and then weave the remaining strips under and over in the other direction.
Extra tips
- Why not make this healthy apple pie extra fancy by cutting out some tiny pastry flowers with cookie cutters to put on top.
- Fancy something a little different? Swap half the apples for pear, or even make a peach version of this.
- Make sure the apples are sliced really thin. If they are on the thicker side, then they won't cook fully in the oven and you will have hard apple slices. You want them to be really soft and sweet.
- Although you will be super eager to cut right in to the pie to eat it, you should try to leave it to settle and cool for 2 hours just so that you can cut it and pull out a full slice without it falling apart.
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DON’T FORGET TO RATE THE RECIPE ↓
Recipe
Healthy Apple Pie
Ingredients
- 375 g ready rolled shortcrust pastry
- 4 apples quartered, then thinly sliced
- 3 tablespoon maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon cornflour
- 0.5 egg whisked
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6. In a bowl, mix the sliced apples, maple syrup, vanilla, cornflour and cinnamon until all the apples are coated.375 g ready rolled shortcrust pastry
- Roll out the dough and put into a greased pie dish. Cut around the edges and save the leftover pastry. Prick the base of the pastry with a fork. Lay the apple slices on the bottom of the pastry and build up in layers.4 apples, 3 tablespoon maple syrup, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, 1 tablespoon cornflour
- Roll out the remaining pastry and cut into thin strips. Lay the strips in a lattice pattern over the top of the apples. Cover in foil and cook for 20 minutes.
- Remove from the oven, brush the egg over the pasty and return to the oven, Cook for a further 20-25 minutes, until golden brown. Cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.
Notes
- Why not make this healthy apple pie extra fancy by cutting out some tiny pastry flowers with cookie cutters to put on top.
- Fancy something a little different? Swap half the apples for pear, or even make a peach version of this.
- Make sure the apples are sliced really thin. If they are on the thicker side, then they won't cook fully in the oven and you will have hard apple slices. You want them to be really soft and sweet.
- Although you will be super eager to cut right in to the pie to eat it, you should try to leave it to settle and cool for 2 hours just so that you can cut it and pull out a full slice without it falling apart.
Beth
This post has sold me and I’m definitely making this today! My family loves apple anything! I’m so excited to have found a healthier recipe for apple pie! Thank you! :)
Bintu | Recipes From A Pantry
Apple pie is one of my favourite desserts! I love that this is only 200 calories a slice without compromising on flavour - so delicious!
Melanie Cagle
I love it with both Ice Cream and some nice hot custard... however, I believe I like with Ice Cream the most! I have eaten it with double cream too, which kind of had the same flavor as the ice cream... just not as cold!
Jessica Formicola
Any time "healthy" and "pie" can be used in the same sentence, I'm sold! This apple pie looks amazing!