I love to cook, but when it comes to baking, I’m definitely a “semi-homemade” kind of girl.  The thought of floured surfaces, sifters and rolling pins just make me cringe. At the same time, though, I love dessert; so when my sweet tooth kicks in, I look for shortcuts and this pie is no different.

Store-bought pie crusts are what make this delicious Upside Down Apple Pie an easy, breezy dessert.  I wish I could take credit for the idea, but this pie is actually an old Southern dessert that my mom made simpler by using store- bought pie crusts.  It’s been a favorite in my family for years.

What I love most about this dessert is that it’s kind of like two pies in one, both Apple and Pecan.  It is also a showstopper, so make it and wow your family and friends this holiday season!

Ingredients:

2 refrigerated pie crusts (usually sold 2 to a pack)

Pecan Topping

  • 1/3 cup butter, melted
  • 1 cup chopped pecans
  • 1/2 cup light brown sugar
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Apple Filling

  • 7-8 medium sized granny smith apples, peeled cored and cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 cup light brown (or white) sugar
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold, diced

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Then, using about 1 tablespoon of the melted butter, thoroughly grease a 9″ pie pan.  To make the pecan topping, mix the remaining butter, pecans, brown sugar and cinnamon in a bowl and spread the mixture onto the bottom of the greased pie pan, pressing mixture on the sides if necessary.  Then gently unroll 1 pie crust and fit it over pecan mixture in the pie pan, allowing excess crust to hang over the sides.

Next, combine the apples, flour, cinnamon and nutmeg together, and spoon evenly into the crust.  Dice the cold butter into even smaller cubes, and dot over the apple filling.  Unroll remaining pie crust; place over apple filling and firmly press both crusts together.  Remove any crust hanging over pan with the back edge of a knife, then you can crimp or design edges as you see fit.

Cut 4-5 slits into the top of the pie to release steam, and cover only the edges of the pie with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning.  Place pie on large pan to catch overflow and bake for 50 minutes, removing the foil from the edges the last 10 minutes of cooking.  After 50 minutes, you’re looking for golden brown crust and the apples to be soft when a knife is inserted through a slit.

Allow pie to cool/rest for 10-15 minutes on a wire rack, then place a serving plate over the pie and invert pie onto the plate.  Gently remove the pie pan, which should come off easily, but you may have to transfer any lingering pecans.  Allow to cool completely, then cover pie with plastic until ready to serve.