Javascript is not enabled.

Javascript must be enabled to use this site. Please enable Javascript in your browser and try again.

Skip to content
Content starts here
CLOSE ×
Search
Leaving AARP.org Website

You are now leaving AARP.org and going to a website that is not operated by AARP. A different privacy policy and terms of service will apply.

Martha Stewart Shares Her Famous Apple Pie Recipe

Plus, enjoy a bonus recipe for pie dough


spinner image martha stewart standing outside in a garden
Celeste Sloman/Courtesy Martha Stewart

When AARP talked to Martha Stewart for its inaugural Age Issue, the domestic diva was clear on how she wants to be remembered.

“What do I want people to say about me 100 years from now? Oh, I don’t know. Maybe, it’s just, ‘Did you make Martha’s apple pie? Because it really is the best recipe.’”

AARP The Magazine Special Edition

AARP takes a look at how aging has evolved and improved over the decades — and how it likely will change in the years ahead.

Read more stories from the Age Issue

Here is that recipe:

Martha Stewart’s Old-Fashioned Apple Pie

spinner image pie made with martha stewarts pie dough recipe
Toni Loggia

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting
  • Pâte brisée (pie dough)*
  • 12 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and sliced
  • ¾ cup sugar, plus additional for pie top
  • Zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 1½ teaspoons cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon nutmeg
  • Pinch ground cloves
  • 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1 large egg, beaten

Directions

  1. Heat oven to 375°F degrees. On a lightly floured surface, roll out pâte brisée into two 1/8-inch-thick circles to a diameter slightly larger than that of an 11-inch plate. Press one pastry circle into the pie plate. Place the other circle on waxed paper, and cover with plastic wrap. Chill all pastry until firm, about 30 minutes.
  2. In a large bowl, combine apples, sugar, lemon zest and juice, spices and flour. Toss well. Spoon apples into pie pan. Dot with butter, and cover with remaining pastry circle. Cut several steam vents across top. Seal by crimping edges as desired. Brush with beaten egg, and sprinkle with additional sugar.
  3. Bake until crust is brown and juices are bubbling, about 1 hour. Let cool on wire rack before serving.

Pâte Brisée (Pie Dough)*

spinner image pie baked using martha stewarts apple pie recipe
Toni Loggia

By Martha Stewart Test Kitchen

Updated on May 16, 2017

Yield: Makes 1 double-crust or 2 single-crust 9- to 10-inch pies

Ingredients

  • 2½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon sugar
  • 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
  • ¼ to ½ cup ice water

Directions

  1. In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.
  2. With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; and be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.
  3. Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

*Originally appeared: Martha Stewart Living, October/November 1992

Unlock Access to AARP Members Edition

Join AARP to Continue

Already a Member?