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If you love the cozy warmth of fall baking, this Apple Butter Custard Pie is about to be your new favorite autumn treat.
It is smooth, creamy, and full of deep spiced apple flavor without peeling, chopping, or cooking apples.
This is not your typical Apple Pie. Think pumpkin pie energy but with rich apple butter leading the way, creating the most velvety, smooth apple pie filling ever. Every bite tastes like crisp leaves, warm spices, and cozy kitchen memories.
This easy apple butter pie recipe is likely to become your favorite Pie Recipe, and it’s the perfect Thanksgiving Dessert or Christmas dessert, and it is a delicious way to enjoy apple pie flavor without fresh apples.
Table of Contents
It bakes up silky, comforting, and beautifully spiced, making it a gorgeous addition to your fall dessert lineup.
This pie tastes like fall wrapped in a flaky crust and topped with fluffy swirls of whipped cream.
❤️ Why You Will Love This Apple Butter Pie
- Texture: Creamy custard texture with warm spiced apple flavor.
- Mash-Up (Sort of): Like apple pie and pumpkin pie had a cozy holiday dessert baby/
- Easy: No peeling or cooking apples needed. Apple butter does all the work.
- Make Ahead: Perfect make ahead pie for holidays, potlucks, and fall celebrations
- Fall: Fall spices and real apple flavor in every bite
- Newbies Welcome: Beginner friendly easy apple butter pie recipe
- Elegant yet Easy: Impressive enough for Thanksgiving but simple enough for any cozy weekend baking day
🔍 Recipe at a Glance
| Feature | Detail |
|---|---|
| 🔪 Prep Time: | 15 minutes |
| 🔥 Bake Time: | 50 minutes |
| 🧊 Cool Time: | 2 hours |
| ⏲️ Total Time: | 3 hours (approximately) |
| 🍽️ Servings: | 8 |
| 🍎 Flavor: | Warm spices, brown sugar sweetness, rich apple butter |
| ✨Great For: | Fall desserts, Thanksgiving, holiday baking, cozy weekend treat |
| ⚡Make Ahead: | Yes. Chill overnight for best flavor and set. |
| 🌟Difficulty: | Easy. No fuss, no special skills required. |
🛒 Apple Butter Pie Ingredients & Notes
(Full ingredient amounts in the recipe card below)
Pie Filling
Apple Butter
The star of this pie. Apple butter gives deep apple flavor without using fresh apples, making this an easy apple butter pie no-apple-prep needed dessert. Choose a thick, rich apple butter. Homemade or high-quality store-bought both work beautifully.
Brown Sugar
Adds warm caramel notes that pair perfectly with apple butter. Light or dark brown sugar both work; dark will add slightly deeper molasses flavor.
Eggs
Help set the custard and give it that silky texture.
Heavy Cream
Creates the smooth, velvety custard filling. You can substitute half-and-half, but the pie will be slightly less rich.
Warm Spices
Cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves bring cozy fall character. A tiny pinch of cloves goes a long way.
Vanilla Extract
Adds warmth and enhances the fall flavors.
Salt
Balances sweetness and lifts spice notes.
Crust
Unbaked Pie Crust
Homemade or store-bought works. Blind-baking ensures a crisp crust that does not get soggy under custard.
Whipped Topping
Heavy Cream, Powdered Sugar, Vanilla
Fresh whipped cream adds soft sweetness and makes every slice feel special. Feel free to add a pinch of cinnamon or dollop with extra apple butter.
Pro tip: The whipped cream is dreamy, but you can also serve slices plain or add a drizzle of caramel.
🥣 Instructions
Step 1. Blind bake the crust
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Press pie crust into a 9-inch pie pan and crimp edges.
Line crust with parchment and fill with pie weights or dry beans.
Bake 12 minutes, then remove weights and parchment.
Let crust cool completely so the custard filling stays silky and the crust stays crisp.
Step 2. Mix custard filling
In a large bowl, whisk together apple butter, brown sugar, eggs, heavy cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and vanilla until smooth and fully combined.
This creates that rich, creamy custard filling and gives this old-fashioned apple butter pie its silky texture.
Step 3. Fill and bake
Pour filling into cooled crust.
Bake 45 to 50 minutes until edges are set and the center still jiggles slightly.
If crust browns too quickly, cover edges with foil.
Step 4. Cool
Cool on a wire rack at least 2 hours so the creamy apple pie custard fully sets.
Do not rush this step.
Step 5. Make whipped topping
Beat cold heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until soft peaks form.
Step 6. Serve
Spread or pipe whipped topping over cooled pie or dollop individually. For a festive finish, swirl a little extra apple butter into the whipped topping or dust with cinnamon.
💡 Pro Tips
- Blind-bake crust so it stays crisp
- Whisk filling until completely smooth
- Center should still jiggle when done
- Chill bowl for whipped cream
- Add bourbon or rum for warmth
- Decorate with pie crust leaves and cinnamon sugar
🍽 Best Ways to Serve
• With cinnamon whipped cream
• With caramel drizzle
• Next to hot apple cider
• With coffee or spiced chai
💡 Why This Recipe Works
- No fresh apples needed: Apple butter gives deeper flavor, richer color, and a smoother filling than fresh apples.
- Custard base: Cream and eggs create a silky smooth apple pie filling that slices beautifully.
- Blind baking: Prevents a soggy bottom crust.
- Make ahead friendly: The flavors deepen after chilling overnight.
This easy apple butter custard pie is proof you don’t need a complicated method for big fall flavor.
🎨 Variations
- See a graham cracker crust instead of pastry crust.
- Make a Maple whipped cream.
- Add a splash of bourbon or rum for warmth.
- Sprinkle sugared pecans or drizzle caramel on top.
🧊 Storage
- Refrigerate up to 4 days
- Freeze pie (without whipped topping) up to 2 months
Thaw overnight in refrigerator
❓ Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Yes. It makes the flavor even richer.
Yes, but the custard will be slightly less rich.
Absolutely. This apple butter pie recipe tastes even better Day 2.
Yes. It adds wonderful sweetness and warmth.
More Pie Recipes
- Irish Apple Pie
- Apple Pie Empanadas
- Apple Blueberry Pie
- Skillet Fried Apples
- Easy Apple Pie Turnovers
- Old Fashioned Custard Pie
- Pumpkin Pecan Pie
🍁 Final Thoughts
If you are craving a cozy fall dessert that feels like a warm hug, this creamy apple butter pie has your name on it. It is effortless, comforting, and always a crowd-pleaser. The smooth apple custard filling, classic warm spices, and fluffy whipped cream make it a standout Thanksgiving pie and a sweet holiday apple pie alternative.
Pair with warm cider, hot tea, or a cinnamon latte for maximum autumn magic.
Happy baking and cozy fall vibes!
Recipe
Ingredients
For the Pie Crust
- 1 unbaked 9-inch pie crust homemade or store-bought
For the Apple Butter Filling
- 1 cup apple butter
- ¾ cup brown sugar
- 3 large eggs
- 1 cup heavy cream
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
For the Whipped Topping
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 3 tablespoons powdered sugar
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place the pie crust in a 9-inch pie pan and crimp the edges as desired. Place a piece of parchment paper in the pie crust and fill with pie weights of beans. Bake the crust for 12 minutes. Remove the pie weights and cool the crust.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the apple butter, brown sugar, eggs, heavy cream, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, and vanilla until smooth and fully combined.
- Pour the filling into the prepared crust, spreading evenly with a spatula.
- Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until the edges are set and the center jiggles slightly when moved. If the crust begins to brown too quickly, cover the edges with foil during the last 15 minutes of baking.
- Remove from the oven and place on a wire rack to cool completely for at least 2 hours. The filling will continue to set as it cools.
- Meanwhile, prepare the whipped topping. In a cold mixing bowl, beat the heavy cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla until soft peaks form. Do not overbeat.
- Once the pie has cooled, spread or pipe the whipped topping evenly over the top, or serve it on individual slices. You can also swirl in a spoon of apple butter into the whipped topping.
- Serve chilled or at room temperature. For extra indulgence, drizzle with caramel sauce or sprinkle with cinnamon.
- OPTIONAL: Use extra crust to form leaves, then bake for 12 minutes. May sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Use as decoration on the pie.
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