Apple Pie Filling takes less than 15 minutes to make and has a great homemade flavor.
Tender chunks (or slices) of apples are perfectly sweet-tart simmered in a simple cinnamon sauce. They take just minutes to prep and taste so much better than canned!
They can be used in pies or tarts or replace a can of apple pie filling in any recipe. Scoop it over ice cream, yogurt, or cake for an easy treat.
Homemade is Best (and SO easy!)
I looooove Apple pie filling but not just for filling pie crust! It’s great over anything from yogurt to cake to oatmeal.
- Homemade always tastes 1000x better! Delicious apple flavor with a hint of warm spices.
- The apples come out tender and not soggy.
- Making this apple pie filling is less expensive than canned (and has a homemade flavor).
- Needs just a handful of ingredients.
- Ready in about 10-15 minutes, it’s so easy to make.
The Best Apples for Pie Filling
Much like when baking apple pie, you’ll want apples that stand up well so you don’t end up with applesauce! We think granny smith apples are the best for pie filling because they have a tart flavor which means the filling isn’t overly sweet.
Try any of the following: braeburn, golden delicious, honeycrisp.
Other ingredients needed in this recipe are sugar, water, spices and cornstarch (this makes the sauce portion).
How to Make Homemade Apple Pie Filling
You’ve heard the saying as easy as Apple Pie, this recipe is exactly that!
- Peel and chop apples: apples are peeled and sliced and simply added to a pan with a bit of water, sugar and cinnamon.
- Thicken: once tender, I add a bit of cornstarch to thicken up this apple pie filling. Any of the juices released from the apples make the “saucy” part.
Replace the Can
This easy apple pie filling recipe makes the equivalent of 1 can of apple pie filling and takes just about 10 minutes.
It’s perfect to substitute for a can of apple pie filling (and tastes so much better than the store bought)!
Variations
- Chop the apples or make apple slices instead.
- Swap out white sugar for brown sugar to add a caramel flavor.
- Add a teaspoon of lemon juice.
- I use ground cinnamon but you can use apple pie spice, a pinch of nutmeg, pumpkin pie spice or your favorite warm spice mixture.
How to Freeze Apple Pie Filling
This apple pie filling is delicious and can be used right away. We mainly make it to replace cans of pie filling in recipes, if I am making an actual apple pie from scratch, I don’t pre cook the filling. If you do make this filling you can of course freeze it.
Simply cook as directed and cool. Freeze in a freezer bag. Once ready to use, defrost overnight in the fridge and use as you would from fresh!
Ideas for Apple Pie Filling
We love this on its own or served over ice cream but this easy apple pie filling works perfectly in the recipes below!
- Apple Pie Egg Rolls: If you like the OLD McDonald’s apple pies (the fried ones!) you will LOVE these!!!
- Serve over ice cream, yogurt, or oatmeal.
- Place in a bowl and top with crumble to make a quick apple crisp.
- Wrap in pie pastry (or homemade pie crust) to make apple hand pies.
- Use it to top pancakes or waffles.
- Apple Pie Tacos: Crispy Cinnamon Sugar Shells filled with Warm Apple Pie Filling!
- Apple Pie Roll Ups: Easy baked apple pie roll ups rolled in cinnamon sugar and served warm!
- Apple Pie Dumplings: 2 Ingredient Apple Pie Dumplings! This is the easiest dessert to put together!
Apple Pie Filling Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 medium apples
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons water
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- 4 teaspoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons water
Instructions
- Peel, core, and chop or slice apples*.
- Melt butter and cinnamon over medium heat. Stir in apples, sugar & water.
- Cover and cook stirring occasionally for 4-6 minutes or until very slightly softened.
- In a small dish combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water. Add to the pan while stirring and continue to cook until apples are soft (not mushy) and filling is thickened.
- Let bubble 1 minute. Cool.
Notes
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Dessert, Pie
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
Was looking for an apple pie filling recipe and came across this one! Perfection! I followed the recipe exactly and this came out absolutely delicious. My new go to versus the canned stuff. Thank you Holly!
Whipped this up as a substitute for canned apple filling for a baked pork chop and stuffing recipe we all love here! I did cut the sugar to 1/4 cup since just a touch of sweetness is preferred for the meal that’s being made, but would keep as-is if using as actual pie.
It’s a keeper and I will definitely be making more during this apple season to stash in the freezer!
hopefully this pie comes out so wonderfully delicious
I just made this to use about 15 green green apples up. It’s a good recipe, but I think that is way too much sugar. I only put 1/3 in and it has completely overpowered the flavour of the apples. I would recommend at least half the amount of sugar.
simply the best ever!!!
Excellent and easy! love having this in the freezer for a quick apple pie. thank you!
About how many cups does it make? You said replaced on can of the canned pie filling but not what size of can. Thanks you
This recipe makes approximately 2 1/2 cups, Holly.
How long are we actually cooking the apples for? I was cooking for so long it started to burn so I turned down the heat and they still weren’t completely soft. I also ended up without a saucy texture :( didn’t work for me.
Hi LeeAnne, In step 3 we cook the apples stirring occasionally for 4-6 minutes or until very slightly softened. Then add the cornstarch slurry in step 4 and continue to cook for a few minutes until apples are soft (not mushy) and filling is thickened. Overcooking a cornstarch slurry will cause it to break and thin out again.
what is the best apples to use ?
We think granny smith apples are the best for pie filling because they have a tart flavor which means the filling isn’t overly sweet. You can also use braeburn, golden delicious, or honeycrisp.
10/10
Apple pie filling/ pie is not my thing and never has been. That was until I tried this recipe. It’s by far the best I’ve ever tried. Guess I like apple pie now. Thanks for sharing.
“a bit of this and a touch of that.” Come on, why can’t you give us any indication of portions?
Hi Eric, the narrative portion is just an overview to prepare you for the recipe. Either click Jump to Recipe at the top, or scroll down to find the actual recipe with full ingredients and instructions.
Can you use flour instead of cornstarch..
I’ve only tried the recipe as written so I can’t say for sure. If you do try flour you will need more flour than you would cornstarch (approximately 3x) … you may have to play with the amount to get the right consistency.
The recipe for apple pie filling ( can you use this for canning instead of freezing?)
It is not recommended to can recipes that are made with cornstarch so I wouldn’t use this recipe for canning.
We really enjoyed this recipe. Thank you for sharing it.
Love this recipe turned out exactly how the picture showed definitely recommend!!!
Can this be frozen for later use?
Yes! This freezes well.
Great apple pie filling and very versatile. I’ve made it a couple times. Today for fun, I chopped up a little dried ginger and threw in a pinch of dried chillies and nutmeg. mmmmm
This worked perfect, my husband is munching apple and cinnamon bakes right now (and hes quiet)
Perfect apple pie filling…I love it
I have 3 bags of frozen apple slices, how can i use these to make your apple pie ?
This recipe will work with frozen apples, do not thaw them first and add ½ tablespoon of extra cornstarch. You will need extra baking time to ensure the filling is hot and bubbly. If the crust begins to brown too much, lightly cover the edges with foil.