by Holly
I love apple pie and I love cheesecake so I thought… why not? :) I’ve seen photos of upside down pies before … it looked pretty cool and I thought it would be fun to try! The best part was.. knowing I was going to be flipping this bad boy upside down, it didn’t matter what the top of my pie looked like. I didn’t have to worry about being all fancy with it!
When you’re ready to flip your pie upside down, use a butter knife and make sure the edges are loose and not sticky and then…. just GO FOR IT. Don’t go slow, don’t be scared, just do it FLIP and it will come out all smooth and pretty.
I used a cheesecake recipe adapted from my mini cheesecakes and poured it into a pie crust. I then topped it with sugared apples and popped it in the oven. This bakes up to be one of the best pies or cheesecakes you’ll ever have! I mean EVER… this was the one dessert that my kids literally went crazy for!
I’ve found the crust bakes up the most flaky and crispy in a ceramic pie dish. I store this pie uncovered in the refrigerator. If you have any leftovers, cover only the cut portion of the pie with plastic wrap but leave the crust uncovered, this keeps it from getting soggy.
Items You’ll Need for This Recipe:
* ceramic pie plate (or metal) * cream cheese * mixer *
UPSIDE DOWN CHEESECAKE APPLE PIE!
Ingredients
- Prepared pie crusts for a double crust pie such as Pillsbury or your favorite pie crust recipe
- 2 x 8 oz cream cheese softened
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 eggs
- 6 large apples peeled and thinly sliced (about 1/8″)
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- caramel sauce for serving optional
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Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a pie pan with the bottom pie crust.
- With mixer on high, combine cream cheese, 1/2 cup sugar and vanilla until fluffy. Add in eggs and mix until combined. Pour cream cheese mixture into the pie crust.
- In large bowl, combine apples, lemon juice, 1/2 cup sugar, flour and cinnamon. Gently place apples on top of cream cheese mixture.
- Top apples with second pie crust turning the crust inwards to bake. Cut a few small slits into the top of the pie.
- Line a pan with parchment paper and place the pie on the pan. Cover loosely with a piece of foil and bake 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake an additional 30 minutes or until the apples feel soft when a knife is inserted. Remove from the oven and cool 10 minutes.
- Place a large plate over the top of the pie and flip it upside down releasing the pie onto the plate. Cool 1 hour on the countertop and then refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. Serve cold with caramel sauce.
(Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.)
More Recipes You’ll Love
* Apple Pie Tacos * Apple Pie Cupcakes * Overnight Apple Pie French Toast Casserole *
Note: Photography is a work in progress and something I have been diligently working on! This recipe is one I’ve made several times and the photos have been updated. Below is the original (*gasp*) photo.
Why turn it upside down?
Mostly for appearance but it’s delicious right side up too! ;)
Going to try this but wondering how far you turn under the top crust so apples won’t come running out. Wish I could see the side of the upside down apple cheesecake pie.
Please let me know,
Sharon
I turn the crust about 1/2″ to 3/4″, just enough to seal it.
I am going to make this as a birthday cake for a friend. I normally only make one apple pie a year….an upside down caramel pecan apple pie at thanksgiving. I only make one because i can (and do) easily overindulge! This may be the new “only” apple pie i make from now on! I might add a layer of pecans and brown sugar under the first crust to get my favorite nuts in there….because, hey, I’m a Texan!
I am so glad you liked it Marla, let me know how the birthday goes!
I am asking for a friend. Can Stivia be substituted for the Sugar, for pre-diabetic?
Can you substitute Stivia for the Sugar, for Diabetic?
I haven’t tried it with Stevia, please let us know how it goes if you try it!
Just made this for father’s day/my husband’s birthday tomorrow. Afraid to flip it. After 10 minutes of cooling, the pan was still quite hot and after flipping it the pie wouldn’t “release”. So I flipped it back and am leaving it alone! We’ll eat it right side up and since it all goes goes down the same way anyway I think it’ll be devoured, I mean enjoyed, by all! Maybe I’ll try to flip each slice I serve onto the individual plate and then place the toppings. Lol. Thanks!
I hope it was delicious.
Just made this cheesecake. I tweaked it a tad bit tho. I made a traditional cheesecake and used a springform pan. I lined the bottom with parchment paper and than the pie crust. Put the cheesecake batter in the pan and topped with apple pie filling and topped that with pie crust. baked about 50 minutes or so and then turned the oven off and left the cake in until oven cooled off. Once the cake was cooled down, I flipped the cake and put into fridge. Tomorrow I will be serving it for a birthday cake. We’ll see how well it turned out. I plan on plating it with vanilla bean ice cream and a bit of carmel drizzle. Thanks for such an innovative recipe.
I hope it was a huge hit Alice!
Sounds delicious and I will make soon.
Let us know when you do!
Cheesecake pie?! What a brilliant idea. Can’t wait to take this for a spin!
Made this today for Christmas Eve as a change of pace this year….of course my biggest worry was flipping it upside down,just followed your great directions and no problem…it’s sitting uncovered in my Xtra frig looking real good….
LOL! The flipping part is scary! :) So glad it worked out for you! Merry Christmas to you and your family!
I just made this dessert for coworkers as a dry run for a work bake-off. It received GREAT reviews. I will definitely be entering this dessert in the contest!!
One question – do you have any tips for the crust not cracking? After I flipped the cheesecake pie out of the dish it cracked in the center. I’ve always had a problem with my cheesecake cracking on top. HELP me!! My competitive instints are kicking in. I need to win – hahaha!
I’m so glad they enjoyed it! I haven’t had a problem with the crust cracking on mine so I can’t say for sure why yours cracked. I’d suggest cooling it slowly, hopefully your next one stays in tact. Good luck with the bake-off! :)
Attempting to make this right now!! Wish me luck!! Bringing to a family Thanksgiving dinner tOmorrow.
Enjoy! Happy Thanksgiving Sarah!
Well, I just made this….. 6 apples were way too much – must have picked out some heifers! LOL It’s in the refrigerator right now, but the pie plate is still on top because ITS STUCK ON! I am so stressed. I flipped and tried to remove it and separated the whole pie. Grrrrr. Placed it back on (back together) and hoping it will pop off after it’s been in the refrigerator for a while. If not – I will TRY AGAIN NEXT TIME! LOL
Oh no, that’s disappointing. If you happen to get a small tear in the crust the juices can seep under and cause sticking. The good news is that this recipe tastes delicious right side up too! ;)
If it makes you feel better, my crust split as well when I made this last night. I also think that my 6 apples were too many. All in all, though, the pie was amazing—though I think the apples could have used a little more sugar. :)
So are there two crusts?
Yes, one on the top and one on the bottom.
Oh my this looks fabulous! And so much fun to make!!
This sounded so good but I am grain-free and sugar-free. So, I made this in a springform pan. I took raw nuts (walnuts, pecans, and almond) and blended them into a coarse meal, added butter and honey till it made a sticky crumbly ball. I pressed half of it into the bottom and sides of the pan and saved the rest to crumble over the top. I used a Tablespoon of maple syrup in the cream cheese filling (when you are typically sugar-free you don’t need as much sweetener!) and 1/2 cup of maple syrup and tapioca starch in with the apples. Otherwise I followed the recipe. It was messier, I admit, but completely awesome. Maybe this will help someone else. Thank you for the idea!
I love the delicious yet simple recipes!
Thank you Marie!
Hi Holly! Thanks for the awesome recipe :) I have one question regarding step 1. “Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a pie pan with the bottom pie crust.” Should the pie panned be greased or ungreased? Will the pie crust only release when flipped over at the end if the pan is greased?
The pie pan is ungreased. As long as it isn’t torn the crust should release easily!
Does it matter what kind of apples you use also I have some sliced apples in the freezer do you think they will work?
I usually use granny smith as they tend to hold up well. As long as your apples aren’t too soft they should work just fine!
Have you by any chance tried this in a crockpot? It gets SO hot here during the summer that I live by them but I like variation of desserts in the summer other than ice cream. Just curious to know if this would work. May have to try it! :D
I haven’t tried it in a crock pot however I don’t think the crust will crisp enough. If you do try it I’d love to hear how it works out for you.
Would this turn out using a blueberry pie filling instead of apple?
I haven’t tried it but I think it would work! I am going to put it on my list of things I need to make because that sounds like it’d be DELICIOUS!!!
Could you use a springform pan instead of a pie pan?
I have only made this recipe as written. If you do try it, I’d love to hear how it works out for you!
Couldn’t wait to make this for Christmas!! And boy am I glad I did. It came out so delicious. I have a photo I wanted to share, but it wouldn’t let me… Wonderful recipe
I am making this as we speak. I did everything exactly to your recipe. My problem is when I flipped it the bottom crust in the middle did not cook at all. Has this happened to anyone else? It could be my oven. I flipped it back into the pan & put it back into the oven. hopefully it will cook. This recipe sounds amazing &hoping it turns out.
Mine cooked completely. Hopefully cooking it longer will help. Please let us know how it works for you.
This looks so good! I have a question though as the directions are a little confusing. You only bake the cheesecake for one hour – total? I’ve never baked a cheesecake for that short of a time period before so I just want to double check. 2nd question : when you use the plate to flip it do you leave it in the pan to cool for 10 mins? Won’t it all leak out since the cheesecake hasn’t set up yet? I’m so confused sorry!!
The cheesecake bakes and sets up perfectly within the hour. This is not a thick layer of cheesecake, it only fills the pie shell about half way.
Looks like I’m headed to the store for pie crusts since I’m pie crust challenged! I can’t wait to try this!
I am confused on the difference in sugar and white sugar. You call for 1/2 cup of each so I just feel silly! I want to make this tonight!
They are the same. Thank you for your comment, I’ve updated the post. 1/2 cup sugar goes into the cheesecake and 1/2 cup sugar goes into the apple mixture.
oh makes sense thanks so much!
You’re welcome! Enjoy your pie! :)
ok this may sound like a dumb question but you say turn crust inward?? can you help me to understand
Great question! Normally when you bake a pie the crust sticks out along the edge on the top (it’s the edge that sometimes ruffled). I just fold that part in so there is no edge sticking out.
I absolutely love this recipe! So much so I added it to my ultimate apple recipe roundup…I hope you will come by and take a look! Have a great week xo
whats the difference in sugar and white sugar
They are the same.
I noticed that you did not say what size pie tin to use and also does not say what is on the top of the pie that is pictured. Is it whip cream? Ice cream? Please let me know because I plan on making this for my husband on Friday….. Looks yummy . Thank you
This recipe uses a standard 9″ pie tin. You can top it with whatever you like… we like ice cream and caramel but whipped cream would be delicious too!
Thank you very much!
Looks great! I don’t quite understand #5 in the directions..is the parchment
lined pan on top of the pie,or underneath the original pie pan??
Thanks so much!
It’s under the original pie pan, it just helps catch drips.
Thanks so much! That’s what I thought..gonna make this soon!
You’re welcome! :)
This is simply amazing. Shared on FB today and pinning!
Thank you for sharing!! :)
Hello! Can you substitute the apples with apple pie filling?
I’m pretty sure that would work although I haven’t tried it. I’d love to hear how it works for you if you try it out!
I am making this for my husband for Father’s Day, tonight!! I will have to let you all know how it turns out. :)
I saw this recipe, and needed to try it out. It looks really good, and really want to make it when I can. I know I will love it. The picture of it, just let’s you know how good it will be.
Can not wait to fix these new recipes!! They all sound delicious!!! Love to cook for my family!!!
I’m unsure what you mean by turn the crust inwards to bake. The recipe sounds divine!
Usually when you make pie you would fold the edges outward to line the rim of the pie pan (this is the part you would usually cover with foil too). Instead, just fold it inward so you don’t have a ‘rim’ of crust. Hopefully that helps. :)
JUST Gorgeous looking!!!! YUM!!!!
Thank you Danielle!
Dear Holly, what a magnificent treat! This looks marvelous. xo, Catherine
Your photography is looks AMAZING! You make this pie/cheesecake look drool-worthy :) Putting this on my list of must try recipes!!
Aww thanks so much Beth!!
This looks so good. I wish I could have a piece.
Only one word for this…wow!!!!! My kind of dessert right here. Pinned and stumbled!
Thank you Julie!
I’m so glad I saw this on instagram- It looks even more delectable on here!
Thank you Arman! This was so amazing!
I LOVE your photos of this decadent delight! I’ll be dreaming of this tonight <3
Looks so good
Has anyone made up this pie and froze it to bake at a later date? Thinking of making a few of these for the holidays.
omg all your recipes are super lush but this one (i can’t actually say what i want to actually say cos its x-rated) except mmmmmmmmm x
:) Thank you Teresa!!
Omg this seem like its gonna be great
Looks and sounds yummy! The picture doesn’t show the “bottom” crust. I understand that the “top” crust becomes the bottom crust after turning out. (why do I have to notice these things?) Thanks so much! Wanda
That’s right! :)
My husband is going to love this. Thanks for sharing!