Brown Sugar Peach Crumble Pie

It took me 4 different attempts to create a peach pie filling that wasn’t weighed down with flour, but still kept its shape. As well as a peach pie that didn’t turn into a sloshy mess from the butter in the crumble melting down. And one with prominent brown sugar flavor, but not being overly sweet and finding the best peaches: firm, but ripe.

Cut the peaches into chunks, not slices. I feel like thickish slices are fine with a double crust or lattice topped peach pie, but with the buttery crumble on top– this peach crumble pie didn’t look so good. It was all sorts of mushy inside. I went with larger chunks and that seemed to immediately fix the issue. See these pictures? Chunks. Lots of peach chunks, from slightly firm peaches.

I really wanted the brown sugar and cinnamon flavors to come through in this peach pie, so both make an appearance in the crumble topping as well.

Brown Sugar Peach Crumble Pie Recipe



Ingredients:

• Homemade pie crust (recipe makes 2 crusts; you can halve the crust recipe or freeze the 2nd half)
• 7-8 medium peaches, slightly firm (about 7 cups of peach chunks)
• 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup (62g) all-purpose flour OR 1/4 cup instant tapioca1
• 2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

CRUMBLE

• 1/2 cup (100g) packed light or dark brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 3/4 cup (94g) all-purpose flour
• 1/3 (75g) cup unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• optional: 1/2 cup (63g) chopped walnuts

Directions:

1. The crust: Prepare my pie crust recipe through step 5.
2. Make the filling: Peel the peaches then cut into 1-2 inch chunks. You'll need 7 cups. In a large bowl, stir the peach chunks, brown sugar, flour, lemon juice, and cinnamon together until thoroughly combined. Set filling aside as the oven preheats.
3. Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C).
4. Roll out the chilled pie dough: On a floured work surface, roll out one of the discs of chilled dough (if you made the entire pie dough recipe-- you can freeze the other half of the dough at this time). Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls until you have a circle 12 inches in diameter. Carefully place the dough into a 9x2 inch pie dish. Tuck it in with your fingers, making sure it is smooth. Spoon the peach filling into the crust, leaving any liquid behind in the bowl-- don't want all that in the pie. Use a small paring knife to trim excess dough off the edges. Flute the edges.
5. Make the crumble topping: In a medium bowl, combine the brown sugar, cinnamon, and flour. Stir in the butter and walnuts. The crumble topping will be thick and crumbly. Sprinkle over peaches.
6. Place the pie onto a large baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Keeping the pie in the oven, turn the temperature down to 375°F (190°C) and bake for an additional 30-35 minutes. After the first 20 minutes of bake time, I place a pie crust shield on top of the pie to prevent the edges from browning too quickly.
7. Allow the pie to cool for 3 full hours at room temperature before serving. This time allows the filling to thicken up; I actually place it in the refrigerator during this time so the filling is super sturdy. Serve with vanilla ice cream if desired. Cover pie leftovers tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.

Note:

• Make ahead tip/Freezing: Wonderful pie for making ahead! The pie crust dough can also be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Baked pie freezes well for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and allow to come to room temperature before serving. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months, thaw overnight in the refrigerator before using.

Recipe Adapted : Brown Sugar Peach Crumble Pie @ sallysbakingaddiction