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I made an apple pie, but the crust was thick and not crispy. Why? What should I do to fix it?

For the crust, I used:

  • 1 cup of flour
  • Butter
  • 1 egg
  • 1/4 cup of sugar
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon of salt

As for the apples:

  • 2 apples sliced to small cubes (without the apples cover)
  • 2 tablespoon of sugar
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon

Thanks in advance.

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    Did you blind bake the crust? If you want it crispy, that's what you should do. As for thickness, it's as thick as you roll it. 250g flour + 125 g butter is enough for a 28 cm round pan.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Apr 29, 2011 at 12:34
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    If you are new to pie baking, there is lots you can learn. Find some good guide, e.g. allrecipes.com/howto/perfect-pie-crusts/detail.aspx, watch their videos if you need it. As for the flour, in Europe you should take the flour with the least share of bran. In the USA, try one with lowered protein.
    – rumtscho ♦
    Apr 29, 2011 at 13:19
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    Assuming the apple pie is a true pie and not a tart, and is thus covered, you shouldn't (indeed can't) blind bake the crust.
    – ElendilTheTall
    Apr 29, 2011 at 13:25
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    @ElendilTheTall In the US, "tarts" are often (confusingly) referred to as "pies", e.g., chocolate mousse pie, lemon merengue pie, and key lime pie.
    – ESultanik
    Apr 29, 2011 at 13:42
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    @Esultanik. I know; when I think of apple pie I think of a closed pie (I don't think I'm alone in that), whereas if I think of an apple tart I think of an open top, tartes au pommes style.
    – ElendilTheTall
    Apr 29, 2011 at 14:45

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Gluten is what makes doughs chewy, and gluten is associated with high protein flour, so you should try and get low protein ("soft") flour. Also, the colder your fat (i.e., butter) the flakier and crispier your crust will be. You also may want to substitute some of the butter for lard or shortening; the lack of water in the lard will also help the crust become crispy and avoid gluten formation associated with hydration of the flour. Note that you cannot substitute lard/shortening for butter in an equal ratio; you should try and find a recipe that specifically calls for it to get the ratio correct. As rumtscho noted, you can also blind bake the crust to start its cooking process (but as ElendilTheTall warns, you may not be able to call it a "pie" after that!). Finally, it may be the case that your pie filling is too moist and therefore makes the interior of the crust very soggy. I've found that almost all good apple pie recipes call for pre-cooking the apples to remove a lot of their moisture before putting them in the crust.

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