This Clove-Spiced Apple Pie offers a bright, aromatic twist on classic apple pie-using ground cloves as the star spice instead of cinnamon. The filling is made with sliced apples, lemon juice, and a mix of clove, nutmeg, sugar, flour, , and lemon zest. It bakes in a homemade crust to golden perfection. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream or classic custard.
I'm not going to lie I was skeptical of an apple pie with no cinnamon, it just didn't sound right? But I do like apples and cloves. Well, I am happy to say I was pleasantly surprised. The pie was fabulous, the apples were cooked to perfection not crunchy but not soggy. And the crust was spectacular. I really enjoyed the flavor the Clove spice brought through. The pie was sweet but not overly sweet. I enjoy the pie with good ol' vanilla ice cream or Birds Custard. Especially during the winter season I love a slice of pie with ice cream.
Cloves, Apples & Zest - The Flavor Trio
- Pie Crust (flour, salt, cold butter, water): A sturdy base that crisps in the oven without collapsing. Check out my super flaky pie crust recipe or this all butter golcen pie crust recipe.
- Apple Filling (apples, lemon juice, brown sugar, granulated sugar, flour, ground cloves, nutmeg, lemon zest): Cloves and nutmeg lend warm, aromatic depth; lemon keeps flavors bright and prevents browning.
- Egg Wash (egg + milk + sugar): Gives the top crust a golden sheen and helps it brown beautifully
Prep the Crust, Fill with Spiced Apples, Bake
I love to serve this pie either warmed up with ice cream or Bird's Custard!
For another warm and spicy dessert try my Gingerbread Bunt Cake Recipe, next!
★★★★★ Please let me know if you make this recipe by leaving a star rating and comment below!
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Aromatic Clove Apple Pie
This Clove-Spiced Apple Pie offers a bright, aromatic twist on classic apple pie-using ground cloves as the star spice instead of cinnamon. The filling is made with sliced apples, lemon juice, and a mix of clove, nutmeg, sugar, flour, , and lemon zest. It bakes in a homemade crust to golden perfection. Serve it warm with vanilla ice cream or classic custard.
- Total Time: 1 hour 10 mins
- Yield: 8 1x
Ingredients
Crust
- 14 oz All-Purpose Flour
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 7oz (1 ¾ stick) Unsalted Butter, cold
- 14 Teaspoons Ice Cold Water
Apple Filling
- 2 lb Cooking Apples (I prefer Granny Smith/ Bramley Apples)
- 2 Teaspoons lemon juice
- 75 grams (scant ½ cup) Brown Sugar
- 75 grams (scant ½ cup) Granulated Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
- ½Teaspoon Ground Cloves
- ¼ Teaspoon Ground Nutmeg
- 1 Teaspoon Lemon Zest
- 1 Large Egg
- Splash of milk
Instructions
Crust
- Sift flour and salt together. Add cubed cold butter. Use a pastry blender, your hands or two knives to cut the butter into the flour. This will take some time.
- Once the mixture resembles crumbs add your COLD water. I add it in a little bit at a time. Mix with a round edge knife until the mixture begins to clump together then form into a ball. Wrap lightly in parchment paper and set in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. (If chilling overnight let dough sit at room temp for 30 minutes before rolling out)
- Cut ⅔ of the dough off the ball and roll out on a floured surface. Use a floured rolling pin and roll the dough evenly to about a ⅛ of an inch. Place in pie dish.
- Preheat oven to 425F
Apple Filling
- Peel and cut your apples into medium-sized slices, just under a ½ inch thick. Splash some lemon juice on top of the apples to prevent them from turning brown.
- In a medium-sized bowl combine sugar, flour, cloves, nutmeg, lemon zest, and lemon juice. Set aside.
- Place half of your apples inside the pie and sprinkle half of the sugar mixture on top. Place remaining apples on top and the rest of the sugar mixture.
- Roll out remaining ⅓ of dough for the top of the pie. Make sure to cut some sort of design or just a hole in the dough so the pie has room to breathe.
- Seal the top and bottom pie crust with whatever design you like.
- In a cup mix together an egg, splash or two of milk and a tablespoon of sugar. Using a pastry brush cover the pie crust with it.
- Bake for 45-55 minutes or until the pie is golden brown and the apple filling is bubbling. You can use an instant-read thermometer to check that the juices have cooked properly, the pie filling should be 175F internally.
Notes
Recipe adapted from my mothers old Good House Keeping Cookbook
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 55 mins
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Schnee Wolfe says
OK, well the first comment I saw was from Sally, at Sally's Baking Addiction, and that's certification enough for me...
I have been looking for a recipe for apple pie with cloves since the 1970's after I broke up with my then fiance'... her mother was a War Bride from England, and made the most spectacular apple pie, with cloves... and no way was her daughter going to give it to moi....
Going to save this and give it a try this month...
Thx
Schnee...
Carol says
My mum always made her apple pie with cloves,she died17 years ago and I still miss her and her apple pies. I don't like apple pie with cinnamon and would rather not ever eat apple pie at all.So,I was delighted when I found your recipe.I will be making it in the next day or so.One thing,I couldn't find the temperature to bake it,only how long. Thanks Carol
Wendy says
I always make my apple pies with Bramley apples - how lovely to see you are using them too! I always use to use cloves all the time when I was in the UK, but since being in Canada, I have used more cinnamon. However, I prefer cloves. Thank you for this lovely recipe, Elizabeth.
Elizabeth Waterson says
Thanks so much. Wendy!! Ground cloves is such an underrated spice! So perfect with apples, glad you agree too 🙂 Take care. XX Liz
Lynne says
Just hot out of the oven. I love this recipe. The tip about testing the apple cooked temperature was great for me. I ended up leaving in oven for another 10 minutes but with it covered with foil just to ensure cooked and juicy. The apple aroma started to waft through the kitchen so knew it was cooked perfectly (have had a few temperature issues so this helped). Thanks so much
Carol says
This is the way my mom always made hers,always love it.My husband preferences was with cinnamon,so for 54 years I haven’t eaten any apple pie.He passed away last year (and I never got my mom’s recipe) now I’m loving apple pie once more.Thankyou.Its not that I don’t like cinnamon,just not in apple pie.Thankyou from the bottom of my heart
Elizabeth Waterson says
Hi Carol, thank you so much for this lovely review and for sharing your story with me. It means so much to me. I hope you have a lovely day. XX Liz
Clare says
i’ve been making this recipe for years now and every holiday season my family looks forward to this pie. i use the pie crust recipe for any pie i make now as well; it’s delicious!
Elizabeth Waterson says
Thank you so much for the 5-star review Clare. It makes me so happy to read you have been enjoying this for years now!! Take care. XX Liz