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This apple pie for one is a classic single serving apple pie with a buttery homemade crust and tender cinnamon apples baked on top. Perfectly portioned and easy to make, this mini apple pie recipe gives you all the flavor of a traditional pie in a small batch dessert.
Featured Comment
“This apple pie was exceptional and very easy to make…”
– Cheryl
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Perfectly Portioned: This apple pie for one is the ideal size, satisfying without extra leftovers.
- Quick & Easy: With simple ingredients and clear steps, this mini apple pie is ready fast.
- Flaky Homemade Crust: Cold butter and flour create a golden, tender crust that tastes just like a classic homemade apple pie.
- Warm Spiced Filling: Thinly sliced apples with cinnamon and sugar bake into a soft, sweet filling that captures the best of apple pie flavor.
- Versatile Crust Options: Use a from-scratch crust, refrigerated pie dough, or even a graham cracker crust for convenience.
What I love most about this small apple pie is how it feels like a true homemade dessert made just for you.
The apples bake right on top of the buttery crust, turning soft and lightly spiced as they caramelize in the oven. It’s simple to make, yet tastes like something special, and that’s why I think you’ll want to come back to this recipe again and again.
This single serving apple pie is made with just one apple. If you love single-apple recipes, be sure to check out our single serving apple cobbler, easy apple crisp for one, mini apple Dutch baby, and our small apple galette recipe!
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this individual apple pie recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
Crust
- All-purpose flour: The base for your flaky, tender crust.
- Granulated sugar: Adds a little sweetness to the crust.
- Salt: Enhances flavor in both crust and filling.
- Cold butter: Gives richness and flakiness to the crust.
- Ice Water: Helps dough come together, keeps crust from becoming tough.
Filling
- 1 small apple, peeled & cored: Choose a crisp variety like Gala, Honeycrisp, or Granny Smith. Extra apples? Use them in apple pie oatmeal or small batch baked apples.
- Granulated sugar: Sweetens the fruit filling.
- Ground cinnamon: A warm, classic apple pie spice.
- Lemon juice: Balances sweetness and prevents browning.
Crust Shortcuts and Alternatives
If making your own crust feels like too much work, try one of these:
- Use a store-bought refrigerated pie crust or a preformed mini pie shell.
- Use a small graham cracker crust or small shortbread crust for a quicker, different texture.
How To Make An Apple Pie For One
See the recipe box below for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions.
- Make the Filling: In a small bowl, toss the apple pieces with sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice. Set aside.
- Make the Dough: In another bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a fork until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs. Add ice water, a little at a time, until the dough holds together.
- Roll the Dough: On a lightly floured surface, shape the dough into a ball and roll it into a circle large enough to fit your baking dish.
- Prepare the Crust: Lightly grease a 5-inch tart pan or 10-ounce ramekin. Press the dough into the dish and trim the edges. Prick the bottom with a fork.
- Fill the Pie: Spoon the apple mixture into the crust. Dot with a few small pieces of butter.
- Bake: Place on the center rack of a preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the apples are tender.
- Cool and Serve: Let the pie cool slightly before serving.
Enjoy as-is or with homemade caramel sauce or a single serving of vanilla ice cream.
Expert Tips
- Keep it cold: Use chilled butter and ice water for a light, flaky crust.
- Slice thin: Cut the apple into thin slices or small pieces so it cooks evenly.
- Don’t overmix: Stop mixing the dough as soon as it comes together to avoid a tough crust.
- Bake smart: Place your tart pan or ramekin on a baking sheet to catch any bubbling juices.
Frequently Asked Questions
Crisp apples like Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, or Gala work best. They hold their shape while baking.
Absolutely. A circle cut from a refrigerated pie crust works perfectly and makes this recipe even quicker.
Yes. You can prepare the crust and apple mixture up to a day in advance, then assemble and bake when ready to serve.
Peeling is recommended for the best texture, but you can leave the peel on if you prefer a more rustic pie.
If you happen to have leftovers, cover and store the pie in the refrigerator for up to two days.
Absolutely! You can double the ingredients and use two 10-ounce ramekins or tart pans to make two mini apple pies. Perfect if you’re serving a guest!
More Single Serving Pie Recipes
Looking for more pie recipes for one? Try these:
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this small apple pie recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
RELATED: Comfort Food Recipes For One
If you’ve tried this single serve apple pie or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
Also, if you take a picture please tag us on Instagram (@onedishkitchen) we’d love to see it!
Apple Pie For One
Equipment
- 10-ounce ramekin or use a 5-inch tart pan
Ingredients
For the Apple Filling
- 1 medium apple -peeled, cored, and chopped
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
For the Crust
- 2 ½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon sugar
- pinch salt
- 1 tablespoon cold salted butter -plus 1 additional tablespoon butter, chopped to dot on top of apples
- 1 teaspoon ice water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).
Make the Apple Filling
- In a small bowl, toss the chopped apples with sugar, cinnamon, and lemon juice. Set aside.
Make the Crust
- In another bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter with a fork until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs.
- Add ice water, a little at a time, until the dough holds together.
- On a lightly floured surface, shape the dough into a ball and roll it into a circle large enough to fit your baking dish.
- Lightly grease a 5-inch tart pan or 10-ounce ramekin. Press the dough into the dish and trim the edges. Prick the bottom with a fork.
- Spoon the apple mixture into the crust. Dot with a few small pieces of butter.
- Place on the center rack of a preheated oven and bake for 20 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the apples are tender.
- Let the pie cool slightly before serving.
Notes
- Keep it cold: Use chilled butter and ice water for a light, flaky crust.
- Slice thin: Cut the apple into thin slices or small pieces so it cooks evenly.
- Don’t overmix: Stop mixing the dough as soon as it comes together to avoid a tough crust.
- Bake smart: Place your tart pan or ramekin on a baking sheet to catch any bubbling juices.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
I cook so many of your recipes since there is just myself and my son, who doesn’t like apple pie, but asked for more of this one. My only thing is the apples weren’t quite as tender as I would have liked, but I think its due to the size ramiken we used. I love pie crust, so I doubled the crust and we attempted a lattice top, it was a little lop sided, but we loved it.
Love your recipes but some didn’t turn out as well as could because wrong size bake dish.
Where do you find the 5”x5” square bakeware. I’ve looked everywhere. Thank you.
Hi Michele, The baking dish you use for our recipes is critical to the success of the dish. Since many people have had trouble finding the dishes, we are now selling the 5×5 inch baking dishes and the 5×7 inch baking dishes on the store page of our website – https://store.onedishkitchen.com/