Recipe and tips for National Pie Day: How to make perfect apple pie filling and more

Happy National Pie Day! Not to be confused with the Pi Day that celebrates the mathematical constant's string of numbers, this winter is the perfect time to add some warmth to your kitchen with a freshly baked, homemade pie.

The phrase "easy as pie" may feel intimidating to non-bakers, but whether your questions and concerns lie with the crust or the filling, "Good Morning America" has a handful of chefs at the ready with answers.

National Pie Day Recipes and Tips

Earlier this fall, in tandem with peak apple picking season, New York Times Cooking supervising producer Vaughn Vreeland joined "GMA" offering his best pie making tips and shared a recipe from cookbook author Erin Jeanne McDowell.

Vreeland suggested other ways to utilize the seasonal stewed filling that goes beyond the typical pie crust.

Check out the full recipe from New York Times Cooking below.

Easy apple pie filling

Ingredients

Yield: 6 cups (enough for 1 9-inch pie)

4 tablespoons or 55 grams unsalted butter (½ stick)

6 to 8 medium apples, such as Honeycrisp, Granny Smith or Gala, peeled, cored and cut into ½-inch dice (about 6½ cups/1 kilogram)

2 tablespoons lemon juice (from 1 lemon)

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup/220 grams light or dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt

1/2 cup/100 grams granulated sugar

1/3 cup/45 grams all-purpose flour

Directions

In a medium pot, melt butter over medium heat. Add apples, tossing to coat in the butter. Add lemon juice, vanilla, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and salt and stir to combine. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the sugar dissolves and the apples start to soften, 5 to 6 minutes.

In a small bowl, whisk together granulated sugar and flour. Add to the pot and stir well to combine. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens, 2 to 3 minutes.

Let the filling cool completely before using. (You can speed this process up by spreading it into an even layer on a baking sheet.) The filling will keep, refrigerated, for up to three days.

Recipe by Erin Jeanne McDowell reprinted with permission courtesy of New York Times Cooking.

Sweet and savory pie recipes

Brooklyn-based home baker-turned cookbook author, Stacey Mei Yan Fong, wrote all about pies in America and previously shared three delicious recipes with "GMA."

Check out her full recipes here for three sweet takes on peach, pecan and apple pie, plus one savory mashed potato pie.

An earlier version of this story was originally published on Oct. 21, 2023.