The Creamy Ingredient That Can Upgrade Your Apple Pie

When it comes to apple pie, there are two kinds of people. There are those who believe in the power of a classic, unadulterated pie, one that shows off the flavor of the fruit and buttery pastry with just a few traditional ingredients, like cinnamon and sugar. And there are those who welcome upgrades, which could take the form of cheddar cheese (an apple pie topping that divides the nation), or salted caramel. Even herbs such as fennel, thyme, and rosemary have made appearances in apple pie. Sometimes, however, you can't even see the upgrade. For instance, many bakers add sour cream to the pie filling to give the dessert a creamy, tangy flavor.

To learn more about the dairy upgrade, we reached out to Adriano Zumbo, the extraordinary Australian pastry chef who is well-known for his appearances on "MasterChef Australia," his cookbooks, and the popular television shows he hosts, like "Sugar Rush" (one of the Netflix cooking shows you should watch right now) and "Zumbo's Just Desserts." As to the sour cream upgrade in apple pie, Zumbo told The Takeout: "The main reason to add sour cream into your pie filling is to add creaminess and extra lightness from the tang of the sour cream; it would also make the apples softer faster by creating more moisture and steam during baking." 

If you love "the tangy creamy profile of your apples then this is a great idea," he explained, as "with the buttery crumbly flake of the pie crust, [the sour cream] can be a great balance." Zumbo, who creates incredible, complicated pastries and desserts, is actually partial to classic desserts himself, telling The Best Address that his favorite baked goods include chocolate cake, cheesecake, and "an honest slice of apple pie."

According to pastry chef Adriano Zumbo, you don't need to add a huge amount of sour cream to your apple pie for it to make a flavor and texture difference. "If I was adding sour cream to a pie, I would add about 100 to 150 grams of sour cream per pie," he told us — an amount equivalent to roughly ½ to ¾ cup of the dairy product. 

Zumbo is all about giving apple pie an upgrade to make it more luscious and rich, but he doesn't always turn to sour cream. "My go-to technique that I prefer to give a next level richness and lush feel is to make a reduced apple butter, and add extra good quality butter in the end with an immersion blender, then fold through your cut apples to fill the pie," he said. "This will give a smooth, luscious, unctuous experience and rounded flavor to the pie."

While sour cream and apple butter are great choices for upgrading your apple pie, they certainly aren't your only choices if you want to add some richness. A pour of heavy cream in the filling will give you similar results, without the extra tang. Of course, I've been known to pour a glug of heavy cream over my slice of warmed up apple pie. You could say it's a nod to à la mode style, just without the frozen texture and sugar of ice cream.