Apricot Pie

Ingredients

• 1 package (2 crusts) refrigerated pie dough (store-bought or homemade), or a double batch of homemade dough
• 6 cups pitted, sliced fresh apricots
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 3 tbsp cornstarch
• 1/4 tsp almond extract
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 egg, beaten (for egg wash)
• 1 tbsp coarse sugar, for sprinkling

Method

1. Preheat oven to 400°F (204°C). Fit one crust into a 9-inch pie dish.
2. In a large bowl, gently toss the pitted, sliced fresh apricots with the sugar, thickener, spice, lemon juice, and salt until evenly coated.
3. Pour the filling into the crust and dot with the butter pieces.
4. Top with the second crust, forming a lattice top, or cut several vents in a full top crust. Crimp the edges to seal, then brush the top with the beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
5. Bake for 45–55 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the filling is bubbling through the vents.
6. Cool on a wire rack at least 2 hours before slicing so the filling has time to set.

The Tale of Apricot Pie

Story updated September 18, 2026

Apricots trace back to China and were long cultivated across the Mediterranean and Middle East before reaching the Americas. An early attempt to grow them in colonial Virginia didn't take, and it wasn't until Spanish missionaries planted apricot trees in California mission gardens in the late 1700s that the fruit found a climate it could thrive in. California remains the center of American apricot production to this day, and apricot pie followed the fruit's westward path, becoming most closely associated with California growers and, later, with Armenian immigrant communities who settled in the state's Central Valley and brought their own long tradition of cooking with apricots. Because fresh apricots have a short season and bruise easily, apricot pie never became as widespread or iconic as apple or peach pie; it has instead remained a regional specialty tied to the orchards that could actually grow the fruit well, with home bakers often relying on dried or canned apricots outside the brief summer harvest.