Amish Vanilla Crumb Pie is a unique and old-fashioned Pennsylvania Dutch dessert made with a gooey brown sugar and vanilla filling (similar to a caramel sauce) that is topped with a thick layer of buttery crumbs.
You might think this pie sounds a bit strange, but trust me, it is quite delicious! (It's similar to shoofly pie but has a different flavor profile.) I love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream, but it's also great on its own, or with a cup of coffee or tea.
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Why You'll Love This Amish Vanilla Crumb Pie
- Gooey brown sugar filling with rich vanilla-caramel flavor
- Buttery crumb topping that bakes slightly crisp
- Simple pantry ingredients
- Similar to shoofly pie, but shoofly pie has a deep molasses flavor, while Amish vanilla crumb pie is milder and flavored mainly with vanilla.
Ingredients
Bottom Part:
- Brown Sugar provides sweetness and adds a rich, caramel-like flavor to the filling.
- All-Purpose Flour acts as a thickening agent to give the pie structure.
- Karo, King Syrup, or Light Molasses add sweetness and rich flavor. (Choosing Karo syrup will result in a mildly sweet and neutral-flavored pie while using molasses will create a richer, more complex taste with hints of bitterness.)
- Egg helps bind the ingredients together and adds richness and structure to the filling.
- Water provides moisture and helps to dissolve and distribute the other ingredients evenly.
- Vanilla Extract adds flavor and aroma, enhancing the overall taste of the filling with its sweet, floral notes.
Top Part:
- All-Purpose Flour forms the base of the crumbly topping and provides structure.
- Brown Sugar adds sweetness and a subtle caramel flavor.
- Baking Soda and Baking Powder help create a slightly airy and tender texture by producing small pockets of carbon dioxide gas when exposed to heat, resulting in a lighter crumb. Additionally, they aid in browning and add a subtle lift to the topping, giving a more delicate and enjoyable texture.
- Salt enhances the flavor and balances the sweetness by providing a contrast.
- Butter, Shortening, or Lard adds fat to the topping, which helps create a crumbly texture when combined with the flour and sugar. It also contributes to the richness and flavor. (Using butter will add rich flavor and a slightly crispy texture while shortening or lard will create a lighter, crisper topping with a more neutral or savory taste.)
The bottom part forms a thick, gooey filling, while the top part creates a crumbly, slightly crispy topping.
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How to Make Vanilla Pie
First, you'll need a 9" unbaked pie crust. So you can either buy one at the supermarket or make your own with my flaky pie crust recipe. I always make my crusts because it's easy, and I'm old-fashioned. 😉 And I usually bake several pies while I'm at it anyway.
You will need to cook the filling for the vanilla pie. And in this recipe, you can use Karo, King syrup, or molasses. (I typically use Karo syrup, but some Amish recipes use molasses. However, molasses will give it a slightly different flavor.)
The filling comes together quickly and only takes a few minutes to cook.
- In a medium saucepan, mix the brown sugar and flour.
- Add the syrup, egg, and water. Whisk to combine and cook over medium heat, bringing it to a rolling boil.
- Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Set aside to cool while you prepare the top part.
The sauce will seem thin when it's done cooking, but it gets thickened with baking.
Make the crumb topping by cutting the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender to create fine crumbs, or you can melt the butter and mix it in.
Baking Pies
Place one of your oven racks just below the middle of the oven, and bake your pie in a preheated 375°F oven for about 45 minutes or until the filling is set and the crumbs are lightly browned.
Baking pies in the lower half of the oven helps the bottom crust bake properly without the top becoming too dark.
How to Store Vanilla Crumb Pie
Vanilla crumb pie can be stored at room temperature for a couple of days. But if you're keeping it any longer than that, it needs to be refrigerated.
Pies are always the best when eaten within three days. Although, they still taste good for up to a week.
I also don't like to tightly cover pies, because the crust will get soggy quickly when covered tightly. So I loosely cover most of my pies by draping a flour sack tea towel over the top.
You can also place a piece of plastic wrap over the filling of the pie and leave the crust edge uncovered to keep it flaky.
Amish Pies
It is no secret that Amish women bake lots of delicious pies. At least the majority of them seem to.
Homemade pie from scratch is not hard to make. It may feel intimidating if you're new to baking pies, and it can be a bit time-consuming. But it is not difficult.
As with anything, practice makes perfect. So the more often you bake pies, the better you'll get at it. This is why Amish women are typically good at making pies because they do it a lot.
There are so many delicious kinds of pie that you can make, and the Amish have recipes for a few unique flavors. But I have never tasted any that I didn't like.
If you love old-fashioned Amish desserts, this Amish recipe for vanilla crumb pie is one you'll want to bake again and again. If you try it, I'd truly appreciate a comment and star rating below! Thank you!
📖 Recipe Card
Amish Vanilla Crumb Pie Recipe
Ingredients
Bottom Part:
- ½ c. brown sugar
- 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- ½ c. Karo, King syrup, or light molasses
- 1 large egg
- 1 c. water
- 2 tsp. vanilla extract
Top Part:
- 1 c. all-purpose flour
- ½ c. brown sugar
- ½ tsp. baking soda
- ½ tsp. baking powder
- pinch of salt
- ¼ c. butter, shortening, or lard
9" unbaked pie crust
Instructions
Bottom Part:
- In a medium saucepan, mix the brown sugar and flour.½ c. brown sugar, 1 Tbsp. all-purpose flour
- Add the Karo, egg, and water. Whisk to combine and cook over medium heat. Bring to a rolling boil.½ c. Karo, King syrup, or light molasses, 1 large egg, 1 c. water
- Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla. Set aside to cool while you prepare the top part.2 tsp. vanilla extract
Top Part:
- Combine the flour, brown sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt.1 c. all-purpose flour, ½ c. brown sugar, ½ tsp. baking soda, ½ tsp. baking powder, pinch of salt
- Cut the butter into the mixture and use a pastry blender to make crumbs.¼ c. butter, shortening, or lard
To make the pie:
- Preheat the oven to 375°.
- Pour the slightly cooled vanilla mixture into the bottom of a 9" unbaked pie crust, and spread the crumbs over the top, taking them all the way to the edges.
- Place one of your oven racks just below the middle of the oven, and bake your pie for about 45 minutes at 375°.
- Cool and enjoy! You can store this pie, loosely covered, at room temperature for up to two days. Refrigerate for up to a week.
Anna
Delicious!!
Linda Lyden
Lite Karo, dark Karo or maple Karo? Thank you!5
Anna
I typically use light Karo, but I don't think it really matters which one you use.
(^.^)
Am so glad you shared your recipe, have got all the ingredients (plus some cashew nuts) at hand. Will give this one a try tomorrow. Can let you know the result by, or during, 2023. Happy day!
!Chrissie O.
Oh, my goodness! This looks divine!!! I tell you what, now that our one neighbor sold his 120 acres to another Amish family, we have only Amish neighbors, save one, and we couldn't be more pleased! We did a good turn and offered some phone poles on our property to a neighbor if he thought he could use them, if he would come get them; he was delighted! While here, he noted a 3-storey extension ladder and inquired about buy it. My husband told him, "My roofing days are over," (he's a General Contractor, but he's done with heights!), and sold it to him, as it was old and definitely used, for $20. Well, we purchased 1,300 board feet of raw timber, and were investigating prices and, one day, I told him to run a couple of jars of my homemade jam out to Amos, because I saw him in the field across the road, haying. He happened to ask Amos if he knew anyone with a mill. Amos says, "Iah, I got a mill." Keith asked him if he'd be interested in the work, and he said sure. Well, we'd already checked pricing and was told $2,000 to set up the mill, then fifty cents a board foot. We gave Amos the wood, happy to pay him to do it, as he's a neighbor and I know he's not only got young children, but a developmentally-challenged brother who lives with him. Anyway, Amos swings by to tell Keith the lumber is ready and Keith asks him, "What do we owe you, so we can bring cash when we come to pick it up?" Amos says, "$130 is fair." Um... that's TEN CENTS a board foot. Keith tried to argue, and Amos just put up a hand to silence him and said, that's what neighbors do. He said the ladder had been working wonderfully for his family, he was going to use it for a house raising for this new family, and he was happy to do it.
Sorry, this got long, but locally a lot of our Amish get some flack and I honestly couldn't ask for better neighbors - been trying to pick up a little Deutch (I already speak 4 languages), so I can put the ladies more at ease! Sewed a few long skirts, not to imitate, but just out of respect, so I don't offend, you know?
Anyway, I got THE. GREATEST. PIE. CRUST. TIP. EVER from 93 year old Jeanette Lahmayer! It's brilliant, I have to share!!! Cut 2 pieces of plastic wrap larger than the crust you're going to roll. Take a very slightly damp sponge and wipe the surface on which you're going to roll out your crust. Put down the 1st piece of plastic wrap; the wrap will stick to the counter, which is what you want.
Then, put the ball of dough in the center; top with the 2nd piece of plastic wrap. Roll out the crust to the desired size. Peel back the top piece of plastic wrap. Now, here is the brilliance, for 2 reasons!!! First, no added flour to make your crust tough!!! Second, the CRUST WILL STICK TO THE BOTTOM PLASTIC WRAP WHEN YOU REMOVE IT FROM THE COUNTER/TABLE/ETC!!!!! This means you can position, reposition, etc., as you need to in order to exactly center it in your pan!!! And it won't tear!!! Then, peel off the 2nd piece of plastic wrap. If you have another crust to roll, re-damped the surface, put that first piece of plastic wrap back down and smooth out; repeat. It is SOOOOO simple! I've had trouble with pie crusts for 35 years, either too tough, or too much flour, or, whatever; I got a terrific crust recipe from my mother-in-law with oil and butter, that is flaky and wonderful, but I know I've ruined it from over-flouring my surface, my rolling pin, etc. This ELIMINATES that...and re-positionable?! Plastic wrap, for the win!!! Seriously - I'm 52; BEST. TIP. EVER!!! God bless Jeanette Lahmayer!!!
Anyway, you don't have to publish this, I know it got long. But I love your blog, I have truly enjoyed seeing the world through your lens and through your cooking!!! It's been a calming, and delicious, blessing!!!
Anna
I'm glad you're here!
Mary
Chrissie, thank you so much for sharing this tip from Jeanette Lahmayer. I’m 68 and have never made peace with pie crusts. (Sadly, the ones you can buy are, to my taste, bad.) I’m going to try this today!!
Your neighborhood sounds awesome.
Mary
Connie Clark
What a great tip!