Preheat your oven to 375°F. If using homemade dough, have it chilled and ready—this matters because cold dough stays flaky when it hits the heat. I've learned this the hard way after three pie disasters in my twenties.

Combine your five sliced apples with both sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg, and lemon juice in a large bowl. The lemon juice does something most recipes ignore—it keeps the spice flavors from tasting flat or one-note. Stir until every apple slice has a light coating of the spice mixture. This takes about three minutes and prevents hot spots where some apples taste spiced and others don't.

Roll out your pie dough (homemade or thawed store-bought) and press it into a 9-inch pie pan, letting excess hang slightly over the edges. Pour your apple mixture into the crust, mounding it gently in the center because apples will release moisture and settle as they bake. Dot the top with 2 tbsp cold butter cut into small pieces—this creates pockets of richness that distribute throughout.

Roll out your second piece of dough and either lay it flat across the top or cut it into strips for a lattice pattern. If you go flat, cut four small slits in the center so steam escapes during baking. I always choose the flat route because honestly, lattice makes me anxious, and there's no reason to add stress to baking.

Beat one egg in a small bowl and brush it across the entire top of your pie dough. Sprinkle with coarse sugar—this creates that beautiful speckled crust that looks like you actually know what you're doing. Fold your excess dough edges inward and crimp them with your fingers or a fork.

Bake for 50 minutes until the crust is deep golden and you can see apple filling just barely bubbling at the edges. The filling shouldn't completely cover the crust opening, but you want to see some action there. This is your signal that the apples have actually cooked through instead of staying crunchy.

Remove your apple pie easy Thanksgiving dessert from the oven and let it cool on a wire rack for at least 15 minutes before slicing. I know the temptation to cut into it immediately is strong, but those first 15 minutes allow the filling to set so your slices don't slide into a puddle on the plate.