apple raspberry pie

There is something very satisfying about making a pie. As soon as I took it out of the oven, I felt heady with a deep satisfaction of culinary achievement. My daughter, who is very particular about almost everything, gave it a 9 out of 10, which is a real compliment!

The basket of freshly picked apples I picked from our tree the other day inspired me to make this.

APPLE RASPBERRY PIE

makes 1 double-crust 9-inch (23 cm) pie 

for the dough

350g flour (I use 250g white & 100g whole wheat)

90g/½ cup sugar

1 tsp fine rock salt

200g unsalted pure butter

100mL very cold water

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

for the filling

1kg apples, peeled, cored and cut ¼-inch pieces

50g butter, plus extra for greasing

100g fine brown sugar

1 heaped tsp ground cinnamon

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

125g raspberries – fresh or frozen

1 heaped Tbsp cornflour

for the glaze

2 Tbsp milk

2 Tbsp granulated sugar

prepare the dough

1. Place the flour, sugar, and salt in a bowl and mix. Then, cut the butter into hazelnut-sized pieces and add to the flour, making sure all the pieces of butter are well coated. Cover and place in the freezer for a minimum of 1 hour or overnight.
2. In a food processor with an S-blade attached, add the very cold flour and butter, process for 20 seconds (the mixture should resemble fine meal), then pour in the very cold water and pulse in short bursts.  The dough will still look crumbly, but if you press it between your fingers, it should become smooth.  Add a tablespoon of ice water if the dough is too dry and not coming together.
3. Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface. Gather and press the dough together to form a unified mass. Cut the dough in half and put each half on a large piece of plastic wrap. Loosely cover the dough with plastic. Using the wrap as an aid (to avoid warming the dough with your bare hands), shape the dough into a round. Wrap each piece tightly in the plastic and refrigerate for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.

prepare the filling

4. Put the sugar and butter into a saucepan. When the butter has melted, add the apples, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Slowly cook for 15 minutes with the lid on, then turn off the heat and allow to cool.
5. Tip the apple mixture into a sieve and let it sit for 15 minutes, allowing the juices to collect in a bowl at the bottom.
6. Add the cornflour to the reserved juice and whisk together. Set aside.

roll out the dough

7. Remove one disc of dough from the fridge but keep the other round refrigerated. Dust your work surface with flour, and using a floured rolling pin, roll out to a 13-inch circle. (Rolling the dough between two layers of grease-proof paper or cling film will also prevent it from sticking.)
8. Butter a 26cm pie dish and line it with the pastry, trimming off any excess with a sharp knife. Cover with plastic and freeze for at least 30 minutes.
9. Preheat the oven to 215C/425F when ready to assemble the pie.
10. Roll out the top crust: Remove the remaining round disc of dough from the refrigerator and let it sit until pliable enough to roll. Then, roll it out to a 13-inch circle using a floured rolling pin.

assemble the pie

11. Retrieve the pastry pie from the fridge and stir the cooled filling a few times. Then, scrape it into the pie shell, place the raspberries on top, and spoon over the reserved juices.

12. Place the dough over the filling, pressing the bottom and top crusts together to seal.  Pop the pie in the freezer for 20 minutes.
13. Cut steam vents into the top of the pie, brush the pastry with milk, and sprinkle with the sugar.

bake

14. Place it in a preheated oven for 35 – 40 minutes until golden brown or crisp. Allow it to cool completely for the filling to set.

serve

Slice the pie into portion sizes and serve with a generous helping of vanilla ice cream or custard.

Apple Pie made by Noa.

Shared goodness from Stacey