Apple Pie

Paul Lynch
Dessert

This is a more complex recipe for an apple pie, using pâté sablée for the base, and with a rough puff top.

Pâte Sablée

  • 75 grams (⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon) sugar (I use golden caster sugar, but regular white granulated sugar is fine)
  • 150 grams plain flour — if you use American all-purpose flour, use 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons
  • 75 grams cold butter (I use salted, but you can use unsalted and add a pinch of salt) — if you use regular American butter (which has less butterfat than European butter), use 7 tablespoons
  • Ice-cold water or milk.

Preheat the oven to 180°C (350°F). Grease a 10-inch tart pan with butter and set aside.

Prepare the pâte sablée. In the bowl of a mixer or blender, combine the sugar and flour. Add the butter and process in short pulses until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. (Alternatively, rub the butter into the dry ingredients by hand with the tips of your fingers or a wire pastry blender.) Add a tablespoon of water or milk and mix again, in short pulses, until it is absorbed. The dough should still be crumbly, but it should clump if you gently squeeze a handful in your hand. If it doesn’t, add a little more water — teaspoon by teaspoon — and give the dough a few more pulses until it reaches the desired consistency.

Pour the mixture evenly into the prepared tart pan. Using the heels of your hands and your fingers, press on the dough gently to form a thin layer, covering the surface of the pan and creating a rim all around. Don’t worry if the dough feels a little dry, this is normal. (You can prepare the dough up to a day ahead: cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.) Bake for 15 minutes, until lightly golden.

Rough puff - from ATK via Smitten Kitchen

  • 360g cups unbleached all-purpose flour (or 300g, for non-lattice)
  • 5g teaspoon salt
  • 25g tablespoons sugar
  • 115g tablespoons lard (shortening), chilled
  • 170g tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
  • 90 - 120ml tablespoons ice water

  1. Pulse flour, salt and sugar in a food processor until combined. Add shortening and process until mixture has texture of coarse sand, about 10 seconds. Scatter butter pieces over flour mixture; cut butter into flour until mixture is pale yellow and resembles coarse crumbs, with butter bits no larger than small peas, about ten 1-second pulses. Turn mixture into a medium bowl.

  2. Sprinkle 90ml ice water over mixture. With the blade of a rubber spatula, use folding motions to mix. Press down on dough with broad side of spatula until dough sticks together, adding up to 30ml more ice water if it will not come together. Divide dough into two pieces, one slightly larger than the other. (If possible, weigh pieces. They should register 450g and 400g.) Flatten larger piece into a rough 5-inch square and smaller piece into a 4-inch disk; (If for a non-lattice, double crust pie, these pieces should be even in weight and both round) wrap separately in plastic and refrigerator at least 1 hour or up to 2 days before rolling.

The pie

  • 675g Granny Smith apples (about 3 medium)
  • 900g pounds McIntosh apples (about 4 large)
  • 15ml juice and 1 teaspoon zest from 1 lemon
  • 150g plus 15g sugar
  • 15g plain flour
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
  • 1 egg white, beaten lightly

(Note: recommends extra spice, less lemon, and a couple of cloves!)

  1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat a rimmed baking sheet and oven to 260C. Remove one piece of dough from refrigerator (if refrigerated longer than 1 hour, let stand at room temperature until malleable).

  2. Roll dough on lightly floured work surface or between two large sheets of plastic wrap to 30 cm disk. Transfer dough to pie plate by rolling dough around rolling pin and unrolling over 24 cm pie plate or by folding dough in quarters, then placing dough point in centre of pie plate and unfolding. Working around circumference of pie plate, ease dough into pan corners by gently lifting dough edges with one hand while pressing around pan bottom with other hand. Leave dough that overhangs lip of plate in place; refrigerate dough-lined pie plate.

  3. Peel, core and cut apples in half, and in half again width-wise; cut quarters into 1/2 cm slices and toss with lemon juice and zest. In a medium bowl, mix 150g sugar, 15g flour, salt and spices. Toss dry ingredients with apples. Turn fruit mixture, including juices, into chilled pie shell and mound slightly in centre.

  4. Roll out second piece of dough to 30 cm disk and place over filling. Trim top and bottom edges to 1 cm beyond pan lip. Tuck this rim of dough underneath itself so that folded edge is flush with pan lip. Flute edging or press with fork tines to seal. Cut four slits on dough top. If pie dough is very soft, place in freezer for 10 minutes. Brush egg white onto top of crust and sprinkle evenly with remaining 1 tablespoon sugar (use granulated or demerara).

  5. Place pie on baking sheet and lower oven temperature to 220C. Bake until top crust is golden, about 25 minutes. Rotate pie and reduce oven temperature to 190C; continue baking until juices bubble and crust is deep golden brown, around 30-35 minutes longer.