Autumn Apple Pie

Tudor week on the Great British Bake Off seems like a distant memory at this stage, it feels that long ago. The plan was to bake a savoury but with limited time in the evenings for dinner, I opted to bake a pie just for me. My style and my flavours.

Using up the last of my apples was the perfect excuse for this pie. Husband had bought me a new food processor, as congratulations on doing so well in my Masters so I was eager to try it out. It was perfect and dare I say it, the best pastry I have ever made! Soooo happy with my new toy.

Anyway... the pie does not fill the brief exactly nor do I know how it fits in with the Tudor theme, but it looks pretty and tasted pretty damn good so I'm going to offer it up as fodder for the linky!

It's also another baking on a budget success with all my ingredients coming from Aldi again. The victuals were delicious!

All Butter Short Crust

***Double the recipe if you want all the leaves on the top***

240g plain flour

50g icing sugar

150g diced cold butter (+ a little extra for greasing)

1 large egg

Preheat your oven to 180C, 350F or gas mark 4.

Put the flour, butter and icing sugar into a food processor and blitz until looks like breadcrumbs.

Crack in the egg and bring together until a soft ball forms.

Wrap in clingfilm, pat down and leave in fridge for 30 mins.

Grease up a 9/10 inch round pie dish.

When it comes out of the fridge, split into two balls, one slightly larger than the other and roll out. 

Pop the larger circle into your pie dish and then if you are so inclined blind bake the pastry case bottom using pastry beads in a pre-heated oven for about 10- 15 minutes. Cut out, using cookie cutters, all the leaf shapes you can with the leftover pastry.  Leave to one side.

Start peeling and slicing your apples.

Apple Pie Mix

3-4 large Cooking apples. 

Skin the apples completely and then just chop them into however you feel... I like to do a rough slice and just keep slicing through the apple until I reach the inner core. Pop them in a bowl adding...

120g brown sugar (I used demerara)
1 tsp pumpkin spice or to taste

Set to one side... Once you have blind baked your pastry case, fill with the apples and top with the remaining pastry or the leaf cut outs.

Bake for about 30-40 minutes, depending on your oven and minding the top doesn't get too brown. Allow to cool slightly on a wire tray upon taking it out of the oven and before removing it form the tin.

So a treat for me, from me to you! Be sure to hop by the linky on Jenny's Blog to see what the other GBBObloggers baked up for Tudor week.

A feast for thine eyes to be sure.