Apple pies, along with pumpkin pies, have to be the all time favorites in Autumn. How could they not be, when there are so many different kinds of apples in season. I love to use our own homegrown apples in desserts and breakfasts I make. These particular apples are really crunchy, a bit more on the sour side and so juicy! Perfect for a pie.
I’ll be making Thanksgiving dinner this year so I decided to start testing out different apple pie recipes in order to be able to make the perfect pie in time for Thanksgiving. I prefer apple to pumpkin pie so I will definitely be making apple pie for dessert. What kind? I don’t know yet but it just might be this one here.
The crust recipe and the idea for presentation are by Barbarella Green Chef. The filling is my own “creation”. You can play with the ingredients and make a filling more to your taste, of course.
Ingredients:
Crust:
1 cup rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca flour
173 cup almond/hazelnut flour
1 tsp vanilla extract
4 tsp Xyilitol
1 tsp ground chia seeds
4 tbsp butter (plant based if you want a vegan pie)
water
Filling:
1 tsp butter (plant based if you want a vegan pie)
500 – 600 g apples, pelled and cut in small pieces
1 tbsp Xylitol
juice 1/2 lemon
1/2 tbsp cinnamon
70 g sultanas
2 tbsp rum
1 handfull chopped walnuts
Instructions:
1. Mix all crust ingredients in a bowl. Add water slowly to reach desired consistency. You can either knead the dough with your hands or place it in a stand mixer.
2. Form the dough into a disk or ball, place it in an airtight bag or plastic foil and refirigerate for 30 minutes. In the meantime, prepare the filling.
3. Peel the apples and cut them into small pieces. Pour juice of ½ lemon over the apples to prevent them from turning brown and to add a little sourness. Melt 1 tbsp butter in a large pan. Toss in the apples and sprinkle them with Xylitol. Cook for about 10 minutes, adding the cinnamon almost at the end.
4. In a separate pan or pot, heat the sultanas and rum for about 3 minutes just enough for the sultanas to soften and puff. Remove from heat and set aside. Mix 2/3 of the sultanas into the cooked apples.
5. Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius.
6. Grease a 24 cm round baking tray with removable bottom. Roll out the dough between two sheets of baking paper and transfer it to the baking tray (removing both baking papers as you do so). Remove any excess dough and save it for decoration. Pierce the dough a few times with forks and bake it for 8 minutes.
7. Take the tray from the oven and spread the apples evenly over the crust. Sprinkle with the remianing 1/3 sultanas and chopped walnuts. With the remaining dough, form small cookies or strips (if you want to create a lattice pattern) and place them over the filling.
8. Return to the oven and bake for another 30 – 35 minutes.
9. Allow to cool before removing from the baking tray. Serve with some honey vanilla greek yoghurt.
