Deep-dish Apple Pie

My recipe for a truly crowd pleasing apple pie. This pie can be baked double-crust style and dusted with delicious golden sugar, or Dutch-style with a sweet and crunch cinnamon streusel topping (refer to next recipe for a simple streusel topping).

Deep-dish Apple Pie

serves 6

For pie filling:

• 1/2 cup superfine bakers' sugar
• 3 tbsp plain all-purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• finely grated rind of 1 orange
• 2 lb tart cooking apples (pippin apples or granny smith are best)
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten
  
• 2 tbsp light brown sugar or golden sugar
• whipped cream, to serve

For pastry:

• 3 cups plain all-purpose flour
• pinch of salt
• 3/4 cup butter, diced
• 5 tbsp chilled water
• or use 2 pre-made pie shells.
  

1. If using a pre-made pie shell, skip to step 3.
   
2. To make pastry, sift flour and salt into a bowl. Rub in the butter. Sprinkle over the water and mix to firm, soft dough. Roll into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 mins.
3. Combine the bakers' sugar, flour, cinnamon and orange rind in a bowl. Peel, core and thinly slice the apples. Add to the sugar mixture, then toss gently.
   
4. Put a baking sheet in the oven and preheat to 400 F. Roll out just over half the pastry and use to line a 9-inch pie dish that is 1 1/2-inch deep. Allow to overhang the edges slightly. Spoon in filling, doming it in the center.
   
5. Roll out remaining pastry to form lid. Lightly brush edges with a little water, then place the lid over the apple filling. Trim the pastry with a sharp knife. Gently press the edges together to seal, then knock up the edges. Re-roll the pastry trimmings and cut apples and leaf shapes (optional, mostly to make a fancy decorative top). Brush the top of the pie with egg white and arrange the pastry apples and leaves on top.
   
6. Brush again with egg white (or for the first time if omitting pastry cutout layer), then sprinkle with golden (or light brown) sugar. Make two small slits in the top of the pie to allow stem to escape.
   
7. Bake 30 minutes, then lower temperature to 350 F and bake for a further 15 minutes until pastry is golden and appled are soft - check by inserting a small sharp knife or skewer through one of the slits in the top of the pie. Serve hot, with some whipped cream.