It’s National Pie Day today! I am not a huge fan of pies – or maybe I should say making pies. But when I saw this recipe for Moroccan Apple Pie in The Times a couple of years ago, I knew I had found a pie recipe that I just had to try. I did and it has stayed as one my favorite pies ever since. What makes Moroccan Apple Pie different is that the crust is made of layers of crispy filo pastry and the filling is pure apple. Delicious!
Happy National Pie Day!
Moroccan Apple Pie (recipe from The Times)
Preparation time: 60 minutes
Serves: 8-10
Ingredients
6 tart, green apples (peeled, cored and thinly sliced)
1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 vanilla pod (split lengthways)
115g caster sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cornflour
80g unsalted butter (melted and cooled)
8 sheets of filo pastry
Icing sugar for dusting
Directions
Peel, core and thinly slice the apples. Place into a medium bowl. Scrape the seeds out of the vanilla pod and add to the apples. Add 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest. Add half of the caster sugar into the bowl and toss to evenly coat the apples. Put the remaining caster sugar into a small bowl with the cinnamon. Mix throughly. Set aside. Place the sugarcoated apple slices in a large saucepan with 2 tbsp water and the lemon juice. Cover and cook stirring occasionally over medium heat for 10 minutes or until the apples slices have softened.
Transfer the cooked apple slices into a bowl and let to cool down. When the apple slices are completely cooled down, stir in the cornflour. Preheat the oven to 220 C (425 F). Place a baking tray into the oven to heat. Brush a round (22cm diameter) cake tin with melted butter. Lay a sheet of file pastry on a clean work surface and lightly brush with melted butter. Sprinkle some of the cinnamon-sugar on top of the butter layer.
Repeat this with the next 3 sheets of file pastry. Gently press the buttered filo layers into the buttered cake tin. Let the ends of the filo pastry hang over the rim. Make a second layered stack from the remaining 4 file pasty sheets exactly the same way. Then lay this second layered file pasty stack across the first one in the cake tin, so that the entire rim of the cake tin is draped with filo pastry. Spoon the cooled apple slices into the tin and with the back of the spoon gently, but firmly press them down.
Fold the ends of the filo pastry towards the center of the tin to cover the filling. Lightly brush with melted butter. Working quickly, remove the hot baking tray from the oven and line with non-stick baking paper. Invert the cake tin onto the baking tray. Remove the cake tin and bush the top of the Moroccan Apple Pie with melted butter.
Bake for 30-35 minutes or until golden and crisp. Let cool down and dust with icing sugar before serving.
Recipe from The Times
Photos: Marthafied
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