The idea of this recipe comes from Nick Malgieri’s book Pastry but I’m using my own crust recipe and made a few other tweaks.
Crust Ingredients:
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons heavy cream
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
1-½ cups (7.5 ounces) all-purpose flour
3 ounces (about 2/3 cup) powdered sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
9 tablespoons (4 ½ ounces) unsalted butter, cold, cut into small cubes and chilled
Filling Ingredients:
3 tablespoons butter
2 pounds golden delicious apjples, peeled, cored, and cut into 1“ slices
3/4 cup dried currants
1/3 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon dark rum
Topping ingredients:
1/2 cup powdered sugar
~1 tablespoon dark rum (add more or less to achieve desired thickness)
Method:
- Make the filling the night before: In a large, wide, pan, melt the butter. Add the apples, currants, sugar, and cinnamon, stir and cook on medium for about 15 minutes, until the apples have released their juices and the mixutre is thickened. This could take longer or shorter depending on your apples. Make sure to stir regularly to keep it from sticking.
- Once the apple mixture is thickened, remove from heat and stir in the rum.
- Place the apple mixture in a covered container and store in the fridge overnight. The next day, you will make the crust and fill and bake the pie.
- Make the crust dough and assemble the pie: This pie bakes in a 8“ or 9“ cake pan. Get yours ready by buttering it.
- In a small bowl, lightly whisk together the egg yolk, heavy cream and vanilla extract. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse the flour, sugar and salt until combined. Add the cold butter cubes and pulse until mixture resembles sand. Add the yolk mixture and process until the dough comes together in one mass.
- Remove the dough from the food processor, form into 2 disks- one with 2/3 of the dough and one with the remaining 1/3 of dough. Wrap the smaller dough disk in plastic wrap and place it in the fridge. Put the larger dough disk on a silicone mat or pastry board, or counter lightly dusted with flour. Dust top of dough with flour and roll out with a rolling pin, turning and lifting as you roll from the middle, outward to edge. Roll out to 8“ larger than your pan diameter.
- Gently transfer the dough by rolling it on to the rolling pin and transferring it to a well buttered cake pan. Gently press it into the bottom and sides of pan allowing the extra dough overhang. Use a fork to prick the bottom and sides of the dough. This is to release steam during baking.
- Fill the crust with your filling, let the overhang crust stay overhung over the sides.
- Take the small dough disk out of the fridge, remove from plastic, and roll it out to the diameter of your pan. Place it on top of the filling, and set the overhang crust over it. Gently press to close. Prick some steam holes with a fork and a larger hole in the middle with a paring knife.
- Bake the pie: Pre-heat your oven to 350F. Place the pan on a baking sheet and bake it in the hot oven for about 40 minutes, until crust is golden brown all over.
- After the pie has come out of the oven, cool it on a rack until cool to room temperature.
- Run a knife along the side of the pan to loosen the crust, then unmold the pie onto it’s plate. (The bottom becomes the top)
- Make the icing: In a bowl, whisk together the sifted powdered sugar and rum until it’s smooth with no lumps. You want a fairly thick icing, so adjust the amount of sugar or rum to the desired thickness. Pour onto the top of the pie and use an offest spatula or butter knife to smooth it. Allow it to harden at room temperature.
- Pairs with whipped cream.