‘This apple pie is light and a great recipe for summer days. Both the flour and sugar is unrefined, making it a more wholesome recipe that is not as heavy.

This pie base recipe is so good, you won't believe it's this easy to make. It's soft and melts in your mouth! And I love the depth in flavour of wholegrain spelt flour with buckwheat flour combined. You can even use the base of this recipe for other baked treats.

The apples are of course the star of this dish and they pair perfectly with some citrus and spice. The apple cider vinegar provides some sweet and sour acidity and I've also added some flaked almonds, which are light and crunchy, a great additional texture. Perfect for an afternoon out in the garden or a picnic!’

INGREDIENTS

For the Filling: 

• Serves 8.
• 8 Royal gala apples (peeled and diced)
• 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
• Zest of 1 lemon (finely grated)
• Juice from 1 lemon
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup flaked almonds + tbsp for topping
• 1 cup light muscavado sugar + 1 tsp for topping

For the Base:

• 225g cold butter (unsalted) + a bit extra to butter the pie base
• 1 cup buckwheat flour
• 2 cups wholegrain spelt flour + extra for working the dough
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 3/4 cup cold water
• 1 egg (for eggwash)

METHOD

Base:

1. In a large bowl sift the wholegrain spelt flour and the buckwheat flour. Add salt and sugar then whisk all dry ingredients together.
2. Grate the cold butter into the bowl (should look similar to the consistency of cheddar cheese) and lightly toss with your hands then transfer into a blender or stand mixer. Using the dough hook begin to mix and add the cold water. Mix until it's all combined. The dough needs to be quite moist and really soft. Bring together with your hands into a ball and cover lightly with spelt flour. Cut into two pieces, 1 larger than the other. Then wrap the two pieces in separate cling wrap and place into the fridge. Allow the dough to rest for 1 hour. The dough will become firm and easy to work with.

Filling:

1. While the dough is resting in the fridge peel the apples then dice into squares and place into a large bowl.
2. Add the apple cider vinegar, lemon zest, lemon juice, sugar, cinnamon and flaked almonds. Using a spoon mix through well and allow to stand until your dough is ready to work with.

Putting the pie together:

1. Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Once the dough is firm, flour the surface well and using a rolling pin begin to roll out the dough (add more flour if needed). Make it slightly larger than the diameter of your pie dish, then fold the dough into half and again in half and place it into the centre of the pie dish then fold it out, you might have a few edges that are too far over the dish so using a small sharp knife slice them off. You do want the dough to be wide enough so it is slightly overlapping the pie dish. Press the base down softly, and the edges too. Use a fork to create holes in the base.
2. Fill up the dish with the apple mixture. It should come to just above the height of the dish creating a small mound.
3. Roll out the smaller piece of dough until it is slightly wider than the pie dish (add more flour if needed). Carefully place on top by folding it in half then again in half and then fold out. Press the edges together so they stick together.
4. Sprinkle some more flaked almonds on top then using a brush cover the surface with egg wash. Sprinkle the sugar on top.
5. Bake for 1 hour, covering the top of the pie with foil half way through.
6. Serve with ice cream or just as it is and enjoy!

Recipe and photos by Anastasia Zolotarev. Click here to see her blog.