Surrey Homes | SH97 | February 2023 | Education Supplement inside

Apple and Rhubarb Lattice Pie
Prep time: pastry – 1 hour;
fruit filling 20-30mins
Cooking time : 30 minutes Serves 6-8
You will need a nice deep pie dish
(26cm) and a pastry brush
I have made this pie with two types
of pastry – shortcrust for the base
and puff for the latticed top. It works
just as well with all shortcrust. The
trick to making good pastry is to keep
everything as cold as you can and to
rest it in the fridge prior to cooking.
I used butter in the shortcrust, but
another shortening (lard for instance)
is fine. Or buy ready-made. I have to
admit to buying the flaky pastry ready
rolled from the supermarket – it saves
a lot of time, but if you are making
your own, the same applies in terms
of keeping the pastry cool. Substitute
raspberries for the rhubarb if you must.
For the shortcrust pastry base (double this
if you are using shortcrust for the top too):
• 280g plain flour
• 150g salted butter
• 2-3 tbsp cold water
or just use 1 ready rolled pack
of puff pastry (you can also use
ready-made shortcrust and omit
the recipe for the pastry base)
For the filling:
• 850g Bramley cooking apples
(approx 3-4 apples) peeled,
cored and cut into chunks
• 200g rhubarb (approx 3 stalks),
washed and cut into 2cm chunks
• 100g sugar, plus 1 dsp to
sprinkle on top – or to taste
• 1-2 tsp lemon juice (to stop
the apple browning)
• 2 tsp milk
1. If you are making shortcrust pastry,
cube cold butter into 1cm cubes and
place in a large mixing bowl. Sift the
flour onto the butter and, with nice
cold hands, quickly rub the butter
into the flour until you have a fine
crumble topping. Spoon in the icy
cold water, a little at a time, and
combine into a ball without kneading
more than necessary – over-handling
makes pastry tough. Cover and rest
in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.
2. Meanwhile pre-cook the filling – I
braise the rhubarb in the oven in
a covered dish with some sugar (1
tbsp) and a tbsp of water for 15-20
minutes (150˚C), this method keeps
its shape. Cook the chopped apples
(sprinkle with a bit of lemon to stop
them browning) in a pan with 50g
or so of the sugar for 10-15 minutes
until that are soft, but not a complete
mush. Leave to cool. I prefer less sugar
in this pie, but add to taste. If you
have substituted raspberries, do not
cook them prior to baking in the pie.
3. Roll out the pastry on a cold, floured
surface – approx 2mm in thickness. Lift
carefully and drape over the pie dish,
pressing it gently into place. Spoon in
the cooled fruit, mixing a little, but
not mashing together. Trim off the
excess pastry and brush around the edge
with a little milk (you will be ‘gluing’
the lattice top to the pastry base).
4. Cut the pastry for the lattice top
into equal strips (approx 1cm by the
width of the pack or the pie). Layer
alternate strips over the top of the pie
to make a lattice, weaving them over
and under. Brush pastry with milk,
then sprinkle with sugar and bake in
the oven for approx 30mins until the
lattice top is a light golden brown. Serve
with cream or ice-cream (or both!).
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