Deep dish apple pie

On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry into a large rectangle, as thin as possible. Chop the butter into small cubes, then sprinkle evenly across the bottom ½ of the pastry. Fold the top of the pastry over the butter to trap it, and lightly roll with a rolling pin to fuse the sheets together. Fold the bottom ¹/³ up, then the top ¹/³ over the bottom to make a rectangle. Finally, fold in ½ to create a square shape, then wrap and return to the fridge for at least 15 minutes, or until ready to use.

Preheat the oven to 180ºC, gas mark 4 and place a baking tray onto a shelf to heat up. Peel and core the apples for the filling, then slice into thin wedges. Place in a large bowl and add 100g sugar, the cinnamon, nutmeg, cornflour and lemon juice. Toss to coat, then set aside while you line the tin.

Take ²/³ of the pastry and roll it out into a large circle, then press into the base of a 5x20cm metal or enamel pie dish, leaving the excess overhanging. Fill the pie with the apple slices, using your hands to press them firmly into the dish. Some liquid will be left at the bottom of the bowl – don’t pour it all into the pie, or the pastry will be soggy. Take 3 tbsp of the liquid and drizzle it over the apples. Discard the remainder.

Roll the remaining pastry into a circle slightly bigger than the dish, then drape over the top. Press it flush against the apple filling and crimp the edges to seal. Use a sharp knife to trim the edges. Brush the top of the pie with egg wash and decorate with any leftover pastry, if liked, with writing or shapes, for example. Brush the top of any decoration and cut 3 incisions into the pastry top to allow steam to escape.

Sprinkle with 1 tsp sugar, then bake on the preheated baking tray for 1 hour. Cover with foil if the pie is browning too quickly. Allow to cool to almost room temperature before serving (or the pie won’t hold its shape).