Golden syrup apple pie – taste tester

Read about my taste tester series here.

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Most people would cook something and then think of the sides or accompaniments, but I’m not most people.

I had a craving for Tilba real double cream and since eating straight from the tub would be frowned upon in society, I decided to make an apple pie to go with it. My craving would double up as a dessert that I would take to TimmyC’s family dinner (Sunday treats), so winning all round!

I was sure that I had all the ingredients to make an apple pie at home and all I would need from the other side of town while I was there was the elusive Tilba double cream. When I sat down to browse the countless recipes, I found myself on a lot of American sites. The humble apple pie after all was almost their signature dessert, but most if not all recipes included shortening in the pastry… This I did not have, so I found myself back at the good ol’ taste.com.au. You might think I have a golden syrup addiction (and I do but you don’t need to worry about that) considering my previous taste tester post also featured this ingredient.

I really liked the texture of the apples in thin slices and the pastry really held well together while cutting it all up. I didn’t really adjust anything in the recipe except for using more apples as I had more laying around than required.

Golden syrup apple pie

Prep time: 45 minutes + chilling  Cooking time: 45 minutes + cooling

Ingredients (in Australian units)

Filling

• 10 granny smith large apples, peeled, cored and thinly sliced
• 25g butter
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 2/3 cup golden syrup
• 1tbsp cornflour
• 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

Pastry

• 2 1/2 cups plain flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp fine sea salt
• 170g chilled unsalted butter, cubed
• 2 tbsp caster sugar
• 1 egg straight from the fridge
• 2 tblsp chilled water
• 1/3 cup almond meal

Pie topper

• 1 lightly beaten egg white
• 3 tsp white sugar
• pinch of cinnamon

Equipment

• a good knife or mandolin
• food processor
• pie tin (I used a fluted quiche plate)
• cling wrap
• baking paper
• oven
• rolling pin
• non-stick Dutch oven or deep frying pan
• mixing bowl
• baking tray

Method

1. To make the filling place the Dutch oven over medium heat and melt the butter. Add in the sugar, syrup and apples and cook until they start to soften.
2. Mix the cornflour with 2 teaspoons of cold water thoroughly and add it to the apples along with the cinnamon. Stir and cook until the sauce begins to thicken and coats the apples. Pour the apple mixture into a bowl and cool to room temperature.
3. Add flour, baking powder, salt, butter and caster sugar into the food processor and process until fine crumbs form. Add the egg and water and pulse until just incorporated (the dough will appear crumbly). Place the dough mixture on the bench and hand knead until the dough comes together.
4. Divide the dough into thirds. Take 1/3 of the dough and shape it into a 2cm thick disc. Combine the other 2/3 into another 2cm disc and wrap each piece in cling wrap and place it in the fridge for 20 minutes
5. Preheat the oven to 180C fan forced and move the oven rack to the lowest shelf
6. Between two sheets of baking paper, roll out the 2/3 portion disc until 4mm thick and the shape of your pie tin with a bit of overhang. Line the pie tin with the pastry and sprinkle almond meal on the base before putting in the pie filling.
7. Between two sheets of baking paper, roll out the 1/3 portion disc until 3mm thick. Place the pie lid on and fold up the excess pastry. Cut a few slits into the centre of the pie lid. Brush a bit of egg white all over the top of the pie before sprinkling the white sugar and cinnamon
8. Place the pie tin on a tray on the lowest shelf in the oven and bake for 20 minutes before reducing the temperature to 160C fan forced and baking for a futher 25 minutes
9. Leave the pie to cool for at least 20 minutes before serving

Tips

It is a really sweet pie with all the sugar and golden syrup so you really need to pair it with a good double cream, custard or ice cream.

My rustic looking pie with Tilba double cream.

The pastry cut really well and I love the texture of the apple slices.

Warm apple pie with cream, is there anything better?

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ANZAC slice – taste tester

It was 9pm on a Monday night when I turned to TimmyC on the couch (the hardest place to get up from) saying that I would like to make a slice for work morning tea the next day. He did his usual eye roll but then agreed to helping me make something that I assured him was going to be easy. To be honest, I hadn’t even looked at the method but luckily it was fairly easy to throw together.

I love chewy ANZAC biscuits, so I adhered to tips to take out the slice from the oven earlier to keep the chewy texture and I read some comments which said it was a bit bland or sweet enough so I added an extra tablespoon of golden syrup. This is ten times easier than ANZAC cookies because there is no rolling and pressing, it’s just throwing it into one pan and cutting it up later. You have to make this, even if just for the smell.

ANZAC slice

Ingredients (in Australian units)

• 1 cup plain flour
• 1.5 cups rolled oats
• 2/3 cup desiccated coconut
• 2/3 cup caster sugar
• 125g butter
• 3 tbsp golden syrup
• 2 tbsp cold water
• 1/2 tsp bi-carb soda

Equipment

• slice pan
• baking paper
• large mixing bowl
• small saucepan
• spatula
• wire rack

Method

1. Preheat oven to 160C (fan forced) and line a slice tin with baking paper
2. Throw in all the dry ingredients into a big mixing bowl and make a well in the centre
3. Place butter and golden syrup in the saucepan and put it on medium heat until the butter melts
4. Take the saucepan off the heat and add the bi-carb soda (which will foam up, just keep stirring until it all dissolves)
5. Pour butter mixture into the well and mix together
6. Place mixture evenly into the lined slice tin and place it in the middle shelf of the oven
7. Bake for 25 minutes (for a chewy texture) and let the slice cool on a wire rack (without the tin)

Tips~

I think using a high quality golden syrup makes all the difference in this slice. I use Lyle’s golden syrup made in the UK which can be found in a lot of supermarkets.

Taste tester

When I’m not browsing my countless cook books or I’m craving something in particular, I turn to taste.com.au to look for inspiration and recipes. It is an Australian site so the lazy girl in me doesn’t have to convert all the units, the recipes call for ingredients readily available to me and the best of all, most of the recipes have been reviewed and commented on,which helps to know if a recipe is worth trying.

I’ve had some success and failures from the website, but I thought I’d share them with you so you can avoid the mishaps that I’ve cooked and enjoy in the easy, tasty recipes that I’ve found.