“This is a fantastic classic family dessert, and it’s perfect for this time of year. If you use a heart-shaped dish, like the one pictured here (details below), you can make it as a beautiful Valentine's treat for your loved ones. Comforting and warming for the cold weather, but the berry flavour and bright colour really make me think of the summer ahead.
“I try to forage blackberries each autumn and freeze them in bags of 250g for using in pies like this. When you forage, try to pick sustainably to leave enough for others, and try to pick from bushes away from roads. Best to select berries that are high up as well to avoid any that dogs might have ‘watered’!”
Blackberry & Apple Pie with Homemade Custard Method:
1) In a large bowl, mix the two flours for the pastry with a pinch of salt. Add the butter and use your fingertips to rub the fat into the flour until the mixture looks like coarse breadcrumbs
2) Add the egg yolk and stir gently to combine. The mixture should then come together to form a dry dough but, if not, you can add some cold water 1 tablespoon at a time until it does. Split the pastry into two balls (one should be 2/3rds of the pastry, and the other 1/3rd). Wrap and chill in the fridge for 20 minutes
3) Peel, core, and dice your apples into medium sized chunks - aiming for just bigger than a blackberry. Put the Bramley apples into a large saucepan with the sugar and lemon juice and place on a medium heat. Cook for 10-15 minutes until softened and thick - if there is still a lot of liquid then turn the heat up to high and cook for another 5 minutes
4) Remove the saucepan from the heat and add the eating apples and the blackberries, then stir to combine. Taste to make sure it is sweet enough and leave to one side to cool completely
5) Preheat the oven to 190 degrees Celsius
6) On a lightly floured surface, roll out the larger of the two balls of pastry to be large enough to comfortably line a pie dish of your choice - ideally you want the pastry to be about 0.5cm thick to avoid breakage. It’s better if your pie dish has an overlap edge so you can seal the base pastry with the lid
7) Roll out the next pastry ball to the same thickness and prepare it to be your lid to the pie. You could trim it into strips to make a lattice top pie or cut out stars or hearts to make a reverse pattern - or leave it as a whole sheet!
8) Lay the pastry base down in the pie dish and trim any excess. Fill the pie with the apple and blackberry mixture, then top with the pastry lid. Use a fork to crimp the edges of the pie together
9) Brush the pastry lid with the egg white, which was left over from making the pastry, and for an added special touch I like to sprinkle the pie with some demerara sugar for an extra crunch
10) Bake the pie for 50 minutes, or until golden brown and bubbling - you might want to place a baking tray under the pie to make sure any potential spills don’t burn onto the oven
11) While the pie is baking, make the custard. In a saucepan, gently begin to heat the milk and cream with the vanilla bean paste until steaming - don’t let it boil!
12) In a bowl, whisk together the egg yolk, sugar, and cornflour until pale in colour. Once the milk is hot, ladle in a small amount into the egg yolk mixture at a time while continuing to whisk. Once this has been incorporated, add another ladle of hot milk. Continue this process until all the milk has been added. It is really important not to add the milk too quickly or this may curdle the eggs
13) Pour the custard back into the same saucepan you heated the milk in and return it to a low heat. Use a whisk to keep the custard moving while it thickens up - if it sticks in the corners of the pan you might have to sieve it so best to keep whisking all the time
14) After 5-10 minutes the custard should have thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, remove from the heat and pop into a jug to serve
15) Remove the pie from the oven and leave to cool for 10-15 minutes until serving, then dish up with lots of your delicious custard - as well as ice cream if you fancy it!
Huge thanks to our friends at Mason Cash for providing this fantastic "Rustic Charm 28cm Baker" - find out more here!
