Mucky-mouth slab pie

1 HOUR 35 MINUTES + FREEZING SERVES 12 | A LITTLE EFFORT

So-called because of the staining you get from the deeply purple fruit. Using frozen fruit means you can make this any time of the year, and it also stops the fruity filling from being overcooked before the pastry is baked. Adding soft cheese to the pastry gives it a scone-like texture. egg 1, beaten PASTRY plain flour 400g

caster sugar 4 tsp

unsalted butter 300g, chilled and diced, plus extra for the tin

soft cheese 280g FILLING cooking apples 300g, peeled, cored and diced

frozen blackcurrants 250g frozen blueberries 250g arrowroot powder 85g golden caster sugar 150g, plus extra for sprinkling lemon juice 2 tbsp • Put the flour, sugar and 11/2 tsp of salt in a food processor. Whizz in the butter until no large lumps remain, then add the soft cheese in small spoonfuls, and pulse until the mixture comes together into a ball of dough. • Butter the base of a 20cm x 30cm baking tin (use a loose-bottomed tin if you have one) and line with baking paper. Roll 1/2 the dough into a large rectangle at least 30cm x 40cm in size, then drape into the tin to line it. Don’t worry if it rips, just press the dough back together. Put in the fridge to chill.

• Roll out the other 1/2 of dough to a large rectangle about 1/2cm thick, and use a ruler as a template to cut out enough 30cm- and 20cm-long strips to cover the whole pie. Keep re-rolling the trimmings to cut more. Draw a template of the tin on baking paper, then lay enough 30cm strips side by side to cover the space. Fold alternating strips back on themselves. Lay a 20cm strip across in the space just below the folds, then fold the halved longer strips back down – the shorter strip should be latticed into the middle. Using each newest strip as your guide, fold alternating long strips back over themselves, giving space to lay a new short strip. When the strips are unfolded the pastry should be neatly latticed together (see opposite). Work up to each end of the template, until the whole space is latticed. Trim the edges neatly so the pastry top will fit snugly inside the tin. Freeze the lattice top for 20 minutes. • Toss together all the filling ingredients in a big bowl, then tip into the chilled pie base and use a sharp knife to neatly trim the overhanging pastry so the top is just above the filling. Carefully put the frozen lattice on top.

• Heat the oven to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 with a baking sheet in it. Brush the lattice top with egg, sprinkle with sugar and carefully put the pie on top of the preheated baking sheet. Bake for 45 minutes until the crust is deep brown, with the juices bubbling through it. Cool for 20 minutes before removing from the tin and serving. PER SERVING 481 KCALS | FAT 27.2G SATURATES 17G | CARBS 51.9G | SUGARS 20.1G FIBRE 3.1G | PROTEIN 5.7G | SALT 0.8G