Apple Streusal Pie

Pastry:
185g (1 ½ cups) plain flour
125g (½cup) butter, chilled
50g (½ cup) rolled oats
2 tablespoons sugar
Finely grated rind of 1 lemon
1 egg yolk
2-3 tablespoons water
Egg white to glaze
Filling:
1kg (2lb) cooking apples or one tin of pie apples if you are in a hurry
1 tablespoon lemon juice
90g ((½cup) sultanas
90g (½cup) brown sugar
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

Topping:
30g (1 tablespoon) butter
2 tablespoons brown sugar
2 tablespoons plain four
25G (¼ cup) rolled oats

Method:
Pastry:
Sift flour into bowl. Cut butter into small cubes, add to flour and beat with K beater at speed 1 for 30 seconds. Slowly increase to speed 3 and beat for 1 ½ minutes longer. Add rolled oats, sugar and lemon rind, mix for 10 seconds to combine, then add egg yolk and water gradually and mix to a firm dough at speed 1, increasing to speed 2 until dough leaves sides of bowl cleanly.

Filling:
Peel, core and slice apples thinly. Place in a bowl and sprinkle with lemon juice. Add sultanas, brown sugar and ground cinnamon and mix gently.

Topping:
Place all ingredients in blender or food processor and blend briefly, just until crumbly.

To finish pie:
On a lightly floured board, roll out pastry to a think round and line a 23 cm (9 inch) pie plate and decorate edge. Prick base of pastry and glaze all over with lightly beaten egg white. Place filling carefully into pastry case, shaping it into a dome in the centre. Sprinkle topping over filling. Stand pie on a baking tray and bake in a hot over at 200°C (400°F) for 10 minutes. Reduce temperature to moderate at 180°C (350°F) for a further 40 minutes, or until apples are just tender.
Serve Apple Streusal Pie either hot or cold with whipped cream.

(serves 8)

Source of Recipe: Anne's Perfect Pie Book by Anne Marshall, Hamlyn, Australia (circa 1978). It came with my Kenwood Chef in October 1980.

The Story Behind the Recipe

Apple Streusal Pie is on top of the links list because it is my family's favourite 'special' dessert from childhood and teens. What the kids don't realise is that the tradition as favourite started before they were born.

I've had more phone calls from the kids asking me

"What do I put in Apple Streusal Pie, again, please, Mum?"

than any other recipe from The Blue Book, my now well-thumbed book of hand-written (tried and true) recipes sourced from various other books, family or friends.

It's the recipe that prompted me to set up this blog just so that the kids (now all in their mid-20s to early 30s) could click on a link on their home computer desktop and find the favourites from childhood and youth.
While Apple Streusal Pie is usually served straight from the oven, piping hot, I enjoy it just as much cold from the fridge the next day - if there is any left!