For the pastry

300 g semi-wholemeal flour

150 g fresh cream butter

50 ml iced water

salt

For the filling

1 kg apples

juice and finely grated zest of 1 lemon

100 g unrefined cane sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

a pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

1 tablespoon flour

salt

Method

Place the flour in a bowl with a pinch of salt and the
softened butter. Work the ingredients together, adding the iced
water, and knead until you obtain a smooth, uniform ball of dough.
Wrap the dough in cling film and leave it to rest
in the refrigerator for about half an hour.

Meanwhile, peel and slice the apples into wedges, place them
in a bowl and add the spices, the sugar, the tablespoon
of flour, the lemon juice and its finely grated zest.
Mix well.

Using a rolling pin, roll out just over half of the
pastry into a sheet approximately 5 mm thick, and lay it into a
buttered and floured cake tin.

Trim away the excess pastry with a small knife,
then fill with the apple mixture, spreading it
evenly across the tin.

Roll out the remaining pastry as before, but this time
cut it into strips approximately 3 cm wide. Arrange the
strips over the top of the cake to create a lattice that covers the
filling. Seal the edges of the cake by pressing with your fingers.
Brush the surface with milk.

Bake at 200° for 20 minutes, then lower
the temperature to 180° and cook for a further 20 minutes, lower
again to 170° and cook until the surface of the cake is
nicely golden. Once cooking is complete,
brush the surface of the cake with a beaten egg and, if desired,
add a dusting of sugar, leaving it to cool
in the switched-off oven.