Cinnamon Apple Pie with Apple Caramel Sauce

Instructions for Preparing the Cinnamon Pastry Dough

1. Begin by mixing together your flours, sugar, salt and cinnamon in a large mixing bowl.
2. Work in your butter. I do this by adding the chopped pieces and then rubbing with my fingers until you've worked the butter into the dry ingredients. You're not looking for this to be mixed so thoroughly that you can no longer see any flecks of butter. A coarse mixture with some still obvious blobs of butter will actually add to the flakiness of the finish.
3. Slowly add your water. I start with about ¼ cup and then mix together, kneading lightly and adding a bit more water (a few teaspoons at a time) until it comes together as a dough. Avoid overadding water and overworking the dough since this can result in a tougher, less flakey consistency when baked.
4. Divide the dough into two balls and wrap with plastic wrap. Lightly flatten these rounds for easier rolling when the time comes. Place in the fridge for at least 2 hours to chill thoroughly.
5. After 2 hours, remove a dough ball from the fridge, working one at a time (leave the other in the fridge to avoid it warming up too much). Roll this out on a floured work surface until you have a large round, roughly ¼" thick.
6. With the first of your dough rounds, gently place into your pie plate, pressing into the corners to line the base and sides of the pan. It should overhang about an inch all around. Place the dough lined pie plate in the refrigerator to continue chilling while you're finishing your filling (if not ready to bake yet!).
7. Your second dough round can be rolled out in advance and chilled on a cookie sheet as a large flat crust (this will be your top crust for the pie). Or, you can leave the dough in the refrigerator unrolled until your filling is ready and you're about to put it all together for baking.

Instructions for Stewed Apples

1. Place your apple slices, lemon juice, sugars, spices and vanilla pod into a large saucepan. Give this a stir to coat your apple slices and set on a medium heat to cook for about 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. After about 15 minutes, you'll notice that the apples have released quite a lot of liquid. They should be warm, but shouldn't be translucent or soggy - the goal here isn't mushy applesauce consistency, but a nice crunch of apple. The timings will vary based on the thickness of your apple slices and the types/sizes and ripeness of apples you are using, so just keep an eye.
3. Once lightly stewed, drain the apples - I do this using a slotted spoon. Reserve the liquid, transferring to a smaller saucepan, to make your caramel (see below for instructions).
4. Allow the apples slices to cool completely. You don't want to add a hot filling to your dough, or this can cause it to melt - leading to unpleasant textures, holes and just general mayhem when baking! Once cool, stir through your flour.

Instructions for Putting the Pie Together and Baking

1. Preheat your oven to 380°F (200C or 180C for fan assisted ovens).
2. Spoon your stewed apple filling into the prepared pie shell and spread into an even layer. As the apples shouldn't be mushy, you may need to do a bit of manually moving the apples around to gently even out (avoid scraping at your dough or you may end up with holes).
3. If you've not done so already, roll out the second round of dough for your top crust. Gently brush the edges of your filled pie case with egg wash and place the top layer on to this.
4. Trim the crust around the sides of the pie. Leave about half an inch overhang to crimp closed.
5. Brush the top of the pie with egg wash and cut a small cross in the center of the top crust. This will allow steam to escape.
6. Place the pie in the center of your preheated oven and bake for about 45-50 minutes, until golden brown all over the top.
7. Remove from the oven and allow to cool a bit before slicing.

Instructions for Apple Caramel Sauce

1. Place the reserved juices from your stewed apples into a saucepan over a medium high heat. You'll want to use a small or medium saucepan as the liquids will come to a boil.
2. Bring the sauce to a boil, swirling the pan occasionally to stir this. Let it boil for about 15 minutes, beginning to thicken.
3. Add the butter and stir to melt through.
4. Remove the pan from the heat and add the cream slowly while whisking. The liquid may bubble up a bit at this stage, but whisking should help it to calm quickly.
5. Decant into a heat proof bowl or jar to allow to cool. Then spoon the sauce over top your slices of pie with some ice cream!