Gordon Ramsay’s apple pie is made with caramelised Bramley and Braeburn apples, cinnamon and nutmeg, baked inside crisp sweet pastry until deep golden. The apples are fried and cooled before they ever meet the crust. It takes about an hour and a half start to finish.
This is his caramelised apple pie from Great British Pub Food, where he says the traditional puddings, apple pie among them, “always sell out” on his pub menus. It is a real Ramsay recipe rather than his name bolted onto a generic one, and the difference is all in how the filling is built.
That filling is cooked before it goes in, and it is the step that makes or breaks the pie. Raw apples shrink in the oven and leave a hollow gap under the lid, so he caramelises them first to drive off the water. In his words, precooking means they “won’t shrink during baking and create air pockets inside the pie.”
Gordon Ramsay Apple Pie
Course: DessertCuisine: BritishDifficulty: Medium8
servings30
minutes40
minutes420
kcalFrom Gordon Ramsay’s Great British Pub Food, using the Bramley and Braeburn blend from his apples masterclass. The fruit is fried in spiced butter until caramelised, cooled, then sealed in crisp sweet pastry and baked on a hot tray. Serve warm with cream or vanilla ice cream.
Ingredients
- For the filling:
3 Bramley apples, peeled, cored, cut into thick chunks
2 Braeburn apples, peeled, cored, cut into thick chunks
100g caster sugar, plus extra for sprinkling
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
50g unsalted butter
- For the pastry:
450g sweet shortcrust pastry (good all-butter shop-bought is fine)
1 egg yolk, beaten with 2 tsp water
Directions
- Caramelise the apples: Mix the sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg, then toss the apple chunks to coat. Melt half the butter in a wide pan and fry half the apples over high heat until golden at the edges, about 5 minutes. Repeat with the rest, then leave to cool completely.
- Line the tin: Roll half the pastry and line a 20cm metal pie tin, pressing out trapped air. Roll the rest for the lid.
- Fill and seal: Spoon in the cooled apples. Brush the rim with water, lay the lid over, press to seal, crimp and trim.
- Glaze and bake: Egg wash, sprinkle with sugar, cut a small cross in the top for steam. Bake at 190C on a preheated metal tray for 35 to 40 minutes until deep golden. Rest 15 to 20 minutes before slicing.
FAQs
Why does Ramsay use two kinds of apple?
He is firm that “it’s got to be a sharp Bramley” for the cooking apple, but he does not stop at one variety. He fries tart Bramleys together with sweet Braeburns, because he loves “the combination of the tartness from the Bramley with the sweetness of the Braeburn.”
A single apple tends to land either too sour or a bit flat, so the blend gives you balance in every bite. If you would rather skip peeling altogether, his apple crumble takes the opposite route, skins left on and half the fruit grated.
Is this basically a tarte tatin?
Sort of, and Ramsay says so himself: “I love the flavour of caramelised apples in a tarte Tatin, and this is a way of bringing that flavour into a classic apple pie.” The caramelised fruit is the shared idea.
The difference is the build. His apple tarte tatin caramelises Cox’s apples and flips them upside down onto puff pastry, and his pear tarte tatin does the same with pears and star anise, while this one seals the fruit inside a double crust.
How do I stop the bottom going soggy?
Ramsay blames the dish more than the baker. Ceramic pie plates look the part but conduct heat poorly, so the base steams instead of crisping, and that is where the sog comes from.
He uses a metal tin and, just as important, sits it on a metal tray that is already hot from the oven. The heat drives straight up into the pastry, so the bottom crisps rather than sweats.
Do I need to make my own pastry?
No, and Ramsay is relaxed about it. He is happy to buy a good all-butter pastry rather than make it every time, so a quality sweet shortcrust is no cheat at all.
If you do make your own, two rules from him. Do not work it more than you must or the butter turns oily and it bakes tough, the “hot hands” trap, and rest it in the fridge for twenty minutes so it won’t crack or shrink when you roll it.
Can I make it ahead, and how do I store it?
Yes, and it reheats well. Covered in the fridge it keeps two to three days, though the base softens, so warm a slice in the oven rather than the microwave to bring the crunch back.
You can also bake the whole pie a day ahead and reheat it gently before serving. For a pudding actually built to be made in advance, his tiramisu sits happily in the fridge and only improves.
