Instructions: Apple cakes like this one are the traditional dessert in Ireland. The recipe varies from house to house and the individual technique has been passed from mother to daughter in farmhouses all over the country for generations. It would originally have been baked in a bastible or pot beside an open fire and later in the oven or stove on tin or enamel plates. These are much better than ovenproof glass because the heat travels through and cooks the pastry base more readily - worth remembering, as a pie with a soggy base is not attractive! In Ireland all apple cakes are made with cooking apples.

2 cups flour
1/3 teaspoon baking powder
8 tablespoons (1 stick) butter
2/3 cup superfine granulated sugar
1 egg, free-range if possible, beaten
1/2 to 2/3 cup milk, approx.

1 to 2 cooking apples
2 or 3 cloves (optional)

Beaten egg to glaze

Sieve the flour and baking powder into a bowl. Rub in the butter with your fingertips until it resembles the texture of bread crumbs. Add1/2 cup sugar, then make a well in the center and mix together with the beaten egg and enough milk to form a soft dough. Divide in two. Put one half onto a greased ovenproof plate

(9 inches in diameter) and pat it out to cover. Peel, core and chop up the apples. Place them on the dough with the cloves, if used, and add the remaining sugar, depending on the sweetness of the apples. Roll out the remaining pastry and fit it on top. (This is easier said than done as this pastry is very soft like scone dough. You may need to do a bit of patchwork if it breaks.) Press the sides together and cut a slit through the top crust. Brush with beaten egg wash and bake in a moderate oven at 350 F for about 40 minutes, or until cooked through and nicely browned. Dredge with superfine sugar and serve warm with dark brown sugar and softly whipped cream.

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