Denise says:

Buy the best apples for this pie as the ingredients are not cooked. It has an amazing nutty texture with the crust and topping using a good variety of different nuts; macadamia, walnuts, cashews and / or pecans. A vegan’s delight!

Preparation Time: 30 minutes
Cooking: 3 minutes – optional!

Ingredients:

For the Crust
200g macadamia or cashew nuts
150g pecans or walnuts
100g dates
Large pinch of sea salt

For the filling
150g dried apples, roughly chopped
100ml apple juice
~
4 apples - cored
1 tablespoon lemon juice
200g dates, soaked in boiling water for 5 minutes and then drained
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Large pinch of nutmeg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon maple syrup
Small pinch of sea salt

For the topping
90g pecans or walnuts, finely chopped
100g dates, finely chopped – about 4 large dates
½ teaspoon vanilla extract
Large pinch of ground cinnamon

Garnish: 1 apple – thinly sliced with skin on - dip into lemon juice

Method

1. Soak the dried apples in the apple juice for an hour or place in a dish covered with cling film, microwave on high for 3 minutes.
2. To make the base, pulse all the ingredients in a blender until a rough, sticky crumble has formed.
3. Line a 23cm loose based cake tin with baking parchment paper and press base on top. Place in the fridge for 1 hour to firm up.
4. Drain the dried apples, which should now be soft and plump.
5. Put the fresh apples, dried apples, lemon juice, dates, cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla extract, maple syrup and salt into the blender and pulse until well combined.
6. Spoon on to the pie base and smooth out.
7. To make the topping, mix together the pecans, dates and vanilla in a bowl and spread over the top of the pie to form a crust. Sprinkle with the cinnamon.
8. Cover and place in the fridge for an hour to chill. Serve at room temperature.

Garnish: Slice an apple into thin circles and sit on the top of the cake.