If making the a regular non matcha pie, double up the regular pie dough below.

Matcha dough: Measure the flour, matcha, sugar and salt into a bowl and whisk together well. Add the butter. Rub the butter into the flour with your fingers until pea- sized crumbs form. Add 90ml of the ice cold water in the center. Mix together until the mixture just starts to come together. Add another tablespoon or two of the water if needed. Remove from the bowl at this point onto a lightly floured surface. Press the dough until it just comes together. Press into a disc, wrap up the dough and leave in the fridge for at least 30mins.

Bottom crust dough:

Measure the flour, sugar and salt into a bowl and whisk together well. Add the butter and rub into the flour with your fingers until there is a range of larger walnut sized and pea- sized crumbs. Add 50ml of the cold water in the center. Mix together until the mixture just starts to come together. Add another tablespoon or two of the water if needed. Remove from the bowl at this point onto a lightly floured surface. Press the dough until it just comes together. Form into a disc, wrap up the dough and leave in the fridge for at least 30mins.

Roll out each of the discs onto a well floured surface to 4-5mm thickness. Line the the bottom of a buttered 9inch pie dish with the regular pie dough. Trim any overhang to 1″. Fold the overhanging dough underneath. (If you are adding the merry xmas on top keep and re-roll the scraps, re-chill and cut out the letters for the top). With the matcha dough, place on baking parchment on a large baking sheet. Chill in the fridge for 30mins.

Filling

Put the lemon juice in a large bowl. Peel, core and slice the apples thinly, tossing them in the lemon juice. Add the rest of the filling ingredients and toss to combine.

To assemble

If doing a cut out tree topping, cut out the tree shapes with cookie cutters out of the rolled out dough sheet.

Preheat the oven to 425F.

Tightly pack the filling into the prepared pie dish. Brush the edges with a little water and lay the tree shapes all over the top of the apples, starting at the bottom. Or simple lay the dough sheet on top, fold the edges together with the bottom layer and crimp the edges. Slice a hole in the top for steam to escape.

For a regular pie, whisk the egg and water together for the eggwash. Brush all over the top of the pie. You can omit this for a matcha pie to preserve the colour better. Bake the pie on a large rimmed baking sheet for 25mins. Lower the oven to 375F and bake for another 30-40mins until the crust is golden and the juices are bubbling. Let the pie cool for at least 4 hrs before serving.