Nut cake with caramelized apples

DOUGH INSTRUCTIONS

• 1
  Sift the flour together with sugar and baking powder, mix in salt and finely ground nuts. Add butter cut into cubes, egg yolk, and knead the dough. Divide it into halves, wrap one in cling film and place in the refrigerator. Press the other half over the entire surface of a 23 cm diameter springform pan, the bottom of which has been lined with baking paper. Prick the dough with a fork and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• 2
  Pre-bake the chilled dough in the pan for 15 minutes in an oven preheated to 160°C with a fan.

FILLING INSTRUCTIONS

• 1
  Wash, peel, quarter the apples, remove the cores, and cut each quarter into three pieces.
• 2
  In a wider saucepan or deep pan, combine sugar and lemon juice, and dissolve it over low heat, stirring constantly. Let the dissolved sugar caramelize without stirring for about 1 to 2 minutes until golden, then add apples and vanilla. Cook the apples for five minutes, stirring carefully with a wooden spoon to prevent them from breaking apart too much. Remove the saucepan from the heat, mix the starch in ½ dcl of water, and pour it into the apples while stirring constantly. Spread the mixture over the pre-baked crust.
• 3
  Roll out the second half of the dough into a sheet about 4 mm thick, cut long strips about 1.5 cm wide from it, and arrange them in a lattice pattern on top of the cake.
• 4
  Bake for 50 to 60 minutes in an oven preheated to 170°C with a fan. After baking, let it cool, and before serving, you can dust it with vanilla sugar or powdered sugar.