TOTAL TIME: PREP 25 mins COOK 22 mins

Ingredients -

300g dried mixed fruit
200g apricot jam
25ml brandy

For the pastry
200g plain flour
100g butter, cut into cubes
1 egg yolk

For the crunchy crumble
100g plain flour
25g icing sugar, plus extra for dusting
50g butter, cut into cubes
50g whole almonds, roughly chopped

Directions -

Put the dried fruit and jam in a small pan, heat until melted together, then stir in the brandy and cool. Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.

For the pastry, set aside 2 tbsp flour and put the rest plus the butter in a food processor. Whizz until there are no lumps of butter. Pulse in the egg yolk, followed by a tbsp of water at a time, until the dough comes together – you’ll probably need 2 tbsp. (If you don’t have a food processor, rub butter into the flour with your fingers, then stir in the yolk and water with a round-bladed knife.) Use the reserved flour to roll out the pastry to just over the thickness of a £1 coin. Stamp circles with an 8cm cutter and press into holes of a bun tin – you should get 15 from re-rolling the trimmings.

Divide the fruit amongst the pies, then bake for 5 mins while you rub together all the crumble ingredients with your fingers. Top each pie with crumble, then return to the oven for 15 mins until pastry and crumble are golden. Eat warm or cold dusted with icing sugar.