Almond Pie

Here’s a dessert from Bon Appétit, an almond pie from Spain. I didn’t like the dough recipe – it made too much, and the crust ended up being too thick for my taste; I would just use my regular recipe for a single-crust pie next time. The filling, however, is heavenly! The Engineer said he could eat this all day. 

For the crust 

1 cup (2 sticks) chilled lactose-free butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for the pan 

2 ½ cups (313 g) all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan and countertop 

1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt 

1 tsp. sugar 

4 tsp. ice water 

4 tsp. gin or vodka, or more ice water 

For the custard and assembly 

2 ½ cup (500 g) sugar 

1 cup water 

9 large egg yolks 

2 large eggs 

¼ tsp. almond extract (optional, but why would you skip it?) 

2 ½ cups (240 g) ground almond flour or meal 

1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt 

For the crust 

Grease a 9-inch deep pie dish with unsalted butter, then lightly dust with all-purpose flour, shaking out excess. Whisk 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt, 1 tsp. sugar, and 2½ cups (313 g) all-purpose flour in a large bowl to combine. Add 1 cup (2 sticks) chilled lactose-free butter, cut into small pieces, and toss to coat. Working quickly and aggressively, rub and smash butter into dry ingredients with your fingers to create shaggy pieces (you want some that are flat and thin and some that are pea-size). 

Combine 4 tsp. ice water and 4 tsp. gin or vodka or more ice water in a small bowl; drizzle over flour mixture, stirring with a fork to evenly distribute. Knead dough in bowl until it starts to come together (it will still look a little dry). Turn dough out onto a surface and knead 1 or 2 more times to incorporate shaggy edges. Press into a 1"-thick disk. Wrap tightly in plastic and chill at least 1 hour. 

Roll out disk of dough on a lightly floured surface to ¼" thick. Carefully transfer to pie dish. Lift up edges and allow dough to slump down into dish. Gently press into edges of dish if needed. Trim overhang so dough is flush with edges of pan. Freeze crust at least 1 hour and up to 1 week. 

For the custard and assembly 

Place a rack in middle of oven; preheat to 375 °F. Heat 2½ cups (500 g) sugar and 1 cup water in a medium saucepan over medium, whisking occasionally, until sugar is dissolved, about 5 minutes. Transfer syrup to a small bowl and let cool. 

Meanwhile, remove crust from freezer and prick bottom in several places with a fork. Line with parchment paper or foil, leaving overhang; fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until set and edges are barely golden, 13–17 minutes. Remove crust from oven and, using overhang, lift out parchment paper and pie weights. 

Whisk 9 large egg yolks and 1 large egg in a large bowl to combine. Add cooled syrup and ¼ tsp. almond extract (if using) and whisk to combine. Add 2½ cups (240 g) ground almond flour or meal and 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt and whisk again to combine. Transfer mixture to a blender and blend on high until very smooth and airy, about 1 minute. Pour filling into crust. 

Lightly beat remaining 1 large egg in a small bowl and brush crust with egg. 

Reduce oven temperature to 350 °F and bake pie 30 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 300 °F and continue to bake pie until crust is deeply browned and top of filling is dark brown and set around the edges (a little jiggle in the center is okay), about 40 minutes. Transfer pie to a wire rack and let cool before slicing (if you cut pie while it is still warm, the slices will fall apart). The pie can be baked a day ahead; simply cover and chill.