Grandma's Apple Squares

Apple Squares top the list of beloved desserts my grandma withholds until the right cousin asks at the correct moment. This recipe features a more complete set of instruction with the familiar vagueness of a Grandma recipe. She claims the lack of instruction is a "shortcut" but I've yet to be convinced... Dough Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup all purpose flour

• 2 sticks room temperature butter

• 1/2 cup sugar

• 4 1/2 cream

• 1/2 lemon zest

Filling Ingredients:

• 2 1/2 lbs Granny Smith peeled apples, sliced

• 1 tsp cinnamon

• 1 shake of cloves (says grandma)

• 1/2 cup raisins or sultanas

• 1/2 cup sugar with juice of 1/2 a lemon

• 1 tbsp cornstarch

Method:

1. Make like consistency pie dough, roll out 1/2 the dough and bake in 9x13 baking dish for 8 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit

2. Mix apples, cinnamon, cloves, raisins, sugar, lemon juice, and cornstarch in a bowl. Microwave for 15 minutes (Look, I'm as surprised as you are to find out all these years she's been throwing a microwave into the mix. So much for French integrity)

3. Pour hot apples over the baked bottom. Cover with 2nd half of the dough and rub cake with egg and 1 tbsp lemon juice. Sprinkle with sugar.

4. Bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees. Once golden, remove from oven and let cool completely. Perfect served on it's own or with vanilla ice cream.