Apple pasta flora

   I know you may have heard it as pasta frolla (actually it's our greek version), and that also it shouldn't be posted as a DB challenge, for the reason it's just inspired from it. However the truth is I was too busy to try all the recipes I wanted this month and finally ended up with this applle pasta flora with almond topping as a variation of our DB crostata! 

               Pasta flora dough

               170gr                                             cake flour

               75gr                                               butter

               60gr                                               granulated sugar

               1/2tsp                                            baking powder

               1                                                   big egg

               as preferred                                   vanilla powder

               Filling

               650gr                                             granny smith apples (net weight)

               60gr                                               molasses

               100ml                                             apple juice

               43gr                                               vanilla custard powder

               1/4                                                lemon (juice)

               up to 80gr                                       powdered sugar

              Almond topping

              200gr                                              almond flour

              50gr                                               granulated sugar

              40gr                                               powdered sugar

              1                                                    egg white

              6Tbs                                               cogniac

First prepare the cake base by beating butter with sugar and vanilla powder untill fluffy. Then add the egg and continue beating in order to fully incorporate it. Shift in the flour with baking powder, mix just until combined and refrigerate for 30min. Meanwhile cut the peeled and cored apples in slices, cook them with the juice until tender and let them drain keeping 50gr of their juice. In a separate bowl combine molasses, the remaining juice you've kept, the cooked apples and lemon, and  mash them with a hand blender. Shift in the vanilla powder and blend it in the mixture. As for the powdered sugar, you can add as much as you want from the given quantity gradually and tasting after each addition. When ready, roll  out the dough, cover the bottom of a 20x24cm pan (or ring with the same area) and prepare the topping. Mix the powdered sugar in the almond flour and use a blender to make it finer if necessary. Then moisten with the cogniac in order to make a paste and beat the egg white with sugar to meringue. Fold the meringue in the almond paste and fill a pastry bag. Pour the apple filling in the pan, pipe on top of it almond stripes and bake in a preheated oven at 170C for 25min and at 160C for another 10min.