The Forme of Cury apple pie recipe put its fruit in a pastry casing called a cofyn.
The late-14th-century cookbook gives a filling of apples, spices, figs, raisins and pears, coloured with saffron. The ingredients were placed in a cofyn and baked. The word meant a pastry case or container, rather than the light, flaky crust associated with modern apple pie.
Medieval pie casings were often sturdy enough to support the filling during cooking. They could function partly as baking vessels, and diners did not always eat the hardened pastry. This is why “cofyn” is more precise than generic options such as manchet or barm, which refer to other baked goods.
The Forme of Cury was compiled for the household of Richard II around 1390. Its recipe shows that an early English apple pie could include dried fruits and pears as well as apples, making it quite different from the familiar modern version.