Preheat and prepare the pan

• Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
• Grease a 9-inch round (or 8- or 9-inch square) baking pan with cooking spray, then line it with parchment paper covering the bottom and sides.
• Place the pan on a baking sheet and set aside.

Make the apple pie filling

• Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
• Add the flour and apple pie spice and stir well, then add the brown sugar and stir.
• Add the diced apples and water, stir, cover and cook until the apples are soft, stirring occasionally.
• Remove from the heat and strain the juices, saving them to serve with the bread pudding.

Prepare the custard

• Combine the milk, cream, butter, granulated sugar, salt, vanilla, cinnamon and apple pie spice in a saucepan over medium-low heat.
• Whisk until the butter is melted, then remove from the heat.
• Add the eggs one at a time, whisking between each addition; do not cook any longer.

Layer the bread and apples

• Place a third of the bread cubes in the prepared pan and press down to compress.
• Spread about a third of the apple filling on top, then repeat with another third of the bread and another third of the filling.
• Finish with the last third of the bread cubes and the rest of the apple filling.

Soak with custard and top

• Pour the custard all over the bread, making sure every piece is well soaked.
• Gently press down on the bread so there are no dry parts.
• Sprinkle the top with turbinado sugar if desired.

Bake

• Bake on the baking sheet until the top is golden and set but still slightly wobbly when shaken.

Rest and serve

• Remove from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes, then remove from the pan.
• Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and the reserved apple juices.