Apple Hand Pies

Apple pie is amazing at any time of the year, but something about biting into that warm, cinnamon gooeyness in Autumn that makes it more than a yummy treat — it becomes an experience, a treasured memory. Make these apple hand pies that are just like eating a big slice of a large pie except you don’t need a fork or even a plate (unless you want to have it with ice cream or whipped cream). If you do serve it on a plate, try it with a generous drizzle of my caramel sauce!

Ingredients:

Pie Filling…

  • 2 cups finely diced apples
  • 2 tablespoons of butter
  • 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
  • 1.5 teaspoon of cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
  • 1/8 teaspoon cloves

Crust…

  • 2 cups all purpose flour (you can also use King Arthur’s Gluten Free Flour if you have sensitivities)
  • 1/2 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1 and 1/2 sticks of cold butter, cut into small cubes
  • 2 large egg yolks
  • 2 tbsp cold milk

Steps:

  1. Combine the diced apples, butter, brown sugar, spices in a skillet over medium-low heat on the stove. Stir occasionally, to make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom of skillet, while mixture simmers for 5-7 minutes or until the apples are tender. Now, let’s make the crust!…
  2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, powdered sugar, baking powder, and salt.
  3. Using your fingers or a pastry cutter, cut butter into the mixture until it is crumbly. You can also do this in a heavy duty food processor, just make sure not to over mix.
  4. Add the egg yolks and milk, mix with silicone spatula until the dough is combined. Again, do not over mix — right when the dough is combined go to the next step.
  5. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to about 1/8 inch thick. Use a 3 or 4 inch circle cookie cutter and cut out as many circles as you can. Re-roll the dough and cut more circles as needed.
  6. Make sure you either grease a baking sheet with butter, oil or cooking spray. Then place the bottom crust of the hand pies on the baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Add about 2 tablespoons of apple filling to the center of each crust.
  7. Place the top crust over the filling and use a fork to crimp the edges, sealing the bottom and top crusts together. Use a knife to carefully create two or three small air vents.
  8. Place the baking sheet in the fridge for 30 minutes to chill the dough before baking. This is an important step so the hand pies don’t fall apart!
  9. After 30 minutes, take the chilled hand pies out of the fridge and preheat the oven to 350º F.
  10. Brush each pie with egg wash (1 egg mixed with 1 taplespoon of water).
  11. Bake for 18-22 minutes or until the pies begin to turn golden. Serve with ice cream, whipped cream, and/or caramel sauce or just enjoy it like well… like a hand pie! 🙂