Apple Hand Pies

My all-time favorite pie is apple pie.  When I was a child, my dad used to stop by McDonalds on his way back from work and bring home their apple pies (my mom was used to cooking more traditional Pakistani/Indian food).  We weren’t accustomed to eating pie throughout the year; in fact, the only times that we really did were at Thanksgiving get-togethers, and the pies were the store-bought kind 100% of the time.  It was only until a few years ago, after I got serious about cooking and baking, that I delved into the art of pie-making.

A few weeks ago I came across this recipe on Brown Eyed Baker and decided to try these out. All I have to say is: OH MY GOD! I have missing out my entire life! The pastry is buttery and flaky and just plain perfect.  I adapted the filling based on how I make apple pie and was not left disappointed.  The recipe yielded 18 pies, and between 3 people we finished them in 1.5 days.

Embarrassed? Yes.

Remorseful? Absolutely not 😀

Apple Hand Pies

Yield: 15-18 Pies

Ingredients:

For Pastry:

•  2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
• ½ cup sour cream
• 4 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
• ½ cup water, cold

For Filling:

• 2 apples, peeled, cored, and diced small
• 1/3 cup sugar
• ¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ tablespoon all-purpose flour

For Topping:

• 1 egg yolk
• 2 tablespoons water
• Turbinado sugar, for garnish

Directions:

Make Pastry:

Combine all-purpose flour and salt in one bowl, and place butter in another.  Place both bowls in the freezer for one hour.

Remove from freezer and combine butter and flour mixture in a food processor and pulse until the butter has been equally distributed (should resemble course cornmeal). Remove from the food processor and place back in the bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together the sour cream, lemon juice, and water.  Add half of the sour cream mixture to the flour and mix using fingertips until large lumps form.  Move the large lumps to one side of the bowl, add the remaining half of the sour cream mixture, and mix just until everything begins to come together.  Pat the lumps into a ball, cover, and refrigerate for one hour (Dough can be stored in the freezer for up to one month at this point).

Divide the dough in half.  On a lightly floured surface, roll out each half of the dough to ¹/₈-inch thickness.  Using a 2 ½-inch cookie cutter, cut out as many circles as possible.  Transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Make Filling:

Combine apple, sugar, ground cinnamon, and all-purpose flour and set aside.  Drain any accumulated liquid prior to assembling pies.

To Assemble:

Spoon about one tablespoon of the apple filling into the center of a circle of dough. Dab around the circumference with cold water, and place another circle (which has also been brushed with water around the edges) on top and press down to seal.  Press the edges down again with the back of a fork. Return the pies to the refrigerator for 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375°F.  Prepare the egg-wash by whisking the egg yolk and water together. Brush the tops of the pies with the egg-wash and cut a small slit in the center of the pie.  Sprinkle turbinado sugar over the top, and bake for 22 to 28 minutes, or until golden-brown.  Cool for at least 20 minutes before serving.