Apple Hand Pies
Happy apple pie day, everyone!
Yes, this is a made up social media holiday, most likely an American invention, but since is autumn here down under, may 13th is actually a perfect day for baking apple pies.
The first written apple pie recipe goes back to 1381 in England. (American as apple pie? I don’t think so.) It included apples, figs, raisins, pears and a pastry crust.
Even though I’ve baked many apple pies before, today I’ve decide to challenge myself. I’ve been baking a lot during these isolation days. Trying out new recipes, experimenting with new ingredients and attempting new techniques.
Baking is a wonderful pastime, I think, it keeps my hands and mind busy, it keeps me entertained and more importantly, it keeps away from mindless internet shenanigans.
Today, I’m giving it a go at those pesky lattice mini tops. This technique is really time consuming, this is why I’ve never tried it before, but these strange days, time is ALL we have, so why not give it a try?
APPLE HAND PIES
Ingredients
CRUST
- 360 g flour
- 220 g salted butter
- 25 g sugar
- 100 ml cold water
FILLING
- 4 apples peeled, cored, diced
- 30 g salted butter
- 40 g sugar
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 tsp cornstarch
- 50 g almond paste
TOPPING
- 1 egg
- 1 tbsp sugar
Instructions
CRUST
- Mix together flour and sugar in a bowl
- Dice the butter in small pieces and add to dry ingredients
- Using your fingers, incorporate butter until dough is crumbly but there are still some small visible pieces
- Add cold water, little by little, mixing it until dough comes together (don't knead the dough)
- Divide dough into two equal balls, seal each ball with cling wrap and put it in the fridge for 1 hour
FILLING
- Place sugar in a saucepan over low heat until it starts to melt around the edges
- Stir it until the sugar is completely melted and golden brown
- Add butter in increments, stirring in between additions
- Add cinnamon
- Add apples little by little and cook until they have soften
- Mix lemon juice and cornstarch separately and add to the mixture, cook until the mixture thickens
- Let it cool completely, then stir in the almond paste
ASSEMBLY
- Let the dough rest for 10 minutes at room temperature
- Roll out one piece of dough 5mm thick on a lightly floured surface
- Using a 10 cm cutter, cut out 8 rounds and transfer onto a baking sheet covered with baking paper
- Add leftover dough to the other half and get working on that lattice (or use cookie cutters for shapes and other decorative patterns)
- Spoon filling onto the dough bases, leaving a small border free from filling
- Brush the border with some water, then place the lattice, lids or cutouts on top of the filling, pressing gently with a fork or your fingers around the edges to seal
- Transfer the pies to the freezer for 15 minutes, meanwhile preheat the oven to 180°C
- Whisk the egg with a pinch of salt in a small bowl, brush pies with the egg wash, then sprinkle them with some sugar
- Bake for 30 minutes, or until golden brown