Apple Hand Pies
User Reviews
4.5
Apple Hand Pies
Description
The dough for the Apple Hand Pies is prepared by cutting vegetable shortening into a flour, salt, and sugar mixture, then binding with ice-cold water to form a smooth, chillable dough. The chilling step facilitates a flaky crust texture. The filling mixes peeled, cored, and diced apples with granulated and brown sugar and apple pie spice for warmth and sweetness. A bit of flour is added to help thicken the filling during baking.
Once assembled, the pies are baked at 400°F until the crust is golden and firm. Egg wash and optional sparkling sugar topping add shine and a slight crisp texture on top. The hand pies offer a portable fruit dessert option with balance between flaky crust and soft spiced apples.
If extra filling remains, it can be used to make apple turnovers with puff pastry. Proper flour measuring is important to ensure the crust develops correctly without toughness.
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- ¾ cup vegetable shortening (Crisco is preferred)
- 4 to 8 tablespoons water ice cold
For the Filling
- 2 apple peeled, cored, and diced, large, baking variety
- 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons light brown sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons apple pie spice
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
For Topping
- 1 egg large
- 1 teaspoon water
- Sparkling Sugar optional
Instructions
For the Crust
- In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar.
- Cut shortening into flour mixture using pastry blender or two knives.
- Stir in just enough water with a fork until dough holds together.
- TIP: Test dough for proper moistness by squeezing a marble-sized ball of dough in your hand. If it holds together firmly, do not add any additional water. If the dough crumbles, add more water by the tablespoonful, until dough is moist enough to form a smooth ball when pressed together.
- Shape dough into a ball and flatten into a round disk. For ease in rolling, wrap dough in plastic wrap. Chill for 30 minutes or up to 2 days.
- Once dough is chilled and you’re ready to assemble the pies, preheat oven to 400°F, line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and prepare the filling.
For the Filling
- In a medium bowl, toss the apples with the sugars, apple pie spice and flour.
Assemble the Pies
- Remove dough from refrigerator and remove from the plastic wrap.
- On a generously-floured work surface, roll the dough until it is about 1/8-inch thick.
- Use a 5 inch round cookie cutter to cut the dough into circles. Reroll dough as needed in order to create 8-10 circles.
- Add one heaping tablespoon of filling to the center of each dough circle, leaving as much liquid behind as possible.
- Fold the dough circle in half and use your fingers or a fork to seal and crimp the edges.
- Place hand pies on prepared baking sheet.
- In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and water.
- Use the tip of a sharp knife to cut 2 small slits into the tops of each pie.
- Use a pastry brush to lightly brush the tops of the hand pies with the egg wash. If desired, top with sparkling sugar.
- Bake in preheated for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
- Allow hand pies to cool. If desired, serve with homemade salted caramel sauce.
Notes
- Leftover apple filling can be used in puff pastry to make small apple turnovers.
- Measure flour accurately to achieve the right crust texture, avoiding heaviness or dryness.
- Chilling the dough before rolling improves ease of handling and final crust flakiness.
User Reviews
Overall Rating
4.5
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