Time: 1 1/2 hours
Feeds: 3-4 people (makes 9 apple hand pies)
Ingredients:
For the crust:
- 1/3 cup cold shortening, diced
- 1/3 cup cold butter, grated
- 2 cups flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 4-5 tbsp ice cold water
For the apple filling:
- 4 Granny Smith apples
- 3 Honeycrisp apples
- 1/2 tsp clove
- 1/2 tsp ginger
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 3-4 tbsp cornstarch
- 3-4 tbsp water
For assembly
- 1/4 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/4 cup turbinado sugar (I use sugar in the raw)
Directions:
For the crust: Combine the shortening, butter and flour until the fat is in pea sized pieces amongst the flour. Add the salt and mix thoroughly. Once everything is combined, add the cold water and mix until the dough becomes shaggy. At this point, turn the dough out onto your work surface and start working together until a tighter dough forms. You might have to add additional water but do so a tablespoon at a time because you don’t want it to get too hydrated. This should all be moving quickly as you don’t want the dough to get too warm or for it to get worked too much.
Pie dough is finicky so patience is required. Once the dough has come together. Form into a square and wrap in plastic wrap to rest in the fridge until you’re ready to use it.
For the apple filling: Peel the apples and cut them into a fine dice. Since these are small hand pies, it’s important that the apples are cut small enough that you can add an appropriate amount to each. Add the apples to a large bowl and then add the spices, salt, and brown sugar.
Once everything has been mixed, add to a skillet and heat on medium. You’ll want to cook the apples down until they have released some of their moisture but still have a little bit of a bite to them. The liquid should be brought to a simmer in this process so it can cook some and concentrate.
When the apples have reached the doneness that you prefer, make a cornstarch slurry and add that to the apples while still on the heat. Stir constantly in this process and you should see the mixture tighten up quickly. If it gets too thick, you can always add a little water to thin it out slightly but you want it to stay on the thicker side so assembling the hand pies is easier.
Remove the apples from the heat and add to a container. Refrigerate until you’re ready to assemble the pies.
For assembly: Remove the pie dough and apple filling from the fridge. Roll out the pie dough until it’s about 1/4” thick. You don’t want it to get too thin or the pies might fall apart in the assembly process. If the dough is cracking and too cold, stop rolling and let it come closer to room temperature so it’s more malleable. Measure out the dough into 4-5” squares and cut them out. Add a heaping tablespoon of the apple filling to each square. Use a bit of water to help seal the edges and then fold in half creating triangles. Crimp with a fork to ensure they’re sealed completely. Add to a parchment lined quarter sheet tray and put in the freezer for at least a couple of hours. Once they are frozen, you can transfer them to a plastic bag for better storage.
For air frying: Preheat the air fryer. While the air fryer is preheating, remove the number of hand pies you would like from the freezer and brush them with heavy cream. After you’ve brushed them, you can add turbinado sugar to the top to add some crunch and sweetness. Once preheated, add the pies to the basket so long as they’re in a single layer. These can be baked from frozen. Air fry at 400 for 8-10 minutes until they’re browned to your liking. Keep an eye on them as to not let them burn.
Notes: A version of this recipe is going to be undergoing further testing for a truly fried version of this. I had high hopes that was how these would be cooked the first go around but alas, pie crust is finicky.