Cinnamon Apple
Hand Pies
Sort of like apple pie pop tarts? Flaky, buttery squares bursting with gooey, cinnamony, apple-y goodness. So good.
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Makes 12 hand pies
Prep time: 2 hrs
Cook time: 30 min
What you’ll need
For the pie dough
1 cup all purpose flour
2 tsp white sugar
1/2 tsp salt (if using unsalted butter)
1 stick very cold butter (4 ounces, I used Miyoko’s)
1/4 cup ice cold water
For the apple filling
2 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced into small chunks
2 tsp cornstarch
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 cup brown sugar
Prep
In a large bowl, combine flour, sugar, and salt, mixing thoroughly. Take your very cold butter and cut it into cubes about 1/2 inch wide, and add it to the flour mixture. With your fingers, press the cubes of butter flat. Add the ice cold water, and then knead the dough mixture briefly, just until it comes together. If it's too dry, wet your hands and knead the dough more. The dough should still be cold to the touch. If not, pop it back into the freezer for about 10-15 min before rolling it out.
On a large, clean floured surface, roll out the chilled ball of dough into a wide rectangle. Fold the rectangle into three sections (imagine a trifold) and then lengthwise again. This will create buttery, flaky layers when rolled out later. Wrap tightly, and let chill in fridge for at least 1.5 hours.
Peel and dice the apples into tiny pieces. In a small pot, combine the apples, brown sugar, cornstarch slurry, cinnamon, and nutmeg as well as a splash of water and bring to a simmer. Let cook for a few minutes, until the mixture is caramel-y and thick.
Pour mixture into a bowl or tupperware and let cool.
Assemble
On a floured surface, roll out the chilled dough to about 1/8" thick and cut into rectangles about 2x4 big. You'll need 2 rectangles for each hand pie. For half of the rectangles, you can either use a small cookie cutter to cut out a shape, or after assembly cut a cross slit with a knife to allow steam to escape.
Take a rectangle and spread some apple filling, leaving the edges out. Place the rectangle with the cutout on top of the one with apple filling, and press with a fork to seal the edges closed. Repeat until dough is used up.
Transfer hand pies to a baking sheet and let chill for an additional 30 minutes in the freezer if you'd like the shapes to stay intact. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Eat while warm!
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