Flaky Apple Hand Pies

Finally - it's Friday! I'm so glad this week is over. It's been busy at work and the weather hasn't helped either. In fact, yesterday I had a 3+ hour commute home, thanks to a snow storm we experienced. We ended up getting nearly 9 inches of snow, up in the far north Chicagoland suburbs! Granted, the best part of my day was being greeted with a much needed hug from The Baron after being cooped up in the car for so long. And because I was pretty much in a moving parking lot, I thought about how I would much rather be home baking. Which brings me to today's post. Not too long ago, I made these Flaky Apple Hand Pies to use up some apples I had. Pockets of buttery dough are filled with chopped apples that have been seasoned with cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and ginger, then baked until golden brown. Trust me, don't wait for a baking day to make these. In fact, I just might make another batch now lol...

The Baron enjoyed these so much, he happily took the leftovers home {since I simply cannot be teased with more baked goods lying around}. However, the real question is whether the leftovers were eaten up before The Baron even made it back to his house lol! What I liked about this recipe is the combination of spices used to season the apples. I suppose you could easily just use a 3/4 teaspoon of apple pie spice in place of the spices called for in the recipe, but if you already have the spices in your pantry, you might as well use them!

Flaky Apple Hand Pies
recipe adapted from The Fauxmartha

Ingredients

Pastry:

• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour all-purpose {or gluten free blend} flour*
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 2 sticks (16 tablespoons) unsalted butter, very cold
• 1 cup water with ice

Filling:

• 1 1/2 Granny Smith apples
• 2 McIntosh apples
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 1/8 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/8teaspoon cloves
• 1/8 teaspoon ginger

Cooking Directions

1. For the Pie Crust - Place flour, sugar, and salt in bowl. Whisk together. Dice butter and place into flour mixture. Using a pastry knife, cut butter into flour until it resembles coarse meal.
2. Using a pastry fork add 1/2 cup of the ice cold water into mixture and combine. Continue adding water 1 tablespoon at a time until dough just comes together. You may not need the full cup of water. Gather dough together. Cut in half, wrap disks in plastic wrap, and place in fridge for 30 minutes to chill. Warm dough is not your friend.
3. For the Apple Filling - Peel, core, and dice apples. Add the rest of the filling ingredients. Stir and set aside.
4. Preheat oven to 375°. Roll dough out on a well floured surface (about 1/8 inch thick). Using a 4 inch biscuit cutter, cut 16 circles out of the dough. Place the dough on a parchment lined baking sheet.
5. Spoon a small amount of the apple mixture into the center of the dough (about one heaping tablespoon), leaving 1/2 an inch or so clearing space around the edge.
6. Lightly paint egg wash around half of the circle. Fold dough over, pressing to seal with a fork to crimp the edges. Repeat with remaining circles of dough.
7. Bake turnovers in preheated oven for 20-25 or until golden brown. Allow to cool for 20 minutes before serving.

*Gluten free flour blend:

This is the best combination for my personal uses and has never failed me. I purchased a majority of the ingredients at an Asian market (at less than $.99/lb) and the other ingredients marked were Bob Red Mill brand. Cornstarch was Argo brand.

300 grams superfine brown rice flour (Bob's Red Mill)
250 grams sweet rice flour (Asian market)
150 grams tapioca flour (Asian market)
100 grams sorghum flour (Bob's Red Mill)
100 grams potato starch (Asian market)
100 grams cornstarch (Argo brand)

Whisk together the above flours and store in an air tight container. To use, measure out 140 grams for every cup called for in your favorite baking recipe (NOT yeast bread recipes.) Add 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum for every cup used in the recipe as well to help with texture and binding. Voila! You can bake gluten free with confidence!