Apple Hand Pies (dairy and egg free)

It's Autumn, and it is the time of year when I find myself in the kitchen... baking. The one thing I'd stay away from if I wanna bake is pie. They are time consuming to make. But a few weeks ago, I decided to bake apple hand pies. Hmm... didn't I just wrote that I don't like to bake pies?

Well, as it happens, my parents are visiting from Thailand. They've been craving a lot of desserts that can only be found here in the USA. My dad likes to have something sweet with his coffee in the morning. So I've been baking cookies, bars, bread, and scones. They are luving everything I bake. I was thinking what else they haven't tried. Pies.

I also baked apple hand pies to test the recipe. After moving into our new home, I have to retest all of my recipes as I am now using the gas oven. I know!!! Dilemma!!! After spending a lot of time rolling, cutting, filling, shaping the dough, I came to a conclusion that I do not like to bake pie. Hmm... that sounded like it came from Dr. Sues's book.

Well, even though the apple hand pies are time consuming to make, I have to say that they are hands down cute and delish. They are great make-ahead desserts. Freeze them up and when you're ready to bake them, just follow the baking instruction. During that busy Thanksgiving dinner, make some of these hand pies... add your own spin on the filling too. My apple hand pie recipe is the same as 4th of July hand pies.

Apple Hand Pies
make 5-6 hand pies

Puff Pastry Dough:
1 cup (4 oz.) unbleached all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 Tablespoon granulated sugar
1/4 cup (2 oz.) organic palm shortening
1/4 cup (2 oz.) ice water

Apple pie filling:
1/4 cup diced apples
1 1/2 teaspoons granulated sugar
3 teaspoons unbleached all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg

Baking Soda Wash:
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon baking soda

1. Line a baking sheet with a parchment paper or a nonstick mat. Set aside.
2. Making the dough by combining the flour, salt, and shortening, using a fork.
3. Add half tablespoon of ice water at the time.
4. Knead the dough until it comes together. Set aside to relax the dough a bit.
5. For apple pie filling, mix all the ingredients together. Set aside to cool.
6. Roll the dough out to a half inch thick.
7. Using a round cookie cutter, stamp out the dough. TIP: This is where you can get pretty creative. I decided to go with a 3-inch round cookie cutter. The shape of the hand pies is up to you
8. Place about 1/2 Tablespoon full of apple pie filling.
9. Please it in the middle of a dough.
10. Brush the dough around the filling with the cold water.
11. Place the other dough on top, be careful to keep the filling in a dome shape.
12. Using a fork, crimp the edges of the dough to seal the filling.
13. Using a spatula, move the hand pies on to the baking sheet. NOTE: If the pie dough is too soft, especially on a summer day, refrigerate the hand pies for about 5 minutes. Then move the hand pies to the prepared baking sheet.
14. Make three small slits on each hand pie.
15. Freeze the hand pies for at least 30 minutes. TIP: These hand pies can be made ahead. Keep them frozen until ready to bake.
16. When ready to bake the hand pies, preheat the oven to 400F degrees.
17. Take the unbaked apple hand pies out of the freezer.
18. In a small bowl, microwave about 1/4 cup of water until warm, about 30 seconds.
19. Stir in 1 teaspoon of baking soda.
20. Brush the baking soda water on each pie.
21. Sprinkle the raw sugar all over the top of the pie. NOTE: This step is optional but the raw sugar will add shines and crunch to the hand pies.
22. Bake in the preheated oven until gold brown, about 15 minutes.
23. Let cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes then transfer them to a wiring rack to cool completely.

STORING: Keep them in an air tight container at a room temperature for up to a day or in the fridge for up to a week.

Allergy Info: These apple hand pies are free from dairy, eggs, corn, legumes (soy), nut (not palm), and fish.