Recipe Girl's Apple Cranberry Hand Pies
She's been dishing out delicious recipes for years on the internet, and now Lori Lange's family-friendly favorites are coming to a cookbook near you.
"The Recipe Girl Cookbook" is due out in April (you can preorder your copy here), and it contains nearly 200 of Lori's best appetizers, entrees and desserts — as well as her invaluable time-shaving and money-saving tips. But the one thing Lori never compromises on is flavor, as her crowd-pleasing apple cranberry hand pies prove.
READ: 11 Ways to Save Money on Healthy Food
Lange whips up these mouthwatering individual treats using only fresh, easy-to-find ingredients. And while they're reminiscent of the store-bought single-serving pies, Lange promises that "they’re infinitely more delicious and satisfying" than their supermarket counterparts.
Enjoy!
Recipe Girl's Apple Cranberry Hand Pies
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
- 5–6 tablespoons ice water
- 2 cups diced peeled Gala apples
- 3/4 cup halved frozen cranberries
- 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
- 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1 large egg white, beaten and mixed with 1 tablespoon water
- Sparkling or granulated white sugar
- To prepare the crust, whisk together 2 1/2 cups flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a large bowl. Cut in the cold butter until a crumb mixture forms. (Tip: The easiest way to cut butter into the flour is with a food processor. Add the flour and salt and butter to the food processor and process a few times until a crumb-like mixture forms. Alternately, use either two knives or a pastry blender to cut the butter into the flour until you create a crumb-like mixture.)
- Drizzle in 5 tablespoons of the water into the crumb mixture and mix until the dough comes together. Add an additional tablespoon of water, if needed. Gather the dough into a ball and wrap it with plastic wrap. Chill the dough for 1 hour before rolling.
- For the filling, toss the apples and cranberries with the lemon juice in a large bowl. In a smaller bowl, mix 1/4 cup brown sugar, 1 1/2 teaspoons flour, 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Add the sugar mixture to the fruit mixture and toss to combine.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment or Silpat mats, or spray with nonstick spray.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator. On a floured surface, roll it out to 1/4-inch thick. Cut the dough using a 5-inch round cutter (Lori's Tip: check your plastic bowls and find one with a 5-inch diameter, and use the top of the bowl to “cut” the dough). Gently re-roll dough scraps as needed.
- Scoop 2 to 3 tablespoons of the filling mixture onto one side of each round. Rub a little bit of water around the edge of each round, then fold the rounds over so the edges meet and use a fork to seal the edges. Transfer the hand pies to the baking sheet, leaving 1 1/2 inches between each pie. Use a knife to cut three slits into the top of each pie, brush with the egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Chill for 30 minutes.
- Bake the pies at 375 degrees F for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown throughout. Let the pies cool for 10 minutes on the baking sheet and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. (Lori's tip: The pies may be made up to 1 day ahead.)
