Personal Apple Pies
Maple syrup-sweetened and cinnamon-infused, these little pies serve up the goodness of homemade apple pie in petite, personal-sized packaging. For clarity's sake, it's worth mentioning that the small, 5-inch pie tins I have found measure from the pan's outside edge. The diameter of the baking area is 4 1/4 inches. This recipe makes four small pies.
Servings: 4
Equipment
Ingredients
Pastry Dough
- 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon confectioners' sugar
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 1/4 cups unsalted butter cut in 1/4-inch slices
- 5 tablespoons ice water, strained plus more as needed
Apple Filling
- 1 1/4 pounds golden delicious apples about 3 to 4
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 1/2 teaspoons unbleached all-purpose flour
- 1/2 small lemon juiced
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- generous pinch kosher salt
Assembly
- 1 large egg
- 2 teaspoons water
- pinch kosher salt
- coarse sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
Pastry Dough
- To prepare the pastry dough, whirl flour, confectioners' sugar, and salt in food processor with the blade attachment. Add about half of the butter and whirl until no chunks remain. Add remaining slices and whirl briefly to chop them up slightly.
- With the motor on, drizzle ice water through the feed tube, stopping before the dough comes together. Pinch some crumbs together between your fingers; if they don’t stick together, add a bit more ice water and mix.
- Turn the mixture out onto a large piece of plastic wrap. Use the plastic wrap to help you bring the dough together; fold the edges of the dough toward the center and press down until it holds together, taking care not to overwork the dough.
- Divide the dough in half and shape each piece into a flat disk. Wrap the dough tightly in plastic and refrigerate it for at least 30 minutes.
Apple Filling
- While the dough chills, preheat oven to 425° F. Peel, halve, core, and cut apples into 1/4-inch slices. Cut the slices into quarters so the pieces will fit better into the small pie tins.
- Combine the apples with maple syrup, corn starch, flour, lemon juice, cinnamon, and salt. Let the mixture stand for at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, to allow the apples to soften.
Assembly
- Whisk egg, water, and salt together in a small bowl and set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll one piece of dough into a 14-inch circle.
- Using a 6-inch diameter bowl or cookie cutter, as many dough rounds as you can, saving the scraps to reroll. Repeat with remaining dough and reroll the scraps to cut additional circles for a total of eight.
- If desired, use small cookie cutters to add decorative shapes or patterns into four of the rounds to use as top crusts.
- Transfer the remaining rounds of dough into the pie dishes and divide the fruit filling between them.
- Working one at a time, use a fingertip to spread some cold water on the top of the lower crust's outside edge. Add the decorated pastry round and trim its perimeter so it extends just beyond pan's top rim. Bend the edge of the top crust down and tuck it into the pie tin so it overlaps the edge of the bottom crust inside the pan. Press gently to seal the two rounds of dough together. Flatten the top crust down and crimp the edge decoratively with your fingers.
- If desired, add leftover pastry shapes to the pies, dabbing them with a bit of cold water to help them adhere.
- If you haven't cut shapes into the top crusts, use a sharp knife to cut some steam vents. Brush the top crusts lightly with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Baking
- Place pies on a baking sheet to catch any overflowing juices. Bake for 20 minutes on the bottom rack of the preheated oven.
- Reduce heat to 350º F and continue baking until the crust is golden brown and the juices bubble thickly through the vents, about 30 minutes. If the crust browns too quickly, slip a baking sheet on the top rack of the oven to diffuse the heat.
- Allow the pies to cool for at least 30 minutes before serving.