Mini Apple Butter and Peanut Butter Hand Pies
I made apple butter!!! It turned out silky, smooth, sweet and a bit tart thanks to my secret ingredient; a splash of lime juice! You can totally omit this of course, or use a bit less, but what I love about apple is its particular tartness. I was afraid though that that would get lost behind all the fall sweet flavors of cinnamon, cardamom, maple syrup and brown sugar. Thanks to the apple cider vinegar and that bit of lime juice that’s not the case in this recipe. This apple butter ended up being sweet, spiced and just tart enough to make you want come back for more!
I really made this apple butter for a recipe that I can’t wait to share with you very soon (hint: it involves yeast!). But after making that recipe I found myself with two full jam jars of the most sweet and silky apple butter. What’s a girl with so much apple butter in her fridge to do? I had some frozen homemade pie crust so I decided to make these cutie apple butter and peanut butter mini hand pies! Cutie pies in all the sense of the phrase!
If you have a trusted and good-for-you brand of readily pie crust you can use that one, of course. But my homemade pie crust recipe is soooo easy to make and trust me, it’s buttery and flaky and so delicious! You can check my comprehensive post on how to make a pie for lots of tips and how to’s when making pie crust from scratch. But since we are making hand pies, the process is way simpler than when making a full pie.
Now, for this silky and thick apple butter, I used gala apples and they worked perfectly. You can use apple butter in so many things, like on toast, over a slice of pound cake, to fill cupcakes, inside pancakes or waffle batters and in any place you would use apple sauce or your favorite jam!
To add something rich to these mini hand pies I also filled them with peanut butter and glazed them with a cinnamon glaze. They make such a warm and sweet delicious snack with coffee anytime of the day!
Hope you try this recipe and love it as much as I do. Share with me how it went with you on the comments section or over Instagram.
Mini Apple Butter and Peanut Butter Hand Pies
Ingredients
Pie Crust
One disk of my homemade pie crust recipe
◯ 1 beaten egg for egg wash
◯ Extra sugar for sprinkling on top
Apple Butter
◯ Gala or Honeycrisp apples, peeled, cored and cubed – 4 lbs
◯ Apple cider or water or a combination of both – 1 ½ cup
◯ Apple cider vinegar – ½ cup
◯ Pure maple syrup – ½ cup
◯ Dark brown sugar – ¼ cup
◯ Cinnamon stick – 1 or 2
◯ Ground cinnamon – 2 ½ Tbsp
◯ Ground cardamom (or freshly grated nutmeg) – 1 Tbsp
◯ Freshly squeezed lime juice (for a tartier taste) – 1 TBSP
◯ Pinch of fine sea salt
◯ Peanut Butter - about ½ cup
Cinnamon glaze
◯ Confectioners sugar, sifted - 1 ½ cup
◯ Water - 2 to 4 tablespoons
◯ Cinnamon - to taste
Details
Apple Butter
Yield:
12 to 14 mini hand pies
Total time:
about 3 hours
Active time:
15 minutes
Equipment:
large pot or French oven
Mini Hand Pies
Total time:
2 hours
Active time:
20 minutes
Baking time:
20 to 25 minutes
Equipment:
food processor, rolling pin, baking tray, small rounded cookie cutter
Steps
To make the pie crust:
Follow my recipe on my post on how to make pie crust from scratch.
To make the apple butter:
Mix everything in a cast iron French oven or large pot. Bring to a boil over medium low and cook for about two hours.
Retire pot from burner. Remove the cinnamon stick and carefully transfer everything to a blender, or if using an immersion blender place it inside the pot (you may want to wait a few minutes so content is not that hot). Mix until pureed. Transfer again to your pot and cook uncovered for 45 minutes to an hour in low heat. If you let the burner and pot cool down for about 10 minutes before cooking for the second time the apple butter won’t spatter much.
Putting the hand pies together:
Prepare a baking tray with parchment paper or a silicon mat.
Roll one of the disks over a dry and well-floured flat surface until it is a bit less of ⅛” thick. Using a 3” round cookie, biscuit or pie cutter, cut as much circles as you can.
Pour about ½ teaspoon or a bit more of peanut butter, taking care it doesn’t spread. Spoon a bit of the apple butter on top. Place another dough circle on top. Using a fork firmly press and seal around the edge of the dough. Place the mini pie on the baking tray. Repeat with the rest of the dough circles. You may knead together and re-roll the remaining dough and repeat the process to get more mini hand pies.
Place baking sheet on the freezer for 20 minutes.
Preheat oven to 400°. Prepare your egg wash by mixing a beaten egg with a teaspoon of water or any milk.
Brush each mini hand pie with the egg wash and sprinkle PLENTY of sugar on top. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. Time will depend on thickness of the dough so check them after 20 minutes of baking. They should be golden and crispy. Let them cool down before pouring the glaze on top.
To make the cinnamon glaze:
Start by whisking 1 tablespoon of the water and the pinch of cinnamon with the sugar. When the sugar gets clumpy and hard to mix add a second tablespoon of water and mix again. Repeat until you get desired consistency. I used about 4 tablespoons to keep my glaze thick. Remember to check my How to Make a Simple Glaze guide for lots of tips and ideas.
