8/28/13

Glazed Raspberry Hand Pies

Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm definitely feeling fall in the air. Kids going back to school, cooler nights (hallelujah), and harvest season have arrived. I am loving it. To me, pies scream fall. Aren't they the perfect fall dessert? After all, that's pretty much what Thanksgiving is about.

BUT. I have a confession. I don't really like normal pie dough. If you gave me the choice of having a cookie-crusted pie or a regular-crusted pie, I would choose the cookie crust every time. But there was a part of me that kept saying I was missing out on something. How could I claim to like pies when I don't even like pie crust?

I knew there had to be the perfect recipe floating around there somewhere. It was in the middle of my inner turmoil (being a little overdramatic here) that I kept seeing recipes for hand pies on Pinterest. They looked soooo good. Maybe I was willing to forgive pie crust after all.

I started hunting for the perfect crust recipe. I didn't want it to be dry. I didn't want it to be floury-tasting. I came across this recipe for Blueberry Hand Pies from King Arthur Flour. BINGO.

But I wanted to make raspberry pies instead. I mean, I've got bags of raspberries in the freezer. I thought the crust recipe was pretty easy, and it turned out fabulous. Incredibly flaky, but soft on the inside. The raspberries are just tart enough, and the tapioca thickens the sauce. The glaze is the perfect topping.

This isn't something you can whip up in 30 minutes. You might be tempted to use store-bought crust. But hang with me here. You can make it from scratch, I promise!

Glazed Raspberry Hand Pies
makes 8 pies
print this recipe

Pastry crust:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup cold unsalted butter
1/2 cup cold sour cream

Filling:

2 cups raspberries (drain excess juice if you are using frozen)
1 Tbs lemon juice
2 Tbs instant granulated tapioca
1/4 cup sugar

Egg wash:

1 beaten egg

Glaze:

1 1/2-1 3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla
2-3 Tbs milk

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Confession: I don't have a pastry cutter. So I whipped up the crust in my food processor. It made it so much easier. If you have a food processor, use it for this recipe. If you don't, you could probably use a stand mixer, but a pastry cutter will work for sure.

Measure the flour, baking powder, and salt and add to the bowl of the food processor. Pulse a couple of times to combine. Cut up the butter sticks so they blend easier and add them to the bowl of the food processor.

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Pulse until the butter pieces are pea-sized. Then spoon in the sour cream.

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Pulse until the dough looks wet and crumbly. It will NOT come together in the bowl, and you don't want to mix it to the point where it does. When it looks like this, turn it out onto a floured surface and give it a few kneads to get it to come together.

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Roll into an 8x10 inch rectangle. Fold the dough in thirds (like a business letter). Flip dough over, and rotate it 90º. Roll into another 8x10 inch rectangle and fold in thirds. Wrap in plastic wrap and pop it in the fridge to chill for at least 30 minutes.

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When your dough has almost been in the fridge for 30 minutes, combine filling ingredients in a separate bowl and prepare your egg wash in another. Preheat your oven to 425º.

Have a rolling pin, pastry frame (or floured surface), pizza or pastry cutter, and a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. As soon as you get the dough out of the fridge, you'll want to work fast!

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Roll dough into a 14x14 inch square. If it's not perfect, don't worry. Cut squares that are 3 1/2 inches tall and wide. At the end, you'll have 16 squares. I trimmed mine a little.

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Place the filling on half of the squares. Try to drain as much liquid as you can from the raspberries. You'll end up using a heaping tablespoon for each pie.

Brush the edges of the filled squares with the egg wash and top with the rest of the squares.

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Seal the edges with a fork and cut some slits on the top. Brush the remaining egg wash on top of each pie. Pop them in the oven to bake for 15-20 min or until they are puffy and golden brown.

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Let cool a few minutes and place them on a cookie rack over a baking sheet. Allow to cool almost completely. While they are cooling, whip up the glaze. Lightly drizzle the glaze over each pie.

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I hope you like these! If you try them, let me know what you think.

-Candice

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