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4.20 from 5 votes

Apple Hand Pies (Gluten-Free)

Prep Time35 minutes
Cook Time15 minutes
Total Time50 minutes
Servings: 5
Author: Lexi

Ingredients

For Pie Crust:

For Apple Filling:

  • 2 medium gala apples peeled, cored and diced to 1/2"
  • 2 medium granny smith apples peeled, cored and diced to 1/2"
  • 1/2 cup apple cider
  • 2 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • pinch nutmeg
  • 1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 2 teaspoons tapioca starch
  • 1 tablespoon water
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 tablespoon grass-fed butter optional

To Assemble:

  • 1 egg for egg wash
  • coarse raw sugar optional

Instructions

To Make Crust:

  • In a food processor combine almond flour, tapioca flour, and cold butter and pulse until the butter is broken down into pea-sized pieces.
  • Add in egg and honey and process until the dough comes together.
  • Shape dough into a round disk, wrap in plastic wrap and transfer to refrigerator until cold, at least 4 hours or overnight. (See note)

For Pie Filling:

  • In a medium sauce pan, add apples, apple cider, maple syrup, lemon juice, spices and salt and heat to medium-high. Cook, stirring frequently for 8-10 minutes until the exuded liquid from the apples has reduced and the apples are soft, but not broken apart.
  • In a small bowl make a slurry using tapioca and water and add it to the apple mixture, stirring continuously. Cook for 1 minute or until the mixture has thickened up.
  • Once thickened, add vanilla extract and optional butter and stir to combine.
  • Cool apple pie filling completely.

To assemble:

  • Between two sheets of parchment, roll out dough to a thickness of 1/16" - 1/8" of an inch. Stamp out 10 circles that are 4" in diameter using a cookie cutter. You may have to re-roll scraps 2 or 3 times to get 10 circles. If your dough starts to get too warm to work with, place in the refrigerator on sheet tray until cool enough to handle 10-15 minutes.
  • Gently place 5 circles on parchment on sheet pan. Place the remaining 5 on a separate sheet of parchment and if desired stamp out an apple shape from the center using a cookie cutter and stack on top of parchment line baking sheet. Place dough in the refrigerator on pan to chill for 15-20 minutes while the oven is pre-heating.
  • Preheat oven to 350ºF.
  • Remove dough from refrigerator and take off one sheet of dough lined parchment and set aside. Place 3 tablespoons of apple pie filling in the center of the dough and gently smooth down down the filling leaving a 1/2" border of pie dough. Repeat for the remaining 4.
  • Top each filled dough with stamped dough circle and press your fingers along the edge to seal tightly.
  • Use a fork to crimp the edges. Brush with egg wash and top with raw sugar if desired.
  • Bake at 350ºF for 15-18 minutes, rotating half-way through, until the crust is golden brown.
  • Let cool briefly before serving. Store at room temperature for 2 days in a closed container, reheating briefly in a toaster oven to crisp up crust before serving

Notes

Pie dough will keep in the refrigerator, wrapped well, for 2-3 days.
If pie dough is getting too sticky to work with, always place it in the refrigerator. Cooling down the pie dough as needed is the best trick you can use to make the prettiest hand pies.
See this post all about making Gluten-Free Pie Dough for troubleshooting tips!