Little pies are just more fun to eat than big pies. And did I mention that you get to forgo cutting and crumbs and messy fillings spilling on tables? Set them out on a pretty platter and let your guests enjoy. When I lived in Austin, I met a few women who had opened “pie shops” but instead of selling the traditional 9 inch pie, they made and sold something similar to this: a portable and lovely hand-held treat.
I brought these over to a Memorial Day Cookout. Between my sister, my mom, and me, we prepared enough food to feed a small army (and perhaps that is what we were!) Pasta salads, couscous, grilled salmon and chicken, fresh fruit, and even a few hot dogs for the kids. We ended the day by releasing three baby bunnies that had fallen into a window well, and then after a good hand wash, we enjoyed these apple raspberry hand pies.
So yes, I’m still baking at 37 weeks. What else is new?
Cravings: Quesadillas. I think I’ve had a quesadilla everyday this week. Poor Ryan. I’m also still loving animal crackers and milk.
Health: We go see our OB today. We see her every week now! I’m hoping that I’ve dilated or the baby has dropped or something worth mentioning has happened. But these babies come on their own time, so I’m learning patience and trust. I bought a birth ball yesterday, and I’ve been bouncing on it and swaying my hips. The birth ball is WONDERFUL. I’m also feeling more hormonal than ever. At least that is what I’m blaming my mood swings on.
Fears: I haven’t been sleeping as well. I wake up anxious about the littlest and silliest things. It took everything in me not to get up at 2:30am and start working on projects around the house. Thankfully, Ryan held me and prayed over me, and I fell back to sleep. He’s been a champ.
Lucy: She likes to move her body now as there’s less room for her to move her legs. Ryan and I went to a movie the other night, and after a particularly exciting scene, my belly shifted completely to the right. (And yes, we became that annoying couple that starts laughing and whispering during a film). But honestly, Lucy had Matthew McConaughey beat. She loves hearing us talk to her, and we’re almost always successful at waking her up from a nap. A few gentle nudges and Ryan’s voice gets her moving on command. I can’t explain how excited I am to meet this baby. I visualize the moment again and again. I know it will be challenging and painful and stretching, but giving birth to her will be one of the most beautiful events of my life. I’m already claiming it.
I hope you get a chance to make these apple raspberry hand pies. My mom doesn’t like many sweets, but she couldn’t stop eating them. The raspberries add the perfect amount of color and tartness, and they make these pies feel like summer. And did I mention the crumb topping? There’s nothing like a little extra butter and sugar.
Apple Raspberry Hand Pies
2 large granny smith apples, peeled and diced
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1/4 cup granulated sugar
Fresh lemon juice (from 1/2 lemon)
1 tablespoon flour
1 disc of pie dough (enough for a single crust)
1/4 cup butter, cold and diced
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
Combine apples, raspberries, sugar, lemon juice, and flour in a medium bowl. Stir well but be careful to not break the berries too much. Set aside while you prepare the pie cups.
Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to about 1/8 inch thickness. Use a large biscuit cutter to cut out 10 circles. Make the pie cups by pressing the circles of dough down into the muffin cups, firmly pressing with your fingers to line the cup evenly. At this point, I like to stick my pie cups in the freezer for at least 15 minutes. This helps prevent the dough from shrinking too much when placed in oven. While dough is chilling, preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
In a small bowl, cut cold and diced butter into flour and sugar to make crumb topping. You can use a fork, a pastry cutter, or your fingers to incorporate butter into flour/sugar. After a minute or two of cutting, coarse crumbs should form. Spoon apple raspberry mixture into prepared pie cups. I used about 1/3 cup of filling for each muffin cup. Sprinkle generously with crumb topping (keep in mind that as the pies cook, the filling will shrink…so err on the side of overfull rather than under).
Bake for 25 minutes, until the topping is lightly golden and the filling bubbles. Allow to cool before removing pie cups from muffin tin. Use a knife to carefully lift pie cups from pan (this might be the trickiest part…but I didn’t lose a single hand pie!)