Gluten Free Caramel Apple Hand Pies

Gluten Free Caramel Apple Hand Pies

Apples are probably my all time favorite food. I will admit, when it comes to apples, I am a huge snob. I like a crisp, slightly sweet apple with a tiny hint of sour. I know, Im an apple-y snob, I told you I admit it. Rarely will an apple go beyond its raw eating state in my home, but sometimes, I will sacrifice my favorite food for a treat. I have to say, its totally worth it in these apple hand pies. This buttery, flaky hazelnut pie dough combined with the creamy caramel apple filing . . . yeah, this is definitely worth sacrificing my apples for a treat! Let me talk about this pie dough for a minute. This is my go to pastry dough for savory and sweet. To use it for chicken pot pie, leave out the powdered sugar. It doubles and halves perfectly to suit your needs. Also, almond flour is a great substitution for the hazelnut flour without changing the integrity of the final product. Another great thing about this pie dough, it is so incredibly easy to work with! You cant beat that, right?! This recipe is amazing and worth the trouble, but you have to bring a couple of things to the workstation when you start. You need everything to be very cold. The grating of the butter and freezing it really helps get all that buttery goodness distributed evenly and keeps things everything cool while you work. The other thing you need is patience. Baking is not always easy, but I find it extremely rewarding when you come up with a final product like this. Definitely try this and please, enjoy the process. I promise, you will be rewarded!

Gluten Free Caramel Apple Hand Pies

Makes 9-10 hand pies Crust: Filling:
  • 1/4 cup Dairy Free Stick Butter
  • 3-4 Medium Green Apples, about 4 cups sliced, and then dice to about an inch
  • 2 Tbsp Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1 cup Brown Sugar
  • 2 tsp Apple Pie Spice
  • Pinch of Salt
  • 6 TbspCornstarch
Topping:
  • 2 Tbsp Cashew Milk
  • Coarse Sugar
In a large food processor, combine the hazelnut flour through salt. Mix until blended. Next add the the frozen butter to the flour mixture and pulse to form a coarse meal. Add the egg and pulse until the dough forms a ball. Place the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to use. Keep the dough cold during each process. In a bowl, mix the diced apples with the lemon juice. Melt the butter over medium heat. Add the apples, brown sugar, apple pie seasoning, and salt to the butter. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the apples are soft, stirring occasionally. Next sprinkle a tablespoon of the cornstarch at a time over the apples, stirring constantly until the mixture thickens. Allow the mixture to cool completely before using. When everything is cool, lay the dough on plastic wrap covered with powdered sugar. Sprinkle extra powdered sugar over the dough and cover with another piece of plastic wrap. Roll the dough to a rectangle. Cut dough into the shape you desire and refrigerate for 15 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375F. Place half the crusts on a parchment lined baking sheet. Top with 2-3 tablespoons of the apple filling. Dont add the caramel liquid from the apple filling to the pies, reserve it for serving. Using some of the cashew milk, moisten the edges of the dough. Top each of the pies with the remaining cuts of dough. Wet your fingers with the cashew milk and press the edges of the dough to seal the edges. Brush the tops of the pies with cashew milk and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake 25-30 minutes, until the edges are golden brown. Serve warm with remaining caramel sauce and vanilla ice cream, or at room temperature straight from your hand. Sarena Shasteen: The Non Dairy QueenSarena Shasteen has been an avid health food and fitness enthusiast from an early age. She holds a degree in Culinary Arts from The Art Institute of Atlanta, a certification in Fitness Nutrition, and is a certified Fitness Trainer from International Sport Science Association (ISSA). Becoming a Personal Trainer and Specialist in Fitness Nutrition has been a lifelong goal of hers. Sarena enjoys helping others reach their health goals by teaching them that health and fitness are not only achieved in the gym, but also through fun everyday activities. Now a food writer, recipe developer, personal chef, Personal Trainer, and Specialist in Fitness Nutrition, she enjoys sharing with others that healthy living can be fun and delicious. Keep up with her atThe Non-Dairy Queenand onFacebookandTwitter.
Sarena Shasteen
April 20 2016

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