Apple Pie Turnovers- spiced up!
Apple Pie Turnovers- spiced up (6 ppl)
I LOVE traditional, puff pastry made apple turnovers. Actually, apple turnovers a la mode are my favorite. I love the way the warm turnover slightly melts the ice cream...yum!Apple Pie Turnovers are my version of apple turnovers, but are made from pie dough (pate brisee) instead of puff pastry. For all those "pie crust" lovers, you'll love this version of turnovers. This year I added a touch of cardamom to my apple mixture and WOW, the flavor was fantastic. There are so many ways to play around with turnovers....nutmeg, cinnamon, vanilla, cardamom, toasted pecans, raisins, dried blueberries...whatever you fancy.And depending on the apples you choose to use, the amount of sugar you add can be drastically lessened. I also play around with the dough...if I need a dessert in a jiffy, the store-bought puff pastry dough comes out. And if I have time, I like making homemade pie dough and making these Apple Pie Turnovers.Best of all, for the holidays try making mini turnovers....that way you can have several different desserts, without all the belly aches or completely ruined diets :).
INGREDIENTS
- 2 apples, peeled and diced into 1/2 inch cubes (fuji, gala, honey crisp, granny...whatever you like)
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar (more or less depending on which apples you choose to use and how sour they are)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 1/2 teaspoon all-purpose flour, and a little extra for rolling out dough
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon cardamom
- 1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 1/4 cup milk
- pinch of salt
- homemade pie dough (pate brisee) or 1 package store-bought puff pastry
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees (400 degrees if you're using puff pastry)
- Melt butter in a small skillet over medium heat. Place apples into the hot skillet. Cook and stir for about 2 minutes. Add brown sugar, salt, vanilla and spices.Cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes. Stir in white flour. Cook for another minute, or until sauce has thickened. Remove from heat and let cool.
- On a floured surface, roll out 1 dough disc into a round 1/16 to 1/8 inch thick. Brush off the excess flour. Using a round cookie cutter or jar lid (4 inches wide), cut out 6 rounds. Reroll the dough scraps, if necessary, and cut out more shapes. Repeat with the remaining dough disk.
- Fill the center of the round cut out with 2 tablespoons of filling. Brush the edges of the dough with a dab of water. Fold over the rolled out dough and then press down around the edges to seal. Then with a fork press down on the edges of the pie to create a crimped look. Place turnovers on a baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between them.
- Before baking, brush all turnovers with fresh milk and then sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake for 35 minutes in the 350 degree preheated oven, until turnovers are puffed and lightly browned.
- Unfold puff pastry sheets, and repair any cracks by pressing them back together. Trim each sheet into a square. Then cut each larger square into 4 smaller squares. Spoon apples onto the center of each squares. Fold over from corner to corner into a triangle shape, and press edges together to seal and then with fork press down on the edges of the pie to create crimped look . Place turnovers on a baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between them.
- Bake for 25 minutes in the 400 degree preheated oven, until turnovers are puffed and lightly browned.
- You can substitute the butter with Earth Balance, the cow's milk with coconut milk and the brown sugar with raw sugar.
GLUTEN FREE NOTES
- Use a gluten-free pie dough recipe and replace all-purpose white flour, with an all-purpose gluten-free flour. Arrowhead Mills is my favorite.
YOGIC COOKING NOTES
- Instead of butter, you can use ghee (clarified butter) in the filling. Ghee is a great rejuvenator and is tridoshic. Unlike other oils and butters, it does not increase cholesterol and it promotes healing of wounds, ulcers and colitis.
- Add an 1/8 tsp more of nutmeg to help sleep better at night.
