Mini Apple Cranberry Pies

My kids and I love apple pies.  But I don’t usually make them often at home.  You might ask why, right?  Well, that’s because most of the traditional apple pie recipes out there are pretty time consuming.  Making the pie dough, chilling it, rolling it out, blind baking the pie crust, then chopping and cooking the filling before we can move on to baking, etc, etc, etc.  I get tired just to type these steps out.  This fried version might seems easier and oh so tempting!  Too tempting, actually!  But then I seldom make fry food in my house and you know why.  No?  Here’s why: I guess I love fried food so much it’s just too dangerous to have that pot of oil ready for frying.  I will probably be deep frying everything edible from the kitchen! 



Then, these Mini Apple Cranberry Pies were created because I was in a hurry for some treats; And to satisfy that major craving for the crispy outside, warm and gooey inside type of apple pie!  What is even better?  I added some dried cranberries inside.  They absorbed the extra juices that released from the apples and added a slightly sweet and tart flavors to these mini beauties.  They are super duper easy to make too. 



Come with me to the kitchen to see how they are prepared.

1) Chopped the apples, add the lemon juice, cranberries, vanilla extract, cinnamon, salt and sugar and let it hang out.

2) Roll out the puff pastry into 12 by 16-inches rectangle, then cut into 12 (4-inch) squares.

3) Slightly spray the inside of the muffin pan with non-stick spray, place one piece of dough into each cavity.  Spoon the apple mixture onto each dough and bring the four corners to the middle.  Slightly pinch the dough to deal it.

4) Brush some egg wash on top and bake away.



Super easy right?  I think they are dangerously easy.  Please don’t ask me how many I had when they came out of the oven!  I won’t tell.  The crust of these Mini Apple Cranberry Pies is flaky, light and buttery; the apple cranberry filling is warm, gooey, tender and juicy.  It’s slightly sweet and tart at the same time with a hint of cinnamon.  A perfect fall/winter treat, in my opinion.  Bring these to your next holiday gatherings and you’ll be the star!



If you’re feeling fancy, serve these with a dollop of freshly whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream. I skipped both this time and serve them with a cup of hot tea instead which was just as wonderful.
 


I hope you all enjoyed today’s recipe. Stay tuned for some cool Giveaways on the next post.






Mini Apple Cranberry Pies: (Printable Recipe)Servings: 12

1 sheet of puff pastry, defrosted
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored and diced
1 Pink Lady apple, peeled, cored and diced
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 cup dried cranberry
1 tablespoon sugar
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
a pinch of salt

Preheat oven to 375 degree F.
In a medium mixing bowl, toss the apple, lemon juice, vanilla, cranberries, sugar, cinnamon, and salt together and set aside.

Roll out the puff pastry into a 12 by 16-inches rectangle, then cut into 12 (4-inch) squares.  Slightly spray the inside of the muffin pan with non-stick spray, place one piece of dough into each cavity. Spoon the apple mixture onto each dough and bring the four corners to the middle. Slightly pinch the dough to deal it.

Brush some egg wash on top and bake for 28 to 32 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.  Cool on wiring rack for 10-15 minutes before serving.  The filling is really hot when fresh out of the oven.