Mini cardamom apple pies - mini lattice topped apple hand pies spiced with cinnamon and cardamom and baked in a muffin tray.
It feels like the run up to Christmas is already in full swing and I am lagging behind a bit; I have done no Christmas shopping, haven't planned any recipes, completely missed stir up Sunday and don't even know where I am spending Christmas day yet.... I think I need to work on being more organised but the miserable weather and the fact that it gets dark so early now really aren't helping with my motivation levels.
The dark gloomy days are perfect for staying home and baking however (though not great for photographing the results), and making these mini cardamom apples pies did go some way towards increasing my Christmas spirit.
I think that mini pies look so much cuter than their full sized counterparts, and while they may be a bit more fiddly and time consuming to make, they are much more portable and easy to eat by hand.
I used a selection of apples from the trees in my garden, which are a mixture of tart eating apples and cooking apples, though I have no idea what the varieties are actually called.
You can use all eating apples, or a mixture of both cooking and eating apples if you prefer, just make sure that you use quite a sharp variety - braeburn or cox would work well, maybe with a bramley mixed in.
I spiced my apples with the classic apple pie spice - cinnamon, but also added some ground cardamom to elevate them beyond a standard apple pie.
I was quite generous with the cardamom as I really like the flavour, but you can add less if you would prefer it to be more of a hint.
I baked the pies in a muffin tin, which I think makes them quite a nice single-serving size; they are a little tricky to remove from the tin though and it is best to wait until they are cold before attempting to remove them as the pastry is quite delicate when warm.
I didn't think to do so at the time, but it would be a good idea to line the tin with overhanging strips of greaseproof paper so that it is easier to lift the pies out. You could also bake them in disposable foil tins to avoid any difficulty in removing them or having to wait until they are cold.
Mini Cardamom Apple Pies
Equipment
- 12 hole muffin tin
Ingredients
Filling:
- 1 kg (2.2lb) tart eating apples
- juice 1 small lemon
- 60 g (4 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar
- 60 g (4 ½ Tablespoons) light brown soft sugar
- ¼ - ½ teaspoon freshly ground cardamom to taste
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 Tablespoon plain flour
Pastry:
- 250 g (2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour
- 50 g (⅓ cup) icing (powdered) sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 150 g (⅔ cup) vegan block butter cold and cubed
- 2 Tablespoons ice cold water
- non-dairy milk for brushing
Instructions
Apple Filling:
- Peel and core the apples and chop into small dice. Place in a saucepan with the lemon juice, sugars, cardamom (start with ¼ teaspoon and add more later if needed) and cinnamon.1 kg (2.2lb) tart eating apples, juice 1 small lemon, 60 g (4 ½ Tablespoons) caster or granulated sugar, 60 g (4 ½ Tablespoons) light brown soft sugar, ¼ - ½ teaspoon freshly ground cardamom, ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
- Bring up to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes, adding a splash of water if needed, until the apples are tender. Taste, and add more cardamom and sugar as needed. Set aside until completely cold then sift over the flour and stir through.1 Tablespoon plain flour
Pastry:
- Place the flour, icing sugar, salt and butter in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the ice water and pulse again until it comes together into a ball, add more water as needed. Shape the pastry into a disc, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for about an hour.250 g (2 cups) plain (all-purpose) flour, 50 g (⅓ cup) icing (powdered) sugar, ¼ teaspoon salt, 150 g (⅔ cup) vegan block butter, 2 Tablespoons ice cold water
- Line a 12 hole muffin tray with strips of greaseproof paper so that they overhang either side of each cavity so that you can lift the pies out easily (or use disposable foil tins).
- Roll the pastry out thinly on a lightly floured surface. Use a 10-12cm (depending on the size of your muffin tin) round pastry cutter to cut out 10-12 rounds (I didn't have a large enough cutter so cut round a bowl with a knife). Press the rounds into the muffin tin, the edge should come up to just above the top of the tin. Fill each one right to the top with the cooled apple mixture then re-roll the pastry scraps and cut into thin strips.
- Lay the strips in a criss-cross pattern across the tops of the pies, brush the ends with a little milk and gently press them into the pastry base to seal. Place the tray in the freezer for 15 minutes while you preheat the oven to 200°C/180℃ fan/400°F/gas mark 6.non-dairy milk for brushing
- Brush the tops of the pies with milk, being careful not to get any between the pastry and the tin or the pies will be difficult to remove. Bake for 30 minutes until golden brown and cooked through; if the tops start to darken too much, loosely cover with tin foil.
- Leave the pies to cool completely in the tin, the pastry is delicate when warm and they will be difficult to remove. Once cold, carefully prise the pies out of the tin and serve. Store in an airtight container.
I am sharing these with Fiesta Friday hosted by La Petite Paniere and The Not So Creative Cook, Foodie FriDIY, Foodie Friends Friday
Sally
Can I put an order in please?! These sound delicious
Angela - Patisserie Makes Perfect
Hannah these look great - I totally agree about photographing stuff in the dark. Even if I am lucky enough to take the pictures in daylight, it's still so rainy and dull.
Mini pies are so cute!
hannahhossack
Thanks Angela, all my photos have been coming out very blue tinged recently, the winter light has an odd cast, and it's so dark! I've been having to whack the ISO up as I don't really shoot with a tripod 🙁
Miranda
The addition of cardamom is such an amazing idea! These look incredible!
hannahhossack
Thanks Miranda 🙂
Jhuls @ The Not So Creative Cook
Great minds think alike. 😀 I just got mini pies with me, too, for this week's FF! These look amazing, Hannah! Thanks for bringing this at this week's FF table. Have fun! 😉
hannahhossack
Great minds indeed! Your mini mango pies looked fabulous!
linda
These look amazing. I like the addition of cardamom and perfect for the holiday season. Thank you for bringing this recipe to the Fiesta Friday! 🙂
hannahhossack
Thanks Linda, they are perfectly festive!
Christine
Those mini apple pies look amazing! I love how easy it is to do this recipe. Stopping by from Foodie Friends Friday.
hannahhossack
Thanks Christine!
Sandhya
Hannah,
I love the flavor of cardamom with apples and these pies look absolutely scrumptious!
hannahhossack
Thanks Sandhya 🙂 They do go so well together
Caroline | carolinescooking
These look so adorable, and I love cardamon.
hannahhossack
Thanks Caroline 🙂 I really love cardamom too
Laptop Korting
A gem of a post!