I love apple desserts and this one is very easy. I took a chance and made caramel sauce to add to the dessert. This was my first time making caramel sauce. I have always been afraid of making it, but it was super easy and very tasty. It added a whole new level to the apple pies.
Hand Apple Pies with Caramel
Ingredients
2 store bought pie crusts
2 apples (use your favorite!)
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 cup white sugar
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon butter
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Peel and dice apples and put them into a bowl. Add cinnamon and stir, making sure all apple pieces are covered. Set aside and start on caramel sauce. Get pie crusts out and let them set to room temperature.
3. Add 1/2 cup water to pot and add sugar. Bring the pot to a boil.
4. Cook mixture until a thick syrup forms that is a light to medium brown color. Add butter and keep stirring.
5. Add heavy cream while stirring the mixture. It will bubble up fast, but keep stirring until the sauce is smooth. Remove from heat and let the sauce cool.
6. As sauce cools, unroll pie crusts. Find something that can cut the dough into a circle about 4 inches, or a little bigger. Cut dough into circles and place on a backing sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush the edge of each circle with egg.
7. Add some of the caramel sauce to the diced up apples covered in cinnamon. Make sure that the apples are all covered with caramel. Spoon the diced apples onto the center of each circle, then fold the dough over, creating a pocket. Push the seems together and take a fork to crimp the edges together even more.
8. Brush the tops of the pie with egg and sprinkle with white granulated sugar. Make sure to cut a couple slits in the top of the pie, so the steam can escape.
9. Bake for 20 minutes, or until the tops of the pies are golden brown. To serve, drizzle caramel sauce on top (caramel might need to be reheated slightly on stove top). Another great addition would be some vanilla ice cream!
This dessert was a hit with the husband and the kids. I would really like to try this method with different fruit fillings...blueberry? cherry? rhubarb?
What dessert have you transformed?
