Grant's Little Hand Pies

Grant wanted to make PIE for the fair. .

His mother makes pie. .

But her pies are U-G-L-Y!!

As I thought about it though. .

I figured a rustic little hand pie would be a good choice.

He was not impressed with the name "hand pie". .

He thought it sounded WEIRD. .

in a bad way. .

But. .

With his exceptional teenage-stage motivational skills. .

He didn't have a better idea. .

so he opted for MINE!

We started with apple. .

His choice.

He made them twice. .

Apple pie is probably my least favorite pie. .

They usually seem so dry.

That was the problem we found with his. .

Even using a carmelized apple filling.

So. .

We changed gears. .

And found recipes for a triple berry centered pie. .

Except that when it came time to make the filling. .

Someone had eaten all my frozen blueberries. .

Except for 3 berries. .

That was all that was left in my bag in the freezer. .

Welcome to my world, people!

So. .

We swapped in frozen peaches that I just HAPPENED to have!

And this recipe had a crust that was different from the pie crust that we had wrapped the filling in before.

YUMMO!!

He made the recipe 3 times. .

The first two times the filling oozed out all over the pan. .

They tasted good. .

but they weren't pretty.

We used both fresh. .

And then frozen fruit. .

The filling turned out good every time!

The third time (which was for the fair). .

He was dilligent about using more dough and folding the edges up over themselves and pressing them down. .in an attempt to keep the juice contained into the pastry.

The judge knocked him on the crust. .

saying it was too tough. .

But WE thought that the taste was soo good. .

that the slightly hard crust was over-lookable!!

Especially since the filling wasn't oozing out all over the parchment paper!

A red ribbon was what he earned!

I don't generally promote that my kids try to wing a recipe the night before the fair. .

I want them to have practiced it before. .

But. .

Since we were a little worried about what his pie filling would do. .

I handed him this recipe for a Dill Herb Bread that uses cottage cheese in the yeast bread.

I've made it before several times. .

And had good and tasty results. .

He did an excellent job executing the directions. .

And took a State Fair blue ribbon on them.

So he will make them again in September.

He also got excellent ratings on the two lamps he crafted.

He had one photo that will go on to the state fair. .

And a couple that the judge had some suggestions for!

 Horticulturally, it was slim pickin's.

He ran out and located one coneflower to take. .

We haven't had time to dig into our cages planted with potatoes.

The last time I stuck my hand in there to feel for anything. .

I got injected with wasp venom clear to my BONE!!

Some of the plants grew. .

and we are eager to see what, if anything has grown in there. .

I'll keep my gardening friends posted on that soon!

But as far as veggies to enter in the fair. .

There were NONE!

Hope you make time to try out these little pies soon. .

Someone will LOVE you for it!!

Up next. .

We may not be Russian. .

But I think I have found my NEW favorite way to enjoy cinnamon and bread!!

Be blessed. .

And enjoy your week!

Baked Triple Fruit Hand Pies

Ingredients: Hand Pie Crust

4 cups of flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 cup butter, cold and cut in small cubes

1 cup water

1 cup ice cubes

Ingredients: Fruit Filling:

2 cups peaches, fresh or frozen

2 cups blackberries, fresh or frozen

2 cups raspberries, fresh or frozen

1/2 cup cornstarch

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 egg, slightly beaten
1 tablespoon half and half

Directions: Hand Pie Crust
Mix the flour, salt, powdered sugar together. Cut in butter until pea sized.
In a 1 cup measure cup add ice cubes and water.  Stir until water is cold.  Add 10 tablespoons of water stirring with a fork to mix until dough starts to form a ball and no  longer.
Form into a ball.  Cut the ball in half and wrap each one in plastic wrap and chill for 1 hour.

Directions:  Fruit Filling

Preheat  oven to 375 degrees F.  In a large bowl add the fruits (if using frozen, don’t thaw out first), cornstarch, sugar and vanilla.  Mix/toss all together until well blended; set aside.

Cut the dough into about 12 balls. On a floured surface, roll each ball into a 6 inch circle or so. Place about ¼ cup filling in the center, making sure each fruit is on the pastry. Fold ½ the dough over the fruit, folding up the edges and pressing together with a fork, being sure to seal it together.

Place the hand pies on a parchment paper lined sheet pan.  In a small bowl, mix egg and half and half.  Brush top of the hand pies with egg mixture.
Bake for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.  Cool slightly before removing them from the sheet pan.