Spiced Blueberry Hand Pies
It is no secret to those who know me that I absolutely love pie. Sweet, savory, freeform or meticulously styled, I love it all. I have been trying to hone my baking skills lately and have turned to pie on a number of occasions. What I have found from trying recipes including this great one with vodka from Cook's Illustrated that tends to be my standby. With a solid foundation, anything is possible.
This year, I was responsible for bringing pie to Thanksgiving at my cousin Jen's house. Wanting to stretch the imagination a bit and do something new, I scoured the internet for inspiration. I wanted something unique and admittedly a little showy. I found two that fit the bill; Cranberry Chiffon by from Saveur and Crème Brulee Pie from Erin McDowell on Food52.
I am happy to report that I tried both this year at Thanksgiving and they were a success. Naturally, I had to bring the Crème brûlée pie to Jen's house so her kids and I could play with the obligatory blow torch. There are other ways to brûlée some sugar but a blow torch is 1 - the easiest way and 2 - the most fun way.
I have been trying to use up some blueberries leftover from the summer. Sticking with the pie theme, I opted for spiced blueberry handpies. For those of you unfamiliar with hand pies, they are basically pop tarts for adults. I wanted something flakey, handheld and complex in flavor. The blueberries, cinnamon, lemon and chili powder (yes, chili powder) combine to make a great filling.
Spiced Blueberry Hand Pies
Ingredients
1 pie disc
1.5 C. frozen blueberries
3 T. sugar
1 T. ginger
1 T. cinnamon
1/4 t. nutmeg
1/8 t. chili powder
zest of 2 lemons
a pinch of salt
1 egg
1/4 C. heavy cream
Directions
Preheat the oven to 300
Roll out the dough into 9 inch circle 1/4" inch thick.
Toss the blueberries with the sugar, ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, chili powder, lemon zest, and salt until evenly mixed.
In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and cream.
Cut the pie dough into 8 even sections and coat with the egg mixture.
Spoon the blueberry mixture onto the dough wedges, top with more dough and seal around the edges with a fork.
Brush the tops of the handpies with the remaining egg mixture and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 30 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.
