Peach and Blueberry Hand Pies

I recently saw a tasty looking recipe for peach hand pies in a local newspaper.  As a fan of most everything in the pie, tart, crisp and crumble family, I was very excited to try my hand at this portable version of a personal pie.   Just a warning, the recipe requires two hours total "chilling" time so plan accordingly. I promise you, the end result is very much worth the wait!

Makes 6 individual pies

Pastry Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 stick (8 tablespoons) of unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup sour cream (I used plain greek yogurt instead)
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
1/4 cup ice water

Mix the flour and salt in bowl.  Place the butter cubes in a second bowl and put both bowls in the freezer for one hour.  Next mix the yogurt, lemon juice and ice water in another small bowl.  When cooled, transfer the flour and the butter from the freezer to the food processor fitted with the metal blade.  Pulse the butter and flour together until the butter is reduced to pieces so tiny you almost can't distinguish them.

Add the yogurt, lemon juice and water and pulse in quick spurts until the mixture clumps together to form a ball of dough.  Turn the dough out onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form it into a disk.  Wrap it up and refrigerate the dough for 1 solid hour.  (Don't skimp.)

In the meantime, you can prepare the filling:

2 large peaches, peeled and sliced into half inch pieces
3/4 cup fresh blueberries
2 tablespoons of flour
3 tablespoons of sugar
1/2 teaspoon of bourbon, amaretto, vanilla or lemon juice- your choice

Toss everything together gently in a bowl.  Next make a simple Cinnamon Sugar for dusting over the outside of the pies.  Mix together 3 tablespoons of sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, and 1/4 teaspoon of nutmeg.  You'll also want an egg wash to help the pies brown and the cinnamon sugar to adhere.  (Beat one egg in a small bowl with 2 tablespoons of water.)

After the dough has chilled, cut the disc in half to roll out the pie shells.  Work with one half at a time, put the second half back in the fridge.  Roll the dough out on a floured surface to 1/8 inch thickness, flipping it over every so often to ensure it doesn't stick.  You can make the pies as large or small as you like.  I used a cereal bowl as a guide to cutting out three, 5 inch circles from the first sheet of dough.  (Tracing the bowl with a paring knife.)  I was able to fit two circles with the first roll, then I rerolled the scraps to make the third circle. 

Transfer the circles to a baking sheet covered with parchment paper.  Spoon 1/4-1/3 cup of the fruit filling into the center of each circle and fold in half, using a bit of the egg wash to help the dough stick together if needed.  Crimp the edges with a fork to seal the pie.

Brush the pies with egg wash and sprinkle generously with cinnamon sugar before placing the pan back in the fridge for at least 30 minutes.  Making sure the dough is cold when it hits the oven ensures the crust stays nice and flaky.  Repeat with the second portion of dough.

Once chilled, bake the pies at 375 degrees for 20 minutes or until golden brown.  Don't be alarmed if blueberry juice oozes out a bit.  I baked three pies to a pan to ensure they had plenty of room for such oozage.  Let the pies cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan.  Serve warm with a scoop of ice cream or whipped cream (I spiked mine with a little extra amaretto.)  They truly are best fresh out of the oven. I tried reheating them the next day and its just not the same.. If serving guests, I would recommend assembling them a few hours ahead, keeping them in the fridge, and baking them while you eat dinner.

The dough is flaky and yet still a bit chewy at the same time.  The warmth and crunch of the cinnamon crust is the perfect compliment to the perfectly sweet gooey filling. I love that the pie is served in a tidy little personal package.  I always find it hard to serve fruit pie elegantly because the filling starts to ooze out from under the top crust as soon as you cut it.  Transfer to the plate is always messy affair as well.  Hand pies are most definitely a fun twist.  I can't wait to try apple or pear hand pies as we get into fall!