Apple Pie Cookies... and a gluten-free version.

Apple Pie Cookies... and a gluten-free version. I'm sorry I don't intend on posting too many dessert recipes one after another... but I've had a few sitting in my draft that I should post. So bear with me as I "clean" my draft folder.

If you remember I posted a make-ahead pie crust recipe some time ago... a pie crust you could store in the freezer for future use. Well, I wanted to show you what I ended up doing with half the batch. I made these apple pie cookies last year, for a church Christmas hymn sing, but I'm finally getting around to posting the recipe.

The idea of making apple pie cookies might not be so new, as I'm sure many of you have seen apple pie cookie recipes floating all over the internet. Personally, I've always wanted to make them. I thought they were the cutest of things:).

Since I always make my own pie crust, I ended up using my homemade version, but this recipe can easily made with any pie crust really. You can use a ready-made store bought pie crust, or even use your own pie crust recipe that's special to you... maybe handed down from your mother or grandmother. The recipe I use is an all-butter crust...  which makes for a tender and flaky pastry-like crust.

I love adding a nut filling to my apple pies, as it gives it extra flavor and a bit of texture. It also holds the bottom of the pie crust from getting too soggy. I applied the same idea when making these pie cookies, but you can certainly skip the nut filling if you want... or you can add a bit of caramel.

While you can make simple, round, double-crusted apple pie cookies, I rather like the lattice look. It makes the cookies look a bit more elegant... more pastry-like, rather than cookies. But feel free to make the cookies without the lattice top.

And since I also made a gluten-free version, I thought to post that as well. The lattice for the GF apple pie cookies was quite a bit harder to make. I'd recommend crisscrossing the lattice part, without interweaving them, or even skipping the lattice part completely and using just round pie circles(double-crust). The GF crust is much more fragile... prone to breaking, and giving you a headache:).

Hopefully, the apple pie cookie idea is seen in this post, my intention was not to make it look too complicated:).... because it really isn't.  They're just mini apple pies... flatter... to take on the form of cookies. You'll  have a few scraps from the cutouts, but you can bake them as is, or place the scraps in x-small muffin tins.... makes really good mini "tarts". Of course, you can skip the cutouts and  make one large lattice apple pie cookie. Actually, I thought of  making one large cookie myself... but I'd probably call it an apple pie tart:).... especially if you cut it in wedges. Maybe next time. Hope you enjoy...    

You will need: makes about 20 ( 2-3 inch) apple pie cookies

Ingredients For Making Pie Cookies:

2 pie crusts
apple pie filling
nut filling, or can use a caramel filling
cinnamon, nutmeg sugar
raw sugar crystals
icing, optional
beaten egg for brushing top of pie cookies

Nut Filling: For one regular apple pie cookies recipe. Will need to make another 1/2 of the recipe for a GF version 

1/2 cup ground walnuts
1 TBS brown sugar, or to taste
1 TBS beaten egg
1/8 tsp vanilla

Apple Filling: will need only 1/2 of the filling to make the regular apple pie cookies recipe... can freeze the rest or use the rest to make the GF version below

2 large apples*
1 TBS cornstarch
4- 5 TBS sugar
2-3 TBS lemon meyer juice
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/4 tsp cinnamon
* I used 1 large fuji apple + 1 large pink lady apple= 4 1/2- 5 cups sm. dice apples

Directions:

Make Nut Filling:
1. Beat egg, and remove 1 TBS beaten egg and place in a bowl. Reserve the rest of the egg for brushing the top of the cookies.
2. To the 1 TBS beaten egg, add the ground walnuts, brown sugar and vanilla. Combine all ingredients. Set aside. This nut filling makes enough for just the regular pie  cookies, but if you would like to make a gluten-free version, then you will need to make another 1/2 a batch. Set aside.

Make Apple Filling: 
1. Peel and cut apples in small dice pieces( 1/4 inch or so)... you should have about 5 cups.
2. In a medium saucepan, add diced apples, cornstarch, sugar, and cinnamon. Heat on med-low and mix ingredients until combined. Cook, stirring often... till apples slightly soften and thicken. This will take about 10 -12 minutes or so. Taste filling, adjust for sweetness and add the lemon juice. Stir in the vanilla. Set aside.


Make Cinnamon Sugar + Icing:
1 TBS sugar+ 1/4 tsp cinnamon+ a few gratings of nutmeg
Powdered sugar+ a bit of water + lemon/vanilla extract to drizzling consistency

Assemble Apple Pie Cookies:

• Preheat oven to 375 deg F
• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

1. Roll out one pie crust to about 12 inches in diameter... or so. 

2. Spread nut filling on bottom of crust... all the way to the edge.

3. Place about 1 cup of the diced apple filling and spread on top of the nut filling. You will have some apple filling leftover. You may freeze the rest for another use,  or use it to make another small batch of GF pie cookies , as I did.

4. Roll out second pie crust to about 12 inches and cut 1/2 inch strips. Place strips in lattice design on top of the apple filling. 

5. Brush lattice top with beaten egg, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, can add a bit of raw coarse sugar as well, if desired.

6. Using a 2 1/2- 3 inch sharp round cookie cutter, cut out cookies... making sure to leave as little a space between cutouts to maximize the number of cookies you get.

7. Place cookies on parchment lined cookie sheet. With scraps, I like to use a mini muffin tin and bake them... this way I don't waste the scraps and turn them into mini muffin pie scraps.  You can see this in the GF version photos below.

8. Bake in preheated 375 deg F oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden.

9. If you like, you can drizzle some cookies with a powdered sugar icing. 

Gluten- Free Apple Pie Cookies

Note: It is best to keep pie crust cold, as it is difficult to work with if dough is soft. And use a bit of GF flour to dust work surface as you roll out dough.

You will need:

1 GF pie crust recipe, 4 pieces, rolled in 6 inch circles

1 cup diced apple pie filling

1/2 nut filling(recipe above)

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 deg F
• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper

1. Cut pie crust in 4 pieces. You will need to work with smaller pieces, as the crust is quite fragile. Roll out one piece of the dough to about 6 inch or so.

2. Spread about 2 tablespoons or so of nut filling on crust, then add about 1/2 cup of apple pie filling and spread it to the edge.

3. Roll out another 6 inch pie crust, cut in strips and form lattice top.... 

Now, I must admit this was quite challenging as the dough breaks easily. I used a knife to lift up the strips and had many broken pieces. In the end it turned out ok. It's doable, but if you want to make it easier, you can opt to cut out small shapes and use those instead or even placing another rolled out crust on top as you would when making regular pies(w/out any lattice work). 

4. Brush top with beaten egg, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, can add a bit of raw coarse sugar as well, if desired.

5. Using a 2 1/2- 3 inch sharp round cookie cutter, cut out cookies... 

6. Place cookies on parchment lined cookie sheet.

7. Repeat the process with the other 2 pieces. 

8. With scraps, I like to use a mini muffin tin and bake them... this way I don't waste the scraps and turn them into mini muffin pies. 

9. Bake in preheated 375 deg F oven for 15 minutes or so... or until golden.

10. If you like, you can drizzle some cookies with a powdered sugar icing.

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Using the Gluten- Free Flour blend... to make a couple of desserts.

Using the Gluten- Free Flour blend... to make a couple of desserts. As promised in a previous post, I am posting a couple of recipes I made for a GF dinner gathering I hosted recently. One of the recipes was apple pie tartlets... a mini version. I ended up using a semi-cooked apple filling...  a filling I usually make when baking apple turnovers. I have included the link to the apple pie filling below, so you can click on it if you would like to see the recipe. And because I made mini tarts, I used my toaster oven to make things even simpler, but feel free to use a regular oven.  

The second recipe was an apple and pear cake I made on the spur of the moment... it was an adaptation from a golden apple brownie I had in one of my cookbooks. The cake somewhat  falls apart when warm... because I omitted the xanthan gum in my flour, and probably because my fruit pieces were cut a bit too big. But my husband loved the apple/pear cake, as did my guests, so I'm posting the recipe for the cake as well. The cake is a light and fluffy sort of cake with a caramel-y flavor from the coconut sugar I used. However, the cake should still work with brown sugar, if you choose to use it... it might even hold together better. 

Since I had some leftover pie crust (and some extra apple pie filling) I managed to line 3 (6 inch) tart pans with the pie crust and froze them... for baking another day. The day I chose to bake them, I used the leftover apple pie filling(also frozen) from the mini tarts I made earlier to make an apple tart. However, I still had a couple of pastry lined tarts, so I ended up making a pumpkin filling to fill the remaining tart shells. With the leftover pumpkin filling, I simply made a few extra mini crustless pumpkin pies... ended up being more like a custard/souffle. They were good and healthy for breakfast:).

In any case, these are just some ideas for using the gluten- free flour and GF pie crust I posted earlier.  The post might seem long, but I ended up posting the recipes I made... as a guide, with lots of pictures. However, they are just ideas... you can easily use your own apple pie filling, or any fruit filling for that matter... and use your own favorite pumpkin pie filling. The apple/pear cake was delicious, but you can play around with the fruits... and using toffee chips instead of the nuts, or  adding some chocolate in the mix. Be creative and make the recipes your own. Hope you enjoy...        

You will need:

Cooked apple pie filling

GF pie crust

Extra: 

powdered sugar

drizzle of icing

caramel

dollop of sweetened cream

ice cream

Directions:

1. Make apple pie fill per directions in above link. Allow to cool somewhat and proceed to roll out pastry dough to line mini muffin tin/s.

2. Roll out pie crust between floured parchment paper... make sure to use a GF flour blend. 

3. Using a circle cookie cutter, cut out circles that are about 1/2 inch wider than the mini muffin well. 

4. Using a small offset spatula lift the pie crust circle and place in mini muffin tin well. Press to fit in. 

5. Continue with the rest of the pastry until all the muffin tin is lined with the pie crust.

6. Fill each muffin well with about 1 TBS of the apple filling. 

7. Bake in a preheated 425 deg F  oven for 10-12 minutes... or until crust is nicely golden and filling is bubbly. 

Note: I used my toaster oven to bake the mini pies.

Gluten-Free Apple and Pear Cakelets... with walnuts and coconut sugar.

Note: Since I didn't use any xanthan gum in my flour blend, my cakelets had the tendency to fall apart a bit, especially when warm. I chose to chill /freeze them  a bit before removing from pan. I think it would work much better if the cakes would be baked in muffin liners... wouldn't have to worry too much with them falling apart. Now, if you add a bit of xanthan gum, you might not have the falling apart issue.

You will need: I used a pan with 8 mini loaf pan wells, but muffin pans lined with cupcake liners should work equally well, if not better.

2/3 cup coconut sugar (can be substituted with lt. brown sugar)

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1/4 cup melted butter

1/4 cup light olive oil

1 ex-large egg

1 medium pear, diced*

1 large granny smith apple, peeled and diced*

1/2 cup chopped walnuts/pecans

2 tsps vanilla extract

1 cup gluten-free flour blend (I didn't add xanthan gum, nor any stabilizer)

pinch of salt

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp grated nutmeg

1/8 tsp powdered ginger 

*I chopped my fruits a bit bigger than I should have, ideally it would be a ton better if fruits are diced small

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 350 deg F
• Butter mini loaf pan and line with parchment paper... or use muffin tin lined with cupcake liners.

1. In a large bowl, mix sugar, melted butter, oil, and egg until fluffy... about 2-3 minutes.

2. Chop nuts along with the pear and apple. Fold them into the egg mixture. Mix in the vanilla. 

3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, salt baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
4. Stir in the dry mixture into the wet mixture until just blended.

5. Using an ice cream scoop, fill the mini loaf pans (or muffin tins) and spread batter evenly with a spatula. 

6. Bake for about 20-35 minutes (depending what pan you use, timing will vary)... OR until toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

7. Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan.... since I made the cake in mini loaf pans, I let them  cool in the pan completely and even chilled them a bit so they wouldn't fall apart. But it 's up to you how you want to cool them:)... Serve with caramel sauce, ice cream, or sweetened whipped cream.

Pumpkin Pie / Apple Pie...

You will need:

Apple Pie Filling

I used leftover semi-frozen apple pie filling from the mini tartlet recipe above. 

Directions:

1. Line tarts with GF pie crust, and place apple filling on top... I piled my apple pie filling on high, as it was semi-frozen.

2. Bake at 425 deg F for 15 or so minutes... or until crust is golden and filling is bubbly.  Drizzle with caramel, or dust with icing sugar. Serve with vanilla ice cream, if desired. 

Note: I used my toaster oven to bake the tart.

Pumpkin Pie Filling:  Filling is not very sweet using the coconut sugar, so if you like it sweeter, use regular sugar or increase coconut sugar... or pour some maple syrup over the cooled pie and add sweetened whipped cream as a topping. Also, the spice is there, but on the milder side, so increase amount of pumpkin spice if you like it spicier. While a normal pumpkin pie contains evaporated milk, I subbed a bit of cream... 

15 oz pumpkin puree

3/4-1 cup coconut sugar( you can substitute with 3/4 cup cane sugar)

2 ex- large eggs, beaten

1/3 cup heavy cream (you can add more if you like)

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp kosher salt

Directions:

1. In a small bowl whisk and combine the sugar, spices and salt. In another bowl, add the pumpkin puree and mix in the beaten eggs. 

2. Add the sugar mix and whisk to combine. Pour in the cream and whisk to fully combine.

3. Pour the pumpkin filling into GF pastry lined tarts. 

2. Bake in a preheated oven at 425 F for 10-12 minutes. Decrease temperature to 350 F and bake for an additional 15-18 minutes or until center is almost set(it will continue to cook as it cools).  Allow to cool completely. Chill. Serve drizzled with maple syrup, honey, caramel, ... or simply topped with sweetened whipped cream, or ice cream.  

Note: I used my toaster oven to bake the tarts.

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Gluten-Free Pie Crust(without xanthan gum)... absolute FAVORITE.

Gluten-Free Pie Crust... absolute FAVORITE. Since I recently shared my quick tip for freezing pie crusts, I realized that I wanted to have a gluten-free version of a pie crust on this site as well.  And since I needed to make a gluten-free dessert for a dinner party recently, I took the opportunity to come up with a GF pie crust. This pie crust is amazing, and you'd never know it's gluten-free. I can almost say it might be better than a regular pie crust. Seriously. While I tend to stay away from making such a strong statement, I find this GF pie crust simply wonderful!  

The only thing about this crust is that you will need to work with it while cold. The dough can get soft and unmanageable if too warm.... can be sticky while rolling. But having said that, if you use a liberal hand of GF flour to dust the dough while rolling, it should come together without too much trouble. And in reality, you can always just press and pat the dough in the pan if needed. However, the dough should bake up wonderful and hold together nicely.  

While this pie dough makes a smallish amount, I love to use it to make tartlets. I find it's the perfect amount for making mini pies. Plus, they're much easier to work with, look pretty and bake up much quicker than a regular pie. You can use this pie crust dough and blind bake it for cold cream pies or other pies that need the crust pre-baked... or you can use it unbaked in various pie recipes. This has become a favorite. Hope you enjoy...  

Tip: I like to freeze the shaped pie crusts( in their tartlet pans) beforehand...and fill and bake the day of serving.  

You will need: makes one 9 inch pie crust... or 3 (6 inch) tarts + 12 mini (muffin pan size) tarts 

Process:

1 1/2 cups gluten-free flour blend(w/o xanthan gum)

1 TBS psyllium husks*

1 TBS sugar

pinch of kosher salt

1/4 cup COLD unsalted butter

1/4 cup solid coconut oil( can sub with butter, if you like)

*can be found at natural food stores in the vitamin section

Combine and add to flour mix above:

1 ex-large egg

1 tsp cider vinegar

1-3 TBS cold water, as needed

Extra:

gluten-free flour for dusting/rolling as needed

Directions:

1. Combine flour blend, sugar, psyllium husks and salt in a food processor bowl. Alternately, you can place in a large bowl.  Add the butter and solid coconut oil and process (or cut in butter and coconut oil using a pastry blender or fork) until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. 

2. Combine egg, cold water and apple cider vinegar in small bowl; start out with just 1 TBS water. Add egg mixture through processor feed tube and pulse for a few seconds until dough comes together in a scraggly mixture and is just moistened.... or combine with fork until just mixed.  Add additional water as needed if too dry. 

3. Shape pastry into a ball; flatten slightly. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, at least a couple of hours, preferably overnight. 

4. Remove from refrigerator, let stand 10 minutes or so, at room temperature. Unwrap pastry and place on a

 floured(GF) 

parchment paper. Flour the pastry dough with gluten-free flour flour as well, then top with another sheet of parchment paper. 

5. Roll out pastry into 12-inch circle.... for making 9-inch pie pan. If making mini pies use a round cutter to cut out circles for placing in mini muffin tin wells... or larger circles to fit  6 inch tart pans. I like to use a small icing spatula to lift the pie crust rounds, it's just easier. You will need to press and pat the pastry firmly against bottom and sides, sealing any cracks if necessary. Crimp or flute edge if needed. 

6. Fill and bake according to pie recipe directions. 

Note: 

For baked unfilled pie shell, prick crust all over with fork. Bake at 475°F. for 8 to 10 minutes or until lightly browned. You can also lower temperature to 425

°F and bake for a bit longer.  Fill as desired.

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Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend

Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend... This past weekend I had invited some friends over for dinner. Due to a celiac condition for a couple of the guests, I needed to make the dinner completely gluten-free. There was also an intolerence to dairy products, which added to the challenge. However, I was glad I could use a limited amount of butter. Really glad for that:). Needless to say, the dinner menu took some planning... 

I started out planning my menu and quickly realized the dessert part would be the most challenging... I wanted to stay away from making a chocolate based dessert, and wanted to incorporate the fall produce. But before I could even start on the dessert, I knew I needed to think about the flour I'd be using. 

Making my own GF flour blend was something I have been wanting to make for a while.... however, I really wanted to make a blend using just minimal ingredients. Even though I had lots of different flours and starches I could use, my fridge was stocked, I decided to go the minimalist route. And I just loved the result! I only made 2 recipes using this flour blend, but the two I did make (will be sharing them soon), were wonderful! So,  I thought I would share the recipe... and file it in my recipe index for future reference. Hope you enjoy...   

Note: I don't use xanthan gum, but if you like, you can add  1 tsp xanthan gum to the flour mixture. I like to use other alternatives, such as psyllium husks. The role of xanthan gum is to keep things together... as would gluten. I skip it though, and sometimes  use an egg, chia seed gel, flax seeed gel or psyllium husks to achieve the same results as xanthan gum. At times, I just skip  any form of "thickener" altogether. I'm not a gluten-free expert, so if you know something else that acts as a binder, then use what works for you.

You will need:  adapted from Land o Lakes. Feel free to sift the flour mix before using in any recipe...

2 cups brown rice flour

2/3 cup potato starch

1/3 cup tapioca starch

Directions:   

1.  Measure out all ingredients in a medium bowl and stir to combine well. 

Note: Since I like my flour to be as fine as possible, I run it through my Vitamix, in batches and blend on high for 30 seconds to a minute.  This step is optional... 

2. Store flour mix in a sealed container (I like to place it in the fridge or freezer) using in gluten-free baking recipes. 

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