I love baking in the fall; it's just that simple. There is a natural warmth of flavors, spices, and ingredients that lend themselves to this time of year. Like crisp apples and buttery caramel...the perfect combination of sweet and tart! These bites are like little caramel apples baked into a buttery piecrust and way to irresistible not to devour.
And because I take a shortcut and use store bough pie dough in this recipe, these little babies can be in your hands in no time at all! I would like to personally shake the hand of whoever dreamt up the caramel apple and then give them a Mini Caramel Apple Hand Pie as a token of my gratitude.
Mini Caramel Apple Hand Pies
Yield:
12
Ingredients
- 1-box store-bought refrigerated pie crust (2 rolls) *I like to use Pillsbury
- 2 cups peeled and diced Granny Smith apples (about 3 apples, diced small)
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ cup sugar
- 10 store-bought soft caramels, cubed
- ½ lemon juiced
- Egg wash (1 egg whisked with 1 Tablespoon water)
- Crystal sanding sugar
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF and line a baking sheet with Silpat or parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, combine the diced apples, lemon juice, cinnamon, sugar and flour. Mix until apples are thoroughly coated. Set aside.
- Unroll the pie dough onto a well-floured surface. Using a 3-inch circular cookie cutter or glass, cut out as many circles as possible. Using a rolling-pin, roll out the scraps and continue cutting out circles until you run out of dough.
- Spoon 1 tablespoon of the apple filling into the center of half of the pie circles. Make sure to leave enough of a border around the filling to seal them shut. Do not overfill!
- Top the apple filling with a few pieces of caramel.
- Brush around the edges of the dough with a finger dipped in egg wash. This will be the “glue”.
- Place a second dough circle on top each filled circle then use a fork to crimp the edges together.
- Brush each pie with the egg wash, and cut two vents on the top of each pie with a sharp knife. Sprinkle the pies with crystal sanding sugar and place on prepared sheet pan.
- Refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Bake the pies for 15 minutes, or until they're golden brown. Enjoy!
Sarah | The Sugar Hit says
These look so gorgeous! Salted caramel apple pie is swiftly becoming a classic.
JoAnn Stevens-Flores says
Yummy! These are beautiful, and I'm sure delicious. I think I might actually be able to make these 🙂
Laura says
This is wonderful! I just love your creativity with each project that you post. I hope to try these this weekend!
Katie says
I can't wait to make these!!!!!
Danielle Johnson says
Seems simple enough and they look delicious!
Joy | Frock Files says
Gorgeous and soooo delicious sounding! And you know about my love affair with store bought crust. Emphatic wink.
Chelsea says
These look AHH-mazing and sound just easy enough to actually make. I love caramel apple anything (especially those lollipops, ever had them?)!
terry Campbell says
Leah- what little culinary beauties you've created. I agree with the urge to bake more in the fall - everything cozy and warm and homespun. Nice work.
Jamie says
Yum! These look adorable and delicious. Likely making an appearance at my upcoming Friendsgiving potluck.
Rachael (Fuji Mama) says
SO pretty! And who can resist something you can pick up and eat in a couple of bites?
Audrey says
These look amazing. I just might give them a try this weekend for a Thanksgiving dessert potluck I'm going to!
systers5 says
Oh my these are too fun! Perfect for Thanksgiving!
Amanda @ Once Upon a Recipe says
I can't even handle how wonderful/delicious/cute/amazing these look! I feel like even a pie virgin like myself just might be able to handle giving these a try.
Adriana says
I made these today, oh my goodness, they are amazing! They are very easy to make and taste fantastic!
kira says
these are so fabulous, i gotta try!!
Martine says
This recipe was a hit at our Thanksgiving dinner. Delicious! Thank you!
Sangelo says
Perfect for our summer concert picnic! I added some chopped walnuts and a bit of orange zest. Easy to transport, temperature not an issue, and tasted delicious. Thanks for a great year-round treat.
moonlightchai says
Great recipe! I made these and will be featuring them on my blog as well. I gave a link to your blog!
Melissa says
This looks amazing! Do you think it could be made as pumpkin pies too?
Leah Bergman says
I'm sure you could make mini pumpkin hand pies! Not sure how the caramel would taste with it but give it a try. 😉 Sounds pretty good!
Tina Carver says
This is wonderful. Will be making this soon.
Jacqueline says
Can you freeze these?
Leah Bergman says
I am sure you could however I have never tried it! The apple pie part will probably freeze fine. I am not sure however if the texture of the caramel will change. It may become a bit grainy. Please let me know if you try!
Sarah says
A half of what of lemon juice?
Leah Bergman says
Half of a lemon, juiced.
nancy says
do you serve these still warm or let them cool then serve?
Leah Bergman says
They are delicious both warm or at room temperature! I found that the caramel was quite hot so room temp or just slightly cooled is best. Enjoy!
nancy says
Great, thank you!
Leah Bergman says
You are welcome! Happy baking. 🙂
Lisa says
I don't know why but mine came out salty.. I have no idea how because I didn't use any salt... Help!
Leah Bergman says
Did you use salted butter or salted caramels? Not sure why they would be salty!
Staci Johnson says
Do you think you could make these the night before?
Leah Bergman says
Yes, you definitely can! I would recommend rehearing them for just a few minutes in the oven to re-heat slightly before serving.
Joanna says
At what temp and about how long for reheating?? Im making these for Thanksgiving this year and having these made the night before would be awesome!
ilene a says
Do I have to
Put the mix in the refrigerator for 30 minutes?
Leah Bergman says
If you have time to refrigerate it will help hold the pies together and create a flakier crust. If you are short on time just pop them in the freezer (on the baking sheet) for 10 minutes or until they feel chilled.
Mercy says
My sister and I feel adventurous and are making these tonight 🙂 Thanks for the recipe!
Laurie says
While these were delish, I found that rolling the top crust a little bigger made things much easier when sealing the pie shut.
Leah Bergman says
Thanks for the tip! I'll try that next time around.
Robertsmn@hot says
Can they be made the night before
Leah Bergman says
Yes, they can be made the night before but I always think that pie is best the day it's made. You may want to pop them in the oven just for a few minutes to re-heat them before serving.
Ingrid says
I'm making these for my son's class for their thanksgiving feast. His teacher would like for me to leave out the caramel. Do you think it would still be good without? Should I add anything in place of it? Butter or brown sugar?
Leah Bergman says
Hi Ingrid, these will still be delicious without the caramel! No need to add any other ingredients. I hope your son's class enjoys them.
Ingrid says
Thank you so much for your quick reply. I'm not sure why he wants me to leave it out. I thought it would be more tasty and fun with the caramels. Here goes nothing!
allison says
I found some salted caramel chips while shopping. What do you think of using these instead of caramel?
Leah Bergman says
I think caramel chips would probably be delicious! Let me know how they worked.
andrea says
Hi there, should I spray the cookie sheet before baking? Thanks!
Leah Bergman says
I line my baking sheets with a non stick mat or parchment paper but if you don't have either then spray should work too!
Isabel says
If i made theses the night before do you put the in the fridge for the night or can they be left out?
Leah Bergman says
If it's just the night before I would leave them out but covered.
[email protected] says
I'm making these tomorrow and was wondering if I should bake them before I travel 1.5 Hours. Or can I pre make them and bake them later?
Leah Bergman says
Either way should be fine but I would probably bake them before you travel and keep them covered at room temperature after they cool.
Sarah says
Do you need to cook the apples before you but them in the pie crust?
Leah Bergman says
No, leave them raw. They cook while you bake the pie.