These Caramel Apple Hand Pies are the perfect way to celebrate apple season. Whether you're enjoying them at home with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or packing them for a picnic in the park, they're sure to be a hit.These pies are made using a special lattice pie mold, which you can find for purchase at Williams-Sonoma (linked in recipe). If you use ready-made pie crusts from the grocery store, you’ll need 4 crusts total (two 14.1 oz. packages). Or, you’ll need two recipes of a homemade double crust. See the recipe notes for my all-butter double crust recipe.This recipe calls for 3 pounds of Granny Smith apples, which is about 8 medium apples.
3poundsGranny Smith Applescored, peeled, and diced to 1/4"
2tablespoonslemon juice
1/4cupunsalted butter
1cupgranulated sugar
2tablespoonsapple pie spice
Pinchof salt
4pie crustsstore-bought or homemade
1/2cupprepared caramel saucesuch as Torani caramel sauce plus more for serving
1eggbeaten with 1 tablespoon water
Instructions
Toss the apples with the lemon juice in a large bowl. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the apples, sugar, apple pie spice, and salt. Stir together and cook until the sugar is melted and the apples have softened slightly, about 7 minutes. The mixture should be fairly dry and any liquid should be syrupy and clinging to the apples. If mixture seems wet, cook another 2 minutes until dry.
Transfer the mixture to a large bowl and cool, uncovered, to room temperature. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour or overnight.
Roll out cold pie dough on a lightly floured surface to slightly greater than 1/8-inch thickness. Using back of the pie mold, cut lattice top rounds; as you cut, pick out the diamond shapes from the mold using a toothpick. Gently coax the lattice tops out of the mold using a toothpick and your fingers to remove it. Reroll dough scraps and cut bottom crusts. Refrigerate if dough begins to get warm and floppy (dough will cut easier if it’s cold).
Preheat the oven to 350F.
Place a bottom crust into the pie mold. Add about 2 teaspoons caramel and spread over the bottom of the crust using a spoon within 1/2 inch of the pie crust edge. Fill the pie with about 2 tablespoons of the chilled apple filling.
Brush the edges with some of the beaten egg and water mixture. Lay a lattice top over the filled crust and hinge the mold closed and press lightly to seal.
Remove pie to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining caramel, pie crusts, and egg wash. Refrigerate pies for 30 minutes. Using a pastry brush, coat the tops of the pies with the egg wash.
Bake the pies for 25 to 27 minutes, or until they are golden brown and fragrant. Remove pies to a wire rack to cool slightly.
Serve pies warm. They are lovely as-is, but our favorite way to eat them is with a scoop of ice cream. They are also wonderful with a side of caramel dipping sauce sprinkled with flake sea salt.
Notes
Can I use other apples? Honeycrisp and Golden Delicious apples can also be used in this recipe. They may not require as much time in the saucepan, so take care not to overcook them.I don't have/want to use a pie mold. If you don't have the drawer space for another gadget, you can use a 4 1/2 inch round cookie cutter to make these pies. Cut dough rounds and fill with 1 teaspoon of caramel and 1 tablespoon of filling to one side of the round. Brush the edges with egg wash and fold over to a half mood shape. Crimp the edges with a fork. Coat with egg wash then cut 2 slits in the top of the pie. Bake as directed. Yield will almost double with this method (24 pies).All-Butter Pie Crust (yields 2 crusts) 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus more for dusting1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon sugar16 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed4 tablespoons ice water, additional as neededIn a food processor combine the flour, salt, and sugar; pulse several times to combine. Add butter and pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal, with just a few pea-size pieces remaining. Remove the lid and sprinkle 2 tablespoons ice water over the mixture. Re-attach lid and pulse until the dough is crumbly but holds together when squeezed with fingers (if needed, add up to 2 tablespoons more ice water, a little at a time, through the feeding tube). Turn dough out onto a work surface and divide in two equal pieces. Form each piece of dough into a 3/4-inch-thick disk. Wrap tightly in plastic, and refrigerate until firm, at least 1 hour.
Keyword apple hand pies, apple pie spice, caramel apple hand pies, caramel sauce, egg wash, fall pie recipe, granny smith apples