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Apple and pear pies

Fried Apple and Pear Hand Pies

Just like grandma's! A simple recipe for delicious pastries. These fried apple hand pies can easily stand in for dessert — they're golden, filling, sweet, and kids love them. Use any fruit you like and chop it however you prefer: with a knife, a meat grinder, or a grater.

Daria ☼

Recipe author

Composition / ingredients

Servings:

Apples (fresh)

400

Pears (fresh)

400

Flour

3.5

Butter

200

Eggs

Sugar

Salt

Vegetable oil (for frying)

100

Vanillin

Translation table of volumetric measures

Nutrients and energy value of the composition of the recipe

By weight of the composition:

Proteins 8 % 4 g

Fats 29 % 15 g

Carbohydrates 63 % 32 g

273 kcal

GI: 16 / 0 / 84

Cooking method

Step 1:

How do you make apple hand pies? Gather all the ingredients. Besides apples, I also used pears to make the pies a bit more interesting, but you can stick with just apples. Use any ripe fruit — we'll be mixing it with sugar anyway.
Step 2:

Set aside the ingredients for the dough. Sift the flour through a fine sieve. Take the butter out of the refrigerator; it should be moderately soft.
Step 3:

In a separate bowl, mix the eggs with 3 tablespoons of sugar and the butter. Cream the mixture together with a spoon or fork.
Step 4:

Add the sifted flour a bit at a time and start kneading the dough.
Step 5:

The dough will be stiff, so it's easier to knead it by hand. It shouldn't be sticky.
Step 6:

Roll the dough into a ball, cover it with a towel, and set it aside for 15 to 20 minutes to rest.
Step 7:

Prepare the filling. As I mentioned, I used apples and pears. Wash the fruit well and pat it dry. I left the skins on, but you can peel them if you'd like a more tender filling.
Step 8:

Cut the pears (if you're using them) into small cubes.
Step 9:

Cut the apples into small cubes. You can also grate the fruit or run it through a meat grinder.
Step 10:

Finely chop some shelled walnuts. You can leave them out of the filling if you prefer.
Step 11:

Mix the fruit and nuts together. Add a pinch of vanillin or a spoonful of vanilla sugar. Stir in all the remaining sugar. Taste the filling for sweetness and add more sugar if you'd like. You can also use a heat-stable sweetener in place of sugar.
Step 12:

Divide the rested dough into pieces. Roll each one into a round disk. Place filling in the center, pinch the edges closed, and shape it into a hand pie.
Step 13:

Heat a skillet with vegetable oil. Fry the pies on both sides until golden brown.
Step 14:

I also baked some of the pies in the oven — here's how they came out.
Step 15:

Enjoy, everyone!

Be ready for the dough to need a little more or a little less flour than the recipe calls for. Go by the texture you want, not the exact amount of flour. Getting to know your flour and how it behaves helps you avoid mistakes.
Use an oil with a high smoke point for frying. Every oil is only healthy up to a certain temperature — its smoke point — beyond which it starts to burn and forms harmful compounds. Unrefined oils, with few exceptions, have a low smoke point; they're full of unfiltered particles that scorch quickly. Refined oils hold up better to heat and have a higher smoke point. If you're cooking in the oven, in a skillet, or on the grill, make sure you use a high-smoke-point oil. The most common ones are refined sunflower, olive, and grapeseed oil.