Baking| A is for Apple – Bite Sized Apple Pies for SRC & Steve Jobs
“I think if you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.”
Steve Jobs
It’s been a sad last week. Think apple and think Steve Jobs, a man whose vision and brilliance silently and beautifully changed the way we look at things. He brought beauty into our everyday lives, gave ‘A is for apple’ a new meaning, i-tuning our very existence.
With his passing away, the world lost an icon, a genius who became an inspiration and a daily connect to millions across the world. I long to get a Mac one day to add to the rest of my i-stuff. RIP Steve Jobs … these simple Bite Sized Apple Pies are a tribute to your brilliance!
Apple seems to be ruling my thoughts of late. A few days ago I received a fabulous new cookbook, a book intriguingly called ‘The Apple Lover’s Cookbook‘ by Amy Traverso. I was the lucky winner at a giveaway sponsored by Pam & Kristy @ Three Many Cooks, and Kristy was sweet enough to mail it to me from the US. Gracias!! This is a book made of ‘apple dreams‘, quite the perfect book for Fall. 
For me, autumn means mainly apples and the book is bursting with apple ideas. Boomarked to make are Apple Chips with Spiced Yogurt Dip, Apple Clafoutis, Squash & Apple Gratin, Oatmeal Apple Pancakes, Baked Apple Oatmeal Pudding, Buttermilk Apple Buckle, Williamsburg Wrapples, Apple Brownies, Quick Bread-and-Butter Apple Pickles, Classic Applesauce. Who would have thought there could be a book deliciously dedicated to this wonderful fruit, a fruit Amy aptly refers to as the fruit of the future.
It’s the Secret Recipe Club time of the month again, another month that threatens to get over even before it begins. The kids are home for an autumn break, the pup on the threshold of doggie terrible teens and a wedding in the family are quite an explosive and happening combination. To add to it, our entire region has been hit by unprecedented power cuts that leave us ‘powerless‘ for almost 6-8 hours a day.
The Secret Recipe Club is the brainchild of Amanda of Amanda’s Cookin’.
The idea behind the club – Each month you are “assigned” a participating food blogger to make a recipe from. It’s a secret, so don’t tell them you are making something from their blog! Click on the link if you want to join!!
Sometimes it’s difficult to keep up, and my post is a day late even though I managed to bake these pies in 2 batches 2 days ago when I scrabbled for my assigned secret site – Mrs Happy Home Maker. With a name like that, happiness for the home maker in me was guaranteed. 
Since I had apple on my mind, I narrowed my search to just that. To my delight the lovely lady Crystal loves apples too! I was short on time and done in by power-cuts, so these Bite Sized Apple Pies seemed perfect! Of them Crystal says, “These apple pies come in a tiny package, but they have a BIG flavor. Only 5 ingredients & you can have them ready to gobble up in 30 minutes too, and that’s probably my favorite part. It’s like apple pie on demand.”
CUTE is the word. You must look at the Happy Homemakers post as she guides you through wrapping these up as ‘mummies‘! I did a ‘roll’ up to save time as my pastry wasn’t so well behaved given the warmish weather. The filling is adapted from Williamsburg Wrapples from the Apple Lover’s Cookbook. 
Once baked, these pies were delicious and gone in a heartbeat; the best little bites I’ve made in a while. {I used the left over pastry trimmings to make Pinktober ribbons for a few pies}. Simpler if you have refrigerated pie crust on hand, but simple even if you decide {or have to, as in my case} make your own. An absolute joy to make, delightful as they came out of the oven, they filled the house with warm fall flavours. 
The pastry stayed crisp even after the bites cooled down, and were a huge hit. With a drizzle of unsweetened cream, or without, we enjoyed them loads. Must thank the very talented and fun Crystal, the face behind Mrs Happy Homemaker for these pies on demand. So glad I met you via the SRC!
Crystal writes a real fun blog, full of exciting new ideas like ‘Making’ you crave Mondays’ and ‘Crazy Cooking Challenges’. She tempts you to delve deep into her blog with her energy and step by step pictures.
Bite Sized Apple Pies
Ingredients
- 3 medium sized apples {I used tart sweet green apples}
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1/4 cup muscavado sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon powder
- 1-2 tbsp butter, melted, cooled
- 1 egg yolk mixed with 2 tsp water, for egg wash
- 1 sachet vanilla sugar
- 1 recipe pâte sucrée {recipe follows}
- ~
- Pâte Sucrée
- {Make sure all ingredients are as cold as possible.}
- 200gm plain flour
- 100gm butter, chilled, cubed
- 1/2 vanilla bean, scraped
- 2 tbsp vanilla sugar
- 1 egg yolk
Instructions
- Make the pâte sucrée first
- Using a food processor or pastry cutter and a large bowl, combine the butter, flour, sugar and vanilla and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal and begins to clump together. {Thermomix: Speed 10/ 20 seconds}
- Add the egg yolk and 1 tsp water and process very briefly, just until the dough begins to stick together and come away from the sides of the bowl {if needed, add chilled water, 1 tsp at a time, till this it begins to just come together}. {Thermomix: Speed 6 / 10 seconds}
- Turn onto work surface and pat together into 2 balls, handling the dough as little as possible. Wrap in cling film and chill for at least 30 minutes to help the dough relax. Allow the dough to warm slightly to room temperature if it is too hard to roll.
- Bite Sized Apple Pies
- Preheat the oven to 200C.
- Peel & core the apples, slice thinly, toss in lime juice, then with the muscavado sugar and cinnamon.
- Roll each into a 12 X 8" rectangle, brush with melted butter and cut into 7-8 12" long strips. {I did this on clingwrap which made it easier to roll}
- Place 6-7 thin seasoned apple slices an inch from the edge on each strip and roll up like a 'mummy' in the pâte sucrée strips.
- Line the baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake the mini apple pies for 15-20 minutes, until the pastry feels firm, and is a light golden brown.
- Let cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes, then transfer the pies with a spatula to a plate.
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Also find me on The Rabid Baker, The Times of India
Deeba @ PAB
About me: I am a freelance food writer, recipe developer and photographer. Food is my passion - baking, cooking, developing recipes, making recipes healthier, using fresh seasonal produce and local products, keeping a check on my carbon footprint and being a responsible foodie! I enjoy food styling, food photography, recipe development and product reviews. I express this through my food photographs which I style and the recipes I blog. My strength lies in 'Doing Food From Scratch'; it must taste as good as it looks, and be healthy too. Baking in India, often my biggest challenge is the non-availability of baking ingredients, and this has now become a platform to get creative on. I enjoy cooking immensely as well.
28 Comments
Eliana
These could not look more cute and delicious. I absolutely adore them!!!
Baker Street
Oh my! These are adorable deeba! Absolutely love it! So cute. I could eat a dozen.
I’m hosting an apple blog hop this month. Hope you’ll come and share you’re recipe with us. 🙂
Rosa
What a great idea! Those pretty bite-sized pies look so delicious.
Cheers,
Rosa
Hesti HH
What a great idea…!
Hi Deeba…greetings from Indonesia…I’m one of your fan and have been a silent reader since I found you blog a couples of weeks ago.
I love your blog so much. It filled with amazing recipes and beautiful pictures. Thanks for sharing…
shaz
Too cute Deeba! What a fun club to belong to.
Magda
I love the RIP apple.
Laura
Deeba, those apple mummies look so delicious! What a great idea to wrap the slices like that. Thanks for sharing the recipe.
Meena Thennaapan
Very thoughtful and amazing post.
Lovely and delicious.
juniakk @ mis pensamientos
WOW, these are BEAUTIFUL. i love these pastries! welcome to our #applelove bloghop!
Fahad Khan (@PharaohKhan)
What I love about your blog posts(Apart from the simply gorgeous pictures.I don’t even mention them anymore since they are always beautiful!) is the intellectual approach and lively feel you don’t forget to give them!
Just loved the quote from Steve Jobs,so inspiring.He will always be remembered.Pies look great!
sara
Love these teeny apple pies! So cute! 🙂
Alli
The perfect way to serve apple pie and so pretty too
sreelu
Deeba, such fantastic way to eat apple, loved your styling and pics, there is never a dull moment for me in PAB.
Renata
They look so cute, Deeba! I just love these clever ideas! I will have to make it soon 🙂
Monique
They are so beautiful your little pies..
Very sad re Steve Jobs:(
How nice of you to do this post.
Sylvie @ Gourmande in the Kitchen
Apple pie on demand! I love it, and so pretty too.
Radhika
Deeba,
Don’t have enough words to say how creative you are! Isn’t this the ultimate tribute a foodie can pay to Mr. Apple? Hats off to the legend and to you..
Those apple bites look crafty and totally adorable!
Indu
The pies somehow make me feel cheerful!!
Jessie
Apple pies looks so delicious.
I hope Apple will share the Tribute to all its customers and fans of Steve. We all could use a lift in spirit by celebrating his life rather than morn the loss… RIP Steve Jobs! Long live Capt. Jobs!!
Priya
Quite addictive and beautifully done.love this bite sized apple pies..
a spoonful of yumm
oh my…..these look so delicious !! beautiful clicks vindee 🙂
Lora
These are adorable and I love the ribbon accents!
Barbara @ Barbara Bakes
Such a fun idea. A perfect ratio of crust to filling!
Delishhh
Agree about Steve – such a loss!
Your apple pies look fabulous – i love anything apple – and i think i might just need to get that cookbook 🙂
Jay
wow….sounds scrumptiously tasty..
first time here…love your space..
gorgeous recipe collection with lipsmacking clks..
Am your happy follower now..;)
do stop by mine sometime..
Tasty Appetite
Helene
So sad that he lost he battle to cancer. I hope we find a cure soon. What a nice dessert.
Jamie
Mmmmm apples and autumn just go hand in hand and as the weather here turns cool, crips and bright I have a craving for apples. These pies are indeed cute!! They look luscious and apply and I can see just popping them into my mouth one after the other. Gotta try this recipe! My men will love it. And yeah what a great book!
Joy
Those look great.