Simple To Make Little Pies-
We all seem to love home-made pies. I love to bake pies. They are a specialty of mine ever since I perfected my pie making and even my own crust recipe (I share it below) since I never liked the typical, dry, bland recipe from all of the cookbooks I grew up with. I don’t even remember where I got this cute dough press so long ago, so I will share a similar one on Amazon.
Mini Pie Press
Whenever the special occasion arises to make pies, I invariably have excess dough that I cannot stand to just throw away, so I use this mini pie press to make mini pies. Take your leftover crust, roll it out as you would for your pie plate, press lightly into the bowl of the press, add some leftover filling being careful not to over fill as the crust needs to come in contact on both sides to seal, add another layer of crust on top to sandwich, then press the two together, cutting off any access dough. Don’t forget to cut good-sized vents in the top crust making a fun opportunity to add your creativity while helping your mini pie to not explode all of the delicious filling out. It cooks well at 350 degrees for about 15 minutes in a toaster over or in your standard oven. These make great little pies to deliver to loved ones, friends and to those you minister to!
Dumpling (mini pie) Maker
I found several great options to purchase with a similar size and shape to make mini pies. Mini Pies can also be made with large cookie cutters and filled just as in the following directions but without the press.
Christina’s Home-made Pie Crust Recipe
Make the Perfect Pie Crust
Flakey pie crust is all about working the dough as little as possible once the minimum amount of cold water is added. Pretty molding designs is all about enough cold water added so that it doesn’t fall apart and holds your pattern. Too much shortening bubbles the crust when cooking and flattens the careful molding created. There is a happy creative balance for your desired results and baking project.
Blend the flour, powdered sugar and salt. Cut in the butter and Crisco until they are about pea sized.
Use a fork to stir the cold water just enough until the dough starts to pull away from the bowl. The amount of water is a guideline and will vary based on the dryness of where you are.
Roll out and cut hearts with back of mini pie press then roll each heart a little larger than the press. Spoon pie filling in the bowled area. This is the most filling that should be used as the insides will expand when cooked; after practice, I would fill in even less. For best results, use a precooked or canned filling for less expansion.
Paint water on the edges where the top crust and bottom crust will press and need to seal.
Make sure to cut multiple slices of about 1/4” or larger in the top crusts for vents and expansion. Really, cut larger than you might think and create unique designs. Then, paint water where any cookie cutter dough cut outs will be placed on top to “glue” them on as I did with small cookie cutter hearts added on top. Also paint water where you may want to sprinkle with decorative sprinkles or my favorite, cinnamon and sugar. You may want to add sugar icing as well after baking and thoroughly cooled.
Bake at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes and re-cut any crust vents that filled in by slicing again with a sharp knife, check for any edges not sealed. No worries if some of the filling spills out. Just use a spatula to lift off filling that leaked out. Press any edges with a fork to reseal. Cook for another 10 minutes or until the crust is browned. Use a firm spatula to carefully lift mini pies off of the cookie sheet just a minute after cooling and before they harden onto the sheet due to any filling that leaked and place onto a cooling rack. Non-stick pans work best.
Add a message with a tag in a cookie bag and give to family, friends or to those you minister to! YUM!
