Apple Pear Honey Creme Tiny Pies
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake time: 20 minutes
Yield: 12 mini pies
Ingredients:
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup milk (whole or 2%)
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup butter
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 sweet-tart apples, peeled, cored, and sliced very thinly and then into small 1″ pieces
2 pears, peeled, cored, and sliced very thinly and then into small 1″ pieces
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg, freshly ground
1 recipe of your favorite homemade pie crust recipe divided equally and rolled into rounds (or, if desperate, one 15 ounce package pastry for double-crust pie)
Instructions:
1. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, 1/2 cup milk, heavy cream, butter and honey. Heat until butter is melted, stirring occasionally. Whisk together the cornstarch, 2 tablespoons milk, and vanilla in a small bowl, then stir into the butter mixture. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly (should just take a few minutes after the cornstarch has been added). Remove from heat, and set aside to cool slightly.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) with rack in the center of the oven. In a medium bowl, combine the apple and pear slices, lemon juice flour, cinnamon and nutmeg. Mix well.
3. Grease and flour a standard muffin tin (or use a non-stick version, greasing unnecessary). Use a 4″ round cookie cutter to cut 6 circles from each pie crust round (note: it may be necessary to gather up the scraps and reroll to make the 6th circle from each round). Optional: use small decorative cookie cutters to cut 12 shapes from leftover dough scraps. I used a leaf shape in this batch.
4. Fit one dough circle into each muffin compartment, pressing lightly so as not to rip the dough. It doesn’t need to be a snug up-against-the-walls fit, but the dough should form a round bowl.
5. Spoon the honey creme evenly into each of the pie dough cups. Then spoon the apple-pear filling on top of the creme. (If using, drape the small dough shapes on top of the fruit filling.)
6. Bake for 17 to 20 minutes, or until the edges of the crust are golden brown and fruit is tender. Allow pies to cool completely in the pan.
7. Lift out each pie one by one, taking care not to squeeze too hard (the crust should be firm, so they’ll lift right out). Serve at room temperature.