Mini Lattice Pies by guest blogger Lindsey Lett

Hi Grab a Fork friends. My name is Lindsey and I am a stay home mom with a love for food. Unlike Kristen, I am not a chef and take no claim to having expertise in the kitchen... only lots of practice and an honest taste tester panel, my family! :) I currently live in South Korea where I have learned to get extremely creative with techniques and ingredients since a lot of Texas "staples" are not available. I also lived without an oven for a year and in turn, shared my food successes via a blog entitle Ovenless Chef. (It was one of the only names I could think of that was still available, so not to falsely advertise with the chef bit, but I am hopeful to take some culinary classes in the future!)

Okay, enough about me, let's move on to what is important... PIE!

I am a lover of pie. If given the choice between pie and cake, pie wins, forks down, every time! My favorite is rhubarb pie, but since I can't get that here, apple won out this time! Now... if you love pie, then you know that crust to filling ratio is crucial. Hence the mini lattice pies. Plenty of crust and just the right amount of filling... plus, portion control (if you are into that sort of thing). All you need are two pie crusts (pre-made or homemade), your choice of pie filling (canned if in a pinch), and a muffin pan. I'll share my recipe with you to get you inspired, but if you have a favorite crust recipe or filling, by all means use those! 

For the double crust:

1 C shortening, butter flavor or original

3 C flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 C ice cold water (I float a few ice cubes in mine for about 5 minutes before use)

1. Mix dry ingredients together.

2. Cut in the shortening using a pasty blender or sturdy fork... I also tend to use the end of my whisk after cutting the shortening into small cubes.

3. Slowly add water and mix until you get a firm dough.

4. Cut in two equal portions and roll gently on floured wax paper or parchment paper (this helps get it off the counter easier!). (They don't have to be circles since you will be cutting shapes from the sheets)

5. You can make your dough ahead of time and freeze up to three months (in seran wrap and ziplock) or keep in the fridge up to three days.

For the filling:

1/2 C butter

3 T flour

1 tsp vanilla

1 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 C water

1/2 C white sugar

1/2 C packed brown sugar

8 apples- cored and sliced... peeled if you prefer, but I like the peel on. (bear in mind you need smaller pieces for the mini pies)

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 C).

2. Using a cup or biscuit cutter that is larger than the muffin cup on you pan by about 3/4 an inch on each side ( so about 1 1/2 inches more in diameter), cut 12 circles from rolled dough... I used a small salsa type bowl for this. Then press the dough into the muffin pan. 

3. Poke each crust a couple times with a fork to keep from bubbling up when baking and pre-bake in oven for about 8-10 minutes. 

4. Cut the rest of pie crust dough into strips about 1/2 inch in width and just slightly longer than diameter of muffin tins. Set aside.

5. Meanwhile, melt butter in saucepan. Stir in flour to form paste.

6. Add water, sugar, brown sugar, cinnamon,  and nutmeg and bring to boil. Then reduce to low simmer and add vanilla. Stir occasionally. 

7. Remove crusts from oven and fill with apples... mounded just slightly. 

8. Pour warm filling over apples to just below rim of crust.

9. Using four strips of dough, weave lattice design on top of each pie and place in oven. 

10. Bake 15 minutes in pre-heated oven (set timer or you will forget like me!), then reduce to 350 degrees F (175 C) and continue to bake for 30-35 minutes. If crusts begin to brown, simply cover with aluminum foil and continue baking. 

Enjoy with a scoop of ice cream! 

These are great for entertaining and you can make ahead and freeze them! (They work best if you freeze them just after assembly. Once they are frozen, you can remove them from muffin tin and store in air tight ziplock. Then simply remove from freezer about an hour before you are ready to bake them and place them back in the muffin tin and bake as directed above.) 

If you happen to be oven-less or just need some quick oven-less desserts in that summer heat, head over to ovenlesschef.blogspot.com for some no-bake and stove-top options! You could even make the above into fried pies! :) 

And thanks, Kristen, for letting me impose on your blog... it's an honor! :)