Apple Pie Pops

It's apple season!!! I love fall so much! This was my favorite time of year when I was growing up in Michigan, and even though I don't get the seasons here in Los Angeles, I still try to enjoy fall through my favorite thing, baking.

Pie isn't something that many people make too often, because it can be time consuming and tedious. I will say though, once you get that flaky pie dough made and fill it with apples that are in season, it really does taste absolutely amazing. When apples are in season they are packed with flavor and firm instead of soft. When you are making apple pie, you don't want to use apples that are too sweet, because it will make the finished product taste flat and overly sweet. When you use tart apples, they balance out the sweetness that is added to the filling, and create and finished pie that is overall more balanced.

Enter pie pops!!! When we were talking about making apple pie for Home and Family, I really wanted to share my recipe for pie crust, and then had way too much fun coming up with a recipe for pie filling, but we wanted to see how we could make it a bit more fun and special. How much fun are these pie pops? They are perfect for parties, and kids would love them. I love them because the ratio of pie crust to filling is more balanced than a regular pie...and I happen to looooooove pie crust!

Apple Pie Pops

Author:

Maria Provenzano

Ingredients

Ingredients for Apple Pie Filling
6 cups apples; sliced and cut into small pieces; preferably a sturdy tart apple like a granny smith or something similar
2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon lemon zest
2-3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons cornstarch
4 tablespoons water
Ingredients for Pie Pops
pie dough
pie filling
1 egg
coarse sugar for sprinkling over the top; regular sugar can also be used
lollipop sticks
Note: Recipe for Pie crust on www.fromscratchwithmaria.com

Instructions

Directions for Apple Pie Filling
) Place the apples in a large bowl and mix with the spice, salt, sugar, zest, and lemon juice
) Toss together until well combined
) Place in a pot over medium heat and cook for about 5 minutes until bubbly
) In a small bowl, mix together the 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 4 tablespoons of water
) Pour into the apple mixture and cook for a few minutes until thickened and remove from heat to cool
Directions for Pie Pops
) Heat the oven to 375 degrees
) Roll out the cold pie dough to about 1/4 inch thick, and use a 3 inch round cutter to cut out as many circles as you can; this should make about 12-14 pie pies
) Whisk the egg with a bit of water
) Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash around the side of the pie circle
) Scoop a small amount of filling to the center of the circle
) Place the lollipop stick in the center of the circle, and then top with another 3 inch pie crust round
) Use a fork to press the edges together making sure the stick is securely in the center of the mini pie
) Brush more of the egg wash on the top of the mini pie and top with some sugar; repeat with the rest of the dough
) Bake at 375 for about 20 minutes or until lightly golden