This hand pie came about because I have been on a run of making empanadas. Call them what you will; hand pie, patty, turnover, and empanada. They are all the same thing, food tucked into a folded circle of dough and baked, fried, etc. and I love everyway they come. We fill these pockets of dough with jam, guava and cream cheese, ground turkey, sautéed veggies, even leftover mashed potatoes.
My hand pie bender has lasted much longer than the strudel bender mostly likely because I can take a hand pie with me for food on the go. When making savory versions (which I typically refer to as empanadas) I use a slightly different dough than for sweet versions (hand pies).
This particular pie crust recipe is one I have adapted from a Cooks Illustrated recipe. It yields enough dough for a single crust pie or for approximately a dozen hand pies. I call it FP pie dough because it is fool proof and best made in the food processor.
To make Carrot Cake Jam hand pies you will need:
- 1 batch of FP pie dough
- 1 – 8oz jar of jam (I’ve used Carrot Cake Jam made earlier this month)
- one egg
F.P. Pie Dough
- 1 ¼ c flour
- 3/4t salt
- 2T sugar
- 6T unsalted butter, cubed
- 1/4c shortening (I like butter flavored)
- 1/4c ice water
Combine ½ the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse to combine. Add the butter and shortening and pulse until the butter has been worked down to dime sized hunks and all of the flour is coated. Redistribute the mixture in the bowl, add 1/4c more flour and pulse until the mixture is crummy and the pieces of butter are no larger than a pea. Sprinkle the ice water over the mix, pulse once more and turn out onto a lightly floured board.
Pat the dough out sprinkling generously with flour. Press, pat, fold, & flour this sticky mix. Fold in half and repeat the process until it becomes a smooth dough. Finally roll the dough out to ¼” thick. Use a 4” round biscuit cutter* to form the circles needed for hand pies.
To assemble jam hand pies, begin by whisking the egg for the egg wash. Then, using your favorite thick preserves, spoon 1Tb of jam into the center of the dough circle. Use a brush or your finger tips and coat the edges of the dough with egg. Pinch together the edges creating a seam and roll the seam on itself, sealing the pie. Alternately, use the tines of a fork to pinch the edges. Brush the tops and seams of the pastry with remaining egg wash.
Bake the pies in the oven for 12 minutes or until golden. Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving as the jam will be very hot.
*Tip* If you do not have a large round biscuit cutter keep the dough a bit thicker, use a smaller dough punch and roll the circles a little bit thinner and larger after they have been cut.
Try using this crust for these recipes:
Nancy Warner 
