BLACKBERRY HAND PIES
The berries all seem to come at once. Jams and crisps, ice cream and crumbles—an embarrassment of riches. These small hand pies can use up that leftover cup of berries, and give you a plateful of sweet treats to grab and go. Use your own home-made pastry crust or a sheet of pre-made refrigerated pie crust—and any kind of mid- to late-summer berries you have on hand.
- Mix in a sauce pan, 1 cup berries, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tblsp water and some lemon juice. Heat to melt sugar and mash the berries a little. Simmer gently for 5-10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until thick and syrupy. Cool in fridge.
- While berries simmer, on a floured cloth, roll out pie crust thinner than you would for a regular pie. Using a 3” biscuit cutter, or glass, cut as many rounds as possible—ending with an even number.
- Set half the rounds on a parchment covered cookie sheet—set the rest aside. Using your finger, carefully dampen the outside rims of half those rounds with water.
- Working with one round at a time, place about 1 tblsp of berry mixture in center, cover with a reserved round and gently seal the edges (you’ll finish sealing later).
- Fill and seal the remaining rounds.
- Crimp all around each pie with tips of fork tines. Then pierce the top of each pie once or twice with the fork or sharp knife, to provide steam vents.
- Moisten the tops of pie with water and sprinkle with a bit of sugar.
- Place pies in 425’ oven, reduce heat to 400’—bake 10-15 minutes until tops are nicely browned.
The Kitchen Hive
