Little Holiday Apple Pies

Share the secret!

When I was 23 my co-worker Harriet gave me the secret for her fool-proof pie crust, and I’ve never forgotten it.

She said, “People think it’s so hard to make a pie crust, but it’s not. Don’t be afraid to handle the dough. Use the flour you need to roll it out and it’s OK to patch it to make it fit.” I’ve loved making pie crust ever since, and it always looks and tastes wonderful.

My daughter must have caught on because she sent me this photo of the Little Apple Pies she baked from a recipe I shared with her last week.

Fresh, warm Little Apple Pies; photo by Amy Parker

We live close to apple country and the holidays are here, so I thought you might like to try some, too.

Here’s my everyday Basic Pastry from Fannie Farmer. You’ll be using the ingredients for the 9-inch pie shell, a single crust.

I know some recipes use butter for richness, but I’ve always liked shortening for its lightness

These pies have a delicious filling and topping! I didn’t add walnuts, but for Thanksgiving you might want to. About the sugar, I’m in the habit now of not packing it into the measuring cup, and it comes out just fine. Depending on the apples you use, they can add to the sweetness.

You may need to mix more dough, depending on how thick you roll it. I didn’t use a cutter, just broke off a piece for each and rolled it out rather thin.

By chance this week I saw a food feature about little pies in the Washington Post — and they call them Tassies. The word comes from Scotland and means “little cup” or “little glass” after the French la tasse.

I’m happy to mail you my 4” by 6” recipe cards, just let me know if you’d like them. Harriet would say, “Have fun in the kitchen, and enjoy sharing!”

Basic Pastry recipe from The Fannie Farmer Cookbook, 13th edition, by Marion Cunningham, Alfred A. Knopf, NY, 1990. My copy’s falling apart!

Little Apple Pies recipe

Tassies recipes in the Washington Post