MINI APPLE PIES

Ok, I love and am grateful for this recipe (THE BEST apple pie ever, other than my Grandma's) and I am so thankful when I try something new and it works well, especially when I am planning on taking it somewhere and sharing it :0). Does anyone else do this? When I think about it realistically, it's not really a smart thing to do (taking something you've never made before when you have to bring food to a public function), but I do it on a regular basis. Why do I do this?

I guess I do it because I think it's fun to try a new recipe, and then if it's awful, my family and I don't have to eat the whole thing :0), and if it is good, then I have a new recipe to add to my stack. Works pretty well and actually, I've never had a food bomb so bad that I couldn't take it (at least not that I remember--maybe I've blocked it out).

But I am grateful when I try something new and it turns out well. And so cute!! Actually this isn't a brand new recipe, but I've only made a full pie from this recipe, never these cute little guys. This is seriously in my opinion the best and easiest apple pie recipe. You may not love it, but as far as pies go, it really is easy. So easy, in fact, that my friend used it with my son's scout group: I dropped my oldest off at her house for scouts one day (several years ago) and saw pie paraphernalia all over the place. I asked her what they were doing and she said, "Oh, we're going to make pies." (this is a very ambitious woman--you are awesome, Wendy!) Pies? With 7 eight-year-old boys? Wow! Then she explained that they are so easy (use this tool to cut the apples, dump them in the crust (I think she used store-bought) pour cinnamon sugar over, and put the topping on & bake), but I still don't think I would ever dare try it with scouts :0)

So here is the regular recipe and my adjustments for the minis:

Apple Crumb Pie--original recipe from Wendy Busacker
5-7 tart apples (she suggested Pink Lady, but we have used Granny Smith and Fuji, so just use your favorite baking apple.)
Slice apples & place in unbaked crust--the apples should be heaped up into a mound
1/2 c. sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon
Mix these together and sprinkle over apples

1/2 c. sugar
3/4 c. flour
1/3 c. butter
Mix these until crumbly & sprinkle over the top of the apples

Bake at 400 for 40-45 minutes (may need to cover last 5-10 minutes if the topping ends up getting too dark).

Serve warm with vanilla ice cream and milk on the side (my favorite). Enjoy!


Mini Apple Pies--adjustments by me

Make a pie crust for a top and bottom. Roll out pretty thin. Use a 3 inch circle cutter (I used a cup) to cut out as many as you can--I ended up getting 16 circles from a one-crust batch, but it will totally depend on how thin you roll your crust.

Fit the circles into mini muffin tins, shaping them so there are no cracks and the crust goes up to the top of the tins and the pastry is tight against the sides.

Cut your apples with the slicer-cutter-peeler-dealie, then cut the slices into little 1-inch pieces and put them into the tins, fitting as many in as you can.

Sprinkle with about 1/2 tsp. cinnamon sugar and top with about 2 tsp. crumb topping.

Bake 375 for about 45 minutes. Let cool and remove very carefully (I didn't really figure out a great way of doing this, so if you do, let me know).