Berry Best Fried Pies Recipes

Steps:

• In a large bowl, mix flour and salt; cut in butter until crumbly. Gradually add ice water, tossing with a fork until dough holds together when pressed. Divide dough into 2 portions so that 1 is slightly larger than the other. Shape each into a disk. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour or overnight., For filling, in a large saucepan, whisk sugar, cornstarch, salt, water and, if desired, cinnamon until smooth; add blueberries. Bring to a boil; cook and stir 2 minutes or until thickened. Cool slightly., Preheat oven to 400°. Gently fold raspberries, strawberries, blackberries and lemon juice into blueberry mixture. On a lightly floured surface, roll out larger portion of dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; transfer to a 9-in. pie plate. Trim crust to 1/2 in. beyond rim of plate. Add filling; dot with butter., Roll remaining dough to a 1/8-in.-thick circle; cut into 1/2-in.-wide strips. Arrange over filling in a lattice pattern. Trim and seal strips to edge of bottom crust; flute edge. Bake 10 minutes. , Reduce oven setting to 350°; bake 45-50 minutes or until crust is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
• For the dough: Add the flour, granulated sugar and salt to a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse until mealy. Combine the water and vinegar in a liquid measuring cup; slowly drizzle into the flour mixture with the food processor running until the dough begins to become homogeneous-do not overmix. Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and press into a disc. Wrap tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• For the filling: Meanwhile, combine the berries, 1/3 cup sugar, lemon juice and salt in a medium heatproof bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to let the berries macerate, about 30 minutes.
• Transfer the macerated berries along with the juices to a medium saucepan over medium heat. Meanwhile, combine the Zinfandel and cornstarch in a small bowl and whisk together, breaking up any clumps. Add to the berries and cook until thickened, another 5 minutes or so. Transfer the filling to the medium heatproof bowl; add the lemon zest, butter, almond extract and remaining 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and toss to combine. Cover with plastic wrap and let cool in the fridge.
• For the assembly: Divide the dough into 10 even pieces. Roll each piece into a round 5 inches in diameter and 1/4 inch thick. Keep the dough covered with plastic wrap as you work with 1 round at a time. Whisk the egg, salt and 1 tablespoon water. Brush around the edge of a dough round and add about 1 1/2 tablespoons of the filling to one side of the round, leaving 1/2 inch of the dough empty at the edge. Fold the round in half over the filling to create a half-moon shape, crimp the edges with a fork to seal then trim off any excess dough.
• Place all the pies on the prepared baking sheet and brush with more of the egg wash. Sprinkle with sanding sugar if using. Bake pies until golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan 180 degrees halfway through baking. Transfer the pies to a wire rack to cool.

Steps:

• To make the pastry, mix together the flour, granulated sugar and salt. Cut in 1 cup of the shortening until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add 1 of the eggs and the buttermilk and stir until it just comes together. Add a little more buttermilk if needed. Form it into a ball and refrigerate for at least an hour.
• To make the pies, roll the pastry out into a large square. Trim the edges to make a rectangle. Cut into 8 to 10 long rectangles, using a butter knife.
• Spoon a tablespoon or so of filling into the top half of one of the rectangles.
• Use the remaining beaten eggs to seal the edges by folding the bottom half of the rectangle over the top. Then crimp the edges shut with a fork. Repeat with the other pies, filling half with apple pie filling and half with cherry pie filling.
• Heat shortening in a medium, deep saucepan over medium-high heat to 350 degrees F. Fry the pies until golden brown, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove and immediately drain on paper towels.
• Sprinkle with powdered sugar and serve.

Steps:

• Prepare the dough: On a floured surface, roll out each disk of dough into a 10-inch square, each about 1/8-inch thick. Using a 5-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 4 disks from each piece of dough. Transfer disks to a baking sheet (it's OK if they overlap slightly), cover and refrigerate until firm, at least 10 minutes.
• Prepare the berry filling: In a medium bowl, combine the berries, sugar, cornstarch, lemon zest and juice, and sea salt. Stir gently until evenly coated, then set aside.
• Remove the disks from the refrigerator and lightly brush the edges of each disk with the egg wash. Spoon about 1/4 cup berry filling onto each disk, leaving a 1-inch border around the rim. (You might have some extra filling.)
• Working with one disk at a time, leaving one half of the dough on the baking sheet, gently fold the other half of each round of dough over the filling to make a half circle and press the edges together with your fingers to seal. If any of the filling is oozing out of the sides, remove a few berries at a time until the hand pie seals easily. Using a fork, crimp the rounded edge of each hand pie. Repeat with remaining disks.
• Cover the hand pies with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour to set the crusts. Refrigerate the remaining egg wash.
• When you are ready to bake, position a rack in the middle of the oven and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Remove the hand pies from the refrigerator and brush the tops with the remaining egg wash. Using a paring knife, cut 3 small slits in the top of each hand pie to create steam vents. Transfer the hand pies to the lined baking sheet. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, until the hand pies are golden and the filling is bubbly. Let cool for 10 minutes, then serve warm.
• The hand pies can be cooled completely and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.