I wanted to make something to give the hydrologist who is going to come look at what I need to do with my river after the flood, but cookies aren't very exciting, so decided to make hand pies.

The crust needs to be sturdy enough to stay together, but still tender, and this one came out just right. You'd think with The basic recipe is from a blog called Fork, Knife, Swoon and I modified it some.

Pie Pastry (from Dorie Greenspan)
3 cups all-purpose flour (I used half whole wheat)
1/4 cup sugar
1-1/2 tsp fine sea salt
2-1/2 sticks (1-1/2 cups) unsalted butter, very cold, cubed
1/3 cup all-vegetable shortening, very cold or frozen, cut into small pieces
6-7 tbsp ice water

Apple Filling
5 cups apples, peeled, cored and diced
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup (packed) brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
To Top
1/3-1/2 cup heavy whipping cream
demerara or sanding sugar

Make the pie pastry
In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, pulse together the flour, sugar and salt until well-combined. Add the butter and shortening to the flour mixture and pulse a few times until the butter and shortening pieces are evenly dispersed, with the largest pieces about the size of peas. Be careful not to over-mix. Add the ice water, a tablespoon or two at a time, and pulse to combine, until the dough is evenly moistened. Pinch a bit of dough together between two fingers to test – the dough should stick together. If the dough seems dry, add a few more teaspoons of water and pulse again.
Transfer the pastry to a clean, well-floured work surface, and divide the dough in half. Gather each half of dough into a ball, then flatten into a round, disk, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least an hour before you begin to roll out the dough.

Make the filling
Heat a skillet over medium-heat. Add the diced apples, butter, brown sugar and spices to the pan and stir to combine. Cook until the butter is melted and the apples are just soft, but not mushy. Remove from the heat, and transfer the apple filling to a mixing bowl to cool. Set aside and let come to room temperature.

To bake the pies
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper. Set aside.
Remove one of the dough disks from the refrigerator. Roll the dough out on to a generously-floured piece of parchment paper, until it is about 1/8-inch thick. Using a 5-inch-diameter cookie cutter or saucer, cut out six circles. Re-roll the dough as necessary to achieve all six.

Lay the pastry circles on one of the sheet pans and top with half of the apple mixture, being sure to reserve as much of the apple liquid as possible. Adding too much liquid to the pies will get messy quickly. Fold the dough in half, and use your fingers to gently press the edges together. Using the back of a fork, gently press down to create a fluted seal along the edge.

Lightly brush the top of each pastry with the cream, and sprinkle generously with the demerara sugar. Cut a small x-shaped slit in the top of each pie, and repeat these steps with the second dough disk, if using.
Bake for 20-30 minutes, until the pies are golden brown and cooked through. Let cool for 10 minutes on a baking rack. Serve warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.