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| Homemade Fried Pies |
I made baked Peach Hand Pies a while back and have always planned to make fried pies. Well I finally got around to it and I'm kicking myself that it took me this long! I'm a die hard chocolate fan, but my other half is more of a vanilla gal so I made both types of filling. These delicious devils are pretty rich so you don't need to make them very big. I used a Wilton Mini Pie Press to make mine and even at only 4" x 2" I still haven't finished the other half of mine.
I knew I needed a sturdy crust for these in order to hold up to the frying without bursting or tearing. So I used a modified version of the rich pie crust I used in the Italian Easter Pie. This really is a great crust and using all shortening makes it easy to roll out even when it's very well chilled and the eggs add extra structure and moisture. This especially comes in handy when re-rolling the dough scraps for another round of pies, more fat in the dough will help keep it from getting too tough. Be sure your filling is very well chilled so that it doesn't leak out when frying the pies, especially the vanilla which is a bit softer than the chocolate anyway.
Go forth and fry pies, my friend.
Pudding Filled Fried Pies
Yield: Depends on the size of your pies, I made 12
Crust
3 1/2 cups flour
1 Tb. sugar
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 cup shortening, frozen and cut into small squares
3 eggs, beaten
2 Tb. ice cold vodka
2 - 4 Tb. ice cold water
In a food processor combine the flour, sugar and salt and pulse briefly to combine. Scatter the frozen shortening over the flour and pulse briefly until the mixture looks like a crumbly meal. Combine the eggs, vodka and water and pour through the feed tube while pulsing the processor. Mix just until the dough starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead a few times, just to bring it all together. Divide into two disks, wrap tightly in plastic wrap and put in the fridge for at least 30 minutes or overnight.
Chocolate Filling
Adapted from Rachel Ray's recipe
1 cup half-and-half
4 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
pinch of salt
1/4 cup sugar
2 Tb. cornstarch
1 Tb. unsalted butter
In a small pot over medium heat, combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt, and half-and-half and whisk well until the cornstarch is dissolved. Heat the mixture until it boils, whisking constantly. Remove the pot from the heat and stir in the chocolate and butter. Let sit a few minutes to let the chocolate melt and then whisk very well. Pour the filling into a bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface to keep a skin from forming. Chill completely, about 4 hours or overnight. You will likely have more filling than you need for this recipe.
Vanilla Filling
1/2 cup sugar
3 Tb. cornstarch
pinch of salt
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
2 egg yolks, beaten
1 Tb. unsalted butter
2 tsp. vanilla extract (I use Nielsen-Massey Vanilla Bean Paste)
In a small pot over medium heat, combine the sugar, cornstarch, salt and half-and-half and whisk well until the cornstarch is dissolved. Heat the mixture until it boils, whisking constantly. Add about 1/2 a cup of the hot mixture to the beaten egg yolks, whisking constantly until combined. Add this mixture back to the rest of the filling in the pot and put back on the heat. Bring back to a boil, whisking constantly. Remove from the heat and whisk in the butter and vanilla. Pour the filling into a bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap directly on the surface to keep a skin from forming. Chill completely, about 4 hours or overnight. You will likely have more filling than you need for this recipe.
Icing Glaze
2 cups powdered sugar
2 to 3 Tb. milk
Whisk the sugar and milk together until there are no lumps. You may need to add a little more milk and/or sugar to get the right consistency. It should be very thick, but still drip slowly from the whisk. It needs to be thick enough so that it won't immediately run off the hot pies and coat the pie in a nice even layer.
Heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a heavy skillet or pot to 350 to 355 degrees. The oil should be hot enough to brown the crust quickly so that the filling doesn't get too hot and explode, but not so hot that the crust browns on the outside before it is fully cooked. Test the oil with a small scrap of rolled dough, you want it to brown on each side in about 1 to 2 minutes.
Working with one disc of dough at a time, roll it out to 1/4 inch thick. Cut out your desired shapes (round for half-moon shaped pies, squares, rectangles, whatever you like) and place a small amount of filling in the center of the dough and do not spread it out. The amount of filling will depend on the size of your pies. For my 4" x 2" pies I used about 2 heaping tablespoons. If you are making small 2-3 bite pies you may only need a teaspoon. Don't overfill them, you don't want them to explode or leak in the hot oil. That will ruin your day, trust me. Place another piece of dough on top, or fold over the other side, and press together to seal. Be sure to seal the dough very well, using a little water or beaten egg around the edges and crimp the dough together with the tines of a fork. Re-roll your scraps once and cut and fill more pies.
Fry the pies, a few at a time, in the hot oil, turning several times if needed to brown them evenly. Drain the fried pies on paper towels, let them cool for about a minute and then brush the icing over one or both sides. After a little more cooling the glaze will set and dry on the outside. These pies are delicious warm or cold. But be sure to keep them in the refrigerator, if they don't get eaten immediately!
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| Hostess has NOTHING on these fried pies! |
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