FEBRUARY 2020 89
Lisa Donovan’s Pie Dough
ACTIVE 15 MIN; TOTAL 1 HR 15 MIN
MAKES 2 (9-INCH) PIE SHELLS
Fraisage, the French baking technique of
smearing the butter into the flour, yields a
flaky crust that shatters like a croissant.
Using a European-style butter with a
higher butterfat percentage produces
the best results.
11 / 2 cups unsalted European-style
butter (12 oz.) (such as Plugrá)
21 / 3 cups all-purpose flour (about 10
oz.)
21 / 4 tsp. kosher salt
- Fill a 2-cup measuring cup with ice. Top
measuring cup off with water (at least^1 / 2
cup). Set aside. - Cube butter into^1 / 2 -inch to 1-inch
pieces with varying rough chops. Toss
together flour and salt in a large bowl.
Toss butter cubes into flour mixture, and
separate cubes with your fingers before
beginning to work together. Work in but-
ter using your hands, making smears and
buttery flakes. Do not use a machine or a
pastry cutter; using your hands will help
you discern the temperature and feel of
the flour. You are looking to incorporate
all the butter into the flour without over-
working. Every piece of butter should be
smeared with some flour before you begin
to add the ice water; there should be no
untouched pieces of butter. Doing this
deftly is key; if the butter starts to feel too
warm, use your refrigerator as a tool—
place bowl in freezer or refrigerator at any
time to cool off. Preferably, though, you
will be able to work the butter in quickly
without too much fuss. - To incorporate the ice water, start by
drizzling about 3 tablespoons water (do
not add ice) into flour mixture. Using your
hands slightly cupped as paddles (do not
use your fingers or do any kneading), toss
the water into the flour until it is fully
absorbed. Add additional water,
1 tablespoon at a time, paddling with
hands between each addition, until mix-
ture beings to form a shaggy dough. You
will likely use about^1 / 4 cup to^1 / 3 cup water
total, depending on the humidity. The
dough should feel moist but not wet or
sticky. Turn dough out onto a clean work
surface. Give dough a few strong kneads
to work it all together (about 4 turns).
Your dough should feel tacky and supple
but not sticky.- Divide dough evenly into 2 pieces
(about 12 ounces each). Form each piece
into a flat disk and wrap individually in
plastic wrap. Chill in refrigerator at least 1
hour or up to 3 days.
MAKE AHEAD Well-wrapped dough will
keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Dried Apple Hand Pies
ACTIVE 35 MIN; TOTAL 6 HR
SERVES 10As the dried apple slices rehydrate in
cider, they transform into a saucy, con-
centrated filling. Black pepper, carda-
mom, and cloves mingle as heady and
unexpected baking spices.4 cups unsweetened apple cider
3 cups dried apple slices(^1) / 2 tsp. black peppercorns
(^1) / (^8) tsp. green cardamom seeds
2 whole cloves
3 Tbsp. light brown sugar
(^1) / 2 tsp. lemon zest plus 1 (^1) / 2 Tbsp. fresh
lemon juice
(^1) / 2 tsp. kosher salt
(^1) / 2 vanilla bean pod
Lisa Donovan’s Pie Dough (recipe at
left)
All-purpose flour, for work surface
1 large egg, beaten
11 / 4 tsp. granulated sugar
- Stir together cider and apple slices
in a medium-size oven-safe saucepan.
Cover and let stand 1 hour. Mean-
while, toast peppercorns, cardamom
seeds, and cloves in a small skillet over
medium, stirring often, until fragrant, 2
to 3 minutes. Let cool. Transfer mixture
to a spice grinder; process until finely
ground, about 15 seconds. Set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 400°F. Uncover sauce-
pan, and bring apple mixture to a boil
over medium. Boil, stirring occasionally,
10 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-low;
simmer, uncovered, stirring occasion-
ally, until liquid is mostly absorbed, about
40 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in
ground spices, brown sugar, lemon zest
and juice, and salt. Split vanilla bean pod
lengthwise; scrape seeds into mixture.
3. Transfer saucepan to preheated
oven. Bake, uncovered, until apples
begin to break down, 35 to 40 minutes.
Remove from oven; transfer mixture
to a heatproof bowl. Let cool 30 min-
utes. Cover tightly with plastic wrap;
chill at least 2 hours or up to 3 days.
4. Unwrap pie dough disks, and transfer
to a lightly floured work surface. Roll
dough to about^1 / 4 -inch thickness. Cut 10
(6-inch) dough rounds, rerolling scraps
as needed. Arrange dough rounds evenly
on 2 baking sheets lined with parchment
paper. Working with 1 dough round at a
time, brush dough edges lightly with some
of the beaten egg. Spoon about^1 / 4 cup
chilled apple filling onto center of dough
round. Fold dough up and over filling;
press lightly to seal edges. Repeat process
using remaining dough rounds and filling.
5. Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush tops
of pies lightly with remaining beaten
egg; sprinkle evenly with granulated
sugar (about^1 / 8 teaspoon each). Cut
3 small (about^1 / 3 -inch-long) vents
in top of each pie. Chill pies, uncov-
ered, until dough is hardened, at
least 20 minutes or up to 2 hours.
6. Bake pies in preheated oven until
golden brown, 28 to 32 minutes. Serve
pies warm, or transfer to a wire rack
and let cool completely, about 1 hour.
TO FREEZE Follow recipe as directed
through Step 4. Cut 3 small (^1 / 3 -inch-
long) vents in top of each pie. Freeze
pies on baking sheet, uncovered, 1
hour. Transfer pies to a large ziplock
plastic bag; freeze up to 1 month.
TO BAKE FROM FROZEN Preheat oven
to 375°F. Arrange frozen pies at least 2
inches apart on 2 baking sheets lined
with parchment paper. Brush lightly
with 1 beaten egg; sprinkle evenly
with 1^1 / 4 teaspoons granulated sugar.
Proceed with Step 6 as directed.