I was watching the Today show with Hoda and Kathy Lee the other day and they had Reed Alexander from Kewl Bites making some Apple pies that make a great Christmas dessert. I love the idea of individual sized desserts so as soon as I saw these apple pot pies I was interested! Not to mention they looked delicious and I can only imagine they smell just as good.
Ingredients
Crust
- 3 (9-inch) premade, store-bought individual pie crusts
- 1 egg white, lightly beaten
- Canola oil spray or nonstick cooking spray
- 8 cups of sweet red apple chunks (approximately 6 large, firm apples)
- 1 1/2 cups of unsweetened applesauce
- 3/4 cup of raw sugar
- 1 tablespoon of ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon of ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground cloves
- 1/2 teaspoon of freshly grated or ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon of sea salt
- 1 tablespoon of all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon of whole-wheat pastry flour
- 1 1/2 cups of oats
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of whole-wheat pastry flour
- 3/4 cup of packed light brown sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons of ground cinnamon
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of canola oil
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of honey
Preparation
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly coat the interior bases and sides of six 7-ounce ovenproof ramekins with nonstick cooking spray; also spray a large baking sheet or 6 individual baking dishes. Set aside. Place enough piecrust in each ramekin so that approximately a ½ inch of crust hangs around the edges of the exterior of the ramekins. Use kitchen shears to trim edges. Fit the crust into the ramekins well so that the crusts take on the shape of the ramekins in which they are sitting. Using the tines of a fork, crimp around the edge of the piecrust where it meets the top of the ramekin and then lightly brush, inside and out, with egg white. Set aside.
To make the apple pie filling, combine the applesauce, sugar, cinnamon, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, and salt in a medium saucepan. Whisk to combine and then set the saucepan over medium heat on the stovetop. Cook, uncovered, whisking often, for 20 minutes, or until the sugar has dissolved into the applesauce, the liquid has boiled and deepened in color, thickened, and become very fragrant. Remove the saucepan from the heat and allow to cool for five minutes, whisking frequently. Place the chopped apple chunks in a large heatproof mixing bowl. Pour the warm sauce over the apple chunks and toss with a heatproof spoon or spatula. Stir in both flours until evenly distributed. Distribute the apple mixture among the 6 prepared ramekins. Use the back of the spoon to lightly pack down the mixture. Set aside.
For the streusel topping, thoroughly combine the oats, all-purpose and whole-wheat pastry flours, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium bowl. Add the oil and honey and work until the mixture becomes crumbly but clumpy. When the mixture becomes pliable, compact it into a tight ball. Use fingertips to break up the sphere of compacted streusel crumb topping into randomly sized chunks. Some chunks may be small, others larger. Place the filled ramekins onto the prepared baking sheet or individual baking dishes and top with the streusel. Ensure that a significant layer of streusel is present for each ramekin. Lightly press the streusel onto the pie when adding, but do not pack the crumbs together. If any streusel falls onto the baking sheet or dishes, place it atop the ramekins again. Place the ramekins into the oven and bake for 1 hour, 10 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the oven and allow to cool for approximately 10 minutes. Serve and enjoy!
Tips
KewlTip: When purchasing pie crusts, low fat or wholegrain varieties pack the flavor and some nutrition, too! Each piecrust should contain enough dough to fill two 7-ounce ovenproof ramekins.
Serving Size
Makes 6