Though most of us are still in self-quarantine, we can’t stop the seasons from changing. The unofficial start to the summer is here and the weather has finally broken. This year I wasn’t able to spend Memorial Day at a fantastic brunch on a rooftop, followed by a sunny day party so I decided to bake like I was attending a bbq (I always bring a baked good!). Strawberries are amongst my favorite any time fruits but I feel like the sunny weather makes them a shining ingredient.

I saw a recipe for pop tarts and I was intrigued, so I set out to create something similar with a more adult feel. I came up with little strawberry hand pies. These aren’t a new concept, just new to me. I love making fresh crust so adding fresh strawberries seemed like a win-win. This recipe will make 5 pies if you stretch the crust, but 4 more realistically – cut them 4 ways so everyone can get a taste of 1 batch. I personally will be refrigerating them so I can eat pieces for small snacks throughout the week.

What you need 

Crust

• 1 cup cold butter (2 sticks)
• 2 ½ cups white flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbs sugar
• 1 tsp cinnamon (or The Only French Toast Seasoning you’ll Ever Need)
• 1/3 cup ice water

Crust finishing Glaze

• 2 cups powdered sugar
• ¼ cup lemon juice
• 1 tbs lemon zest

Filling

• 2 cups fresh strawberries
• 2 tbs sugar
• 1 tbs The Only French Toast Seasoning you’ll Ever Need (optional)
• 3 tbs corn starch
• 1.5 tbs lemon juice

1 egg – for egg wash

What to do 

1. First, make the crust! Set the cold water aside and combine all the other ingredients in a large bowl OR in a food processor. Blend with a hand mixer or pulse a few times in the food processor until ingredients are well mixed and resemble pea-shaped balls. Next, add in a tablespoon of cold water while blending until the water is all used. The dough should be soft but not wet. with your hands form 2 equal-sized balls and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 45 minutes.
2. While crust is in the fridge chop your strawberries into bite-sized pieces and mix all the filling ingredients together. Set aside. Beat one egg well for the egg wash. Set aside.
3. Remove the crust from the refrigerator. Sprinkle flour over a smooth surface to roll out the crust. Flatten the dough into a disk, coat the rolling pin with flour and roll the dough out thinly. I used a small bowl to cut out the pie circles. The bowl was about 4 inches across and I was able to get 3 cutouts in the first roll out. I rerolled the dough and got 2 more.
4. Place the cutouts on a greased baking sheet. Add about 2 tbs of the strawberry filling in the center of each cutout. Repeat step 3 with the remaining ball of dough to create the tops of the pies.
5. Use your finger to dab the edges of the bottom cut out with the eggwash. Place the pie tops on each bottom cut out and use a fork to pinch close each of the little pies. Brush the tops with remaining egg wash and bake for 20 minutes or until tops are golden brown.
6. For glaze whisk the lemon juice, zest, and powdered sugar together.
7. Once the pies are cooled glaze the tops! I glazed 3 times.

EAT and ENJOY! #therobertashow