Handheld Apple Pies

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Cut 6-inch circles of puff pastry dough (use a small plate as a guide — you should get 3 rounds per sheet). If you like a little crunch, press or roll a sprinkling of turbinado sugar on the surface of puff pastry before proceeding. Keep circles chilled until you are ready to make your pies.

Combine apples, sugar, cinnamon, cornstarch and lemon juice in a bowl. Brush a very thin layer of egg wash on one pastry circle and place a mound of apples on 1/2 of the sheet.

Fold the bottom half of pastry up over the apples to form a half-moon shape and pinch the edges together. You can further seal the pastry by rolling the edges in a fluted design. Repeat with remaining rounds.

Place pies on a baking sheet and brush with additional egg wash. Cut a few slits in the surface for venting.

Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until pastry is deep golden brown.

Special notes:

By mixing apple varieties, you can choose from so many different apple flavors and textures. Here are a few of my pie favorites: Granny Smith, Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Cameo, Braeburn and Fuji. Feel free to experiment.

Here are a couple of tips: Leave yourself a nice, clean border of pastry around the apples; about 3/4 inch should be sufficient. Try to avoid dripping juice in that area, so the pastry will seal better. Pile apples tall; they will shrink as they cook. To avoid poking holes in the pastry, turn the curved sides of the apples towards the curved side of the pastry. You may not use all the apples for the pies.