Sour Cherry and Mascarpone Cheese Hand Pies
An pastry treat perfect for sharing
The fresh fruit of the season was a inspiration for this week’s recipes. Manoff Market Gardens is a beautiful place that has only the freshest produce right from the fields that surround the market. I was lucky enough to go on a day when they had sour cherries and blueberries! What a treat.
Sour cherries are one of my favorite fruits for desserts and they are not as readily available as other fruits. Because I purchased only one pint I needed to make a dessert that didn’t use as many cherries as a full size pie. Quite honestly I thought it would be nice to make individual pies since I like to distribute what I bake and not keep it all at home. I read a few recipes and decided to make up my own. I wanted to combine the sour cherries with a soft cheese filling. Below is the recipe I used to make the Sour Cherry Mascarpone Hand Pies.
SOUR CHERRY AND MASCARPONE HAND PIES
CRUST 2 1/2 Cups All Purpose Flour 1 Tsp Salt 2 Sticks Cold Butter 6-8 Tbsp of Cold Water Add flour and salt to your mixer and mix to combine. Cube the butter into 1/2" size pieces. Add cubed butter to the flour mixture. Run mixer on low for about 30 seconds then increase to medium for 1 minute. Check to ensure the butter is being evenly distributed. The mixture will look like flour with pea or blueberry size pieces of butter. It will not be smooth or forming a dough yet. Next slowly add 6 Tbsp of cold water and mix on low for 30 seconds. The dough should be very shaggy but you don't want too much dry flour. Add more cold water 1 Tbsp at a time until most of the flour is no longer dry. Both times I made this dough I used 7 Tbsp of water total. Divide the very shaggy mixture into two pieces of plastic film and wrap them up. Now press them into disks. I've found that making the disks with the dough already wrapped makes it much easier. Chill the dough for at least 2 hours. FILLING 1 Pint Sour Cherries (approx 2 Cups) 3 Tbsp Corn Starch 3-4 Tbsp Granulated Sugar 1 Tsp Lemon zest 2 Tbsp Lemon Juice 1/2 Cup Mascarpone Cheese 1/3 Cup Powdered Sugar Place the first 5 ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. If you don't have the lemon juice you can sub water. You can also omit the lemon zest if you don't have a lemon. Let the mixture cook for 10-15 minutes until the cherries start to release juice and the sauce thickens. It will thicken more once it cools a bit as well. Carefully taste a bit to make sure it has the right amount of sweetness for you. Let the mixture cool. Mix the mascarpone and powdered sugar until smooth. ASSEMBLY Preheat oven to 400 F Roll out the chilled dough on a floured surface to about 1/4" thick. Use a sharp knife to create the size pastry you desire. (If want round pies or half round pies you could use a circular cookie cutter or cake ring.) Place the bottom half of the pie crust dough on a Silpat or parchment lined baking sheet. Spread 1 Tbsp of cheese mixture on each then top with 2 Tbsp of the cherry mixture. Use a clean finger to wet the edges of the bottom crust with cold water. Top with second layer of dough and crimp edges using a fork. Slash or puncture the top to allow steam to escape. Sprinkle with sugar or egg wash if desired. Bake for 12-15 minutes until they are golden around the edges.
Please give these recipes a try and let me know if you have any questions. I’d love to see what you make. Thank you and Bake On! Becky