Dutch Apple Pie Bites

'An apple a day keeps the Doctor away'

I love apples. They are so juicy, crispy, sweet and so good for you. I grew up on a hobby farm, my Father planted many different varieties of fruit, apples were prolific in the garden.

My Mother would make apple pies, applesauce, dried apples and fruit leather for us to enjoy throughout the fall and winter and always enough to share with family and friends.
Today I cooked with apples that were grown by my cousin Walter and his wife Vera who live beside the farm where we grew up. Thank you to Walter and Vera for sharing your beautiful apples, thank you to my sister Wendy for picking them up and for my sister Holly for bringing them all the way from Ootischenia to Gibsons. The apples are a 'common delicious' sweet and juicy. Today I made these Dutch Apple Pie Bites. Perfect for tea/coffee with family or friends.

They freeze well and will be great to serve for any festive holiday too.

Enjoy

DUTCH APPLE PIE BITES

Apples diced and cooked

Streusel topping is ready

Pie dough is rolled, cut and fitted into muffin tins

Apple filling is added

Streusel topping added before baking.

Dutch Apple Pie Bites right out of the oven

Perfect for tea, coffee or a light snack

Serve with Greek Yogurt, whipped cream or ice cream

DUTCH APPLE PIE BITES RECIPE

Ingredients:

1batch of double crust pie dough (add cinnamon )

5 small  apples, peeled, cored, and diced finely

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 tablespoon cornstarch

FOR THE STREUSEL TOPPING

2 1/4 cups all purpose flour

2/3 cup brown sugar

2/3 cup granulated sugar

2/3 cups old fashioned oats

pinch of salt

3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons (14 tablespoons total) butter, melted

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray the wells of a standard size muffin tin with nonstick spray. Roll out dough onto a lightly floured surface, and cut out circles about 2 inches in diameter. Gather and re-roll unused dough and cut additional circles. I used the rim of a small plastic cup.. Place the circles in the bottom of each muffin well.
• Add the apples, sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, and cornstarch to a medium saucepan. Cook on medium heat, stirring occasionally for about 5-10 minutes until the apples have softened slightly and the juices begin to thicken. Remove from heat.
• Add about one tablespoon of the apple filling on top of each circle of pie dough.
• In a medium bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, granulated sugar, oats, and salt. Add melted butter and mix until well incorporated.
• Add a heaping tablespoon of the streusel topping to each muffin well, and gently pat it down over the apples.
• Bake for 17-19 minutes. **Allow the apple pie cookies to cool in the muffin tin for at least 10-15 minutes before removing. Cool on a wire rack.
• "Though we all have the fear & the seeds of anger within us, we must learn not to water those seeds and instead nourish our positive qualities--those of compassion, understanding, and loving kindness."
  ~ Thich Nhat Hahn