Apple Pie "Pop-Tarts"

Photography by Jill Farrar. Styling by Keith Recker.

Mediterra Café is famous for its bread and baked goods, and we are very luck to have them share a delectable recipe with TABLE Readers! Special thanks to the Ambeliotis family for this…and for all the fine breakfasts they serve every day at their locations in Sewickley and Mount Lebanon.

APPLE PIE “POP-TARTS”

For the pie dough

1 tsp salt 
⅔ cup water, very cold 
3 cups + 2 tbsp flour (we use King Arthur flour)
1 cup + 5 tbsp, unsalted butter, cold 

1. Start by dissolving 1 teaspoon of salt in 2/3 cup very cold water. Keep cold until needed.

2. Prepare your cold butter by cutting it into 1-inch pieces. In a food processor, you add the flour and butter pieces, and pulse until the butter is in pea-sized pieces.

3. Sprinkle in the very cold salted water and carefully pulse.

4. Turn the dough onto a floured work surface and divide into 2 pieces. Shape into a 1-inch-thick disk. Wrap well in plastic and chill in the fridge for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

For the filling

Water
2​ lemons
4 Granny Smith apples 
2 tbsp butter 
1 1/3 cup light brown sugar, tightly packed 
1 tsp cinnamon 
1/2 tsp salt​ 

1. Fill a medium bowl with cold water. Juice the lemon into it. This lemon water will help keep your apple pieces looking fresh.

2. Peel and core the apples, then halve and quarter them. Cut each piece lengthwise into thirds and then crosswise into fourths, leaving you with 12 small pieces for every apple quarter. Place the pieces in the lemon water as you go.

3. When you are ready to cook the filling, drain the apples. Combine the apples in a medium saucepan with the butter, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

4. Bring the mixture to a boil over medium heat, gently stirring as it heats up and the apples begin to release their liquid. Lower the heat and let simmer for 3 to 5 minutes, until the apples have softened some, but are not easily crushed into applesauce. Let cool.

For the brown butter icing

1 stick of unsalted butter 
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted 
2 tsp vanilla extract 
2 to 4 tbsp milk

1. Heat butter in a saucepan over medium heat until golden brown, about 10 minutes.

2. Carefully pour the butter into a bowl to stop the cooking process, leaving behind as much of the dark sediment in the pan as you can.

3. Add sugar, vanilla, and 2 tablespoons of milk to butter and stir until smooth. If you think your glaze is too thick, add a little more milk. Store in an airtight container.

For the pie-crumb topping

3 cups flour
4 tbsp sugar 
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt 
16 tbsp butter​ melted, 2 sticks​ 
3 tbsp water

1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Paddle on low speed until well mixed.

3. Add in the butter and water and continue to mix on low speed until the mixture comes together in small clusters.

4. Spread the clusters out on a lined baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes, stirring to break them up occasionally. They should be golden brown and still slightly moist to the touch. Transfer the pan to a wire rack. The crumbs will dry and harden as they cool.

Tart assembly

1. If the dough has been chilled, remove it from the refrigerator and allow it to soften and become workable, about 15 to 30 minutes.

2. Place one piece on a lightly floured work surface, and roll it into a rectangle about 1/8-inch thick, large enough that you can trim it to an even 9 x 12. You can use a 9 x 13 pan as guidance.

3. Repeat with the second piece of dough. Set trimmings aside. Cut each piece of dough into thirds – you’ll form nine 3 x 4 rectangles.

4. Beat the additional egg and brush it over the outline of the first dough. This will be the inside of the tart; the egg is to help glue on the lid.

5. Place a heaping tablespoon of filling into the center of each rectangle, keeping a bare 1/2-inch perimeter around it.

6. Place a second rectangle of dough atop the first, using your fingertips to press firmly around the pocket filling, sealing the dough well on all sides. Press fork tines all around the edge of the rectangle. Repeat with remaining tarts.

7. Prick the tops of each multiple times with a fork so steam can escape. While the oven is preheating, keep the tarts in the freezer or refrigerator. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown.

King Arthur pro tip

With the extra pie dough, sprinkle trimmings with cinnamon-sugar; these have nothing to do with your toaster pastries, but it’s a shame to discard them, plus they make a wonderful snack! While the tarts are chilling, bake these trimmings for 13 to 15 minutes till they’re golden brown.

More recipes from Mediterra here.

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