Mini Caramel Apple Pies- there's nothing better than a fresh out the oven apple pie! unless of course it's your own personal mini apple pie...all flaky and buttery and filled with warm cinnamon spice apples and ooey gooey caramel. Perfect for when you want just a few bites of something decadent and sweet.
Mini caramel apple pies are also a lot easier to make than a regular apple pie. You can whip up these tasty treats in about 30 mins. Here's how:
Cut up an apple (or 2)  into small pieces. You can peel the apples before cutting them up ( or not, I opted to keep the skin on...but that's just a personal preference..either way will work).  Squeeze the lemon juice over the apples. Add a touch of sugar and spices and give everything a good stir . Set aside while you prepare the crusts.
Frozen Puff Pastry ( found at most grocery stores) works wonders! and it's what makes these mini caramel apples so easy  and effortless to make!
On a lightly floured surface, roll out your puff pastry. Depending on the variety you use it may be rectangle or a circle. You can use a cookie cutter ( 2"-2 ½" inch) , or turn a glass upside down to make circle cut outs for your mini pies. I found that the lid  of mason jar was a perfect size.  Repeat with the second sheet of puff pastry dough (you want the same number of cutouts per sheet of puff pastry so that you have a bottom and a top for each pie).
I gathered up the excess dough and rolled it out again so I could cut out a few more circles.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and lay out  half of the circle cutouts. Top with apple pieces, leaving a border around the edges (to be able to seal the pies).
Now for the extra delicious part! CARAMEL! I cut up  regular square caramels (like Kraft variety) and they work perfectly if you are going to eat the pies piping hot out of the oven ( or reheated) . I thought the caramel got a little chewy after they cooled. So if you plan to use regular caramels then plan to eat the pies while they are hot.
If you plan to eat the pies at room temperature I would use either soft caramels ( you can find them in most grocery stores in the candy section (usually wrapped in a wax paper like wrapper) or caramel sauce ( a liberal spoonful per pie). Caramel sauce can  also found in most grocery stores in the baking section ( hello! they also make salted caramel sauce..delish!)
Top each pie with the remaining puff pastry cutouts. Use a fork to close the edges.
Also use the fork to poke a few holes in the top of the pies.
Give each pie a brush of the beaten egg.
The egg helps to make sure you get a beautiful golden crust. Pop the pies in the oven (375F) for about 15-20 mins.
Voila! Â Golden brown flaky mini caramel apple pies like this!
Let the pies cool for just a few minutes on a wire rack, until you can easily pick them up.
Grab your fork or use your hands...and bite into one of these tasty little treats.
If you are feeling extra fancy you can serve the mini  caramel apple pies with a scoop of ice cream/frozen yogurt, or even drizzle some extra caramel sauce on the top.
Mini Caramel Apple Pies
Ingredients
- 1 package frozen puff pastry approx. 16 oz. -thawed according to package directions
- 1- 2 large baking apples cut into small cubes (like Granny Smith, Braeburn, Jonagold, or Honeycrisp)
- 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 2 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg*
- ¼ teaspoon all spice*
- ¼ teaspoon ground ginger*
- 12-14 caramels cut into small pieces (or substitute a spoonful of caramel sauce per mini pie)
- 1 egg beaten
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- Place chopped apples in a medium bowl, squeeze the juice of the lemon over apples and mix. Add the sugar and spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, all spice and ginger) and mix to incorporate. Set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the thawed puff pastry dough. Use a cookie cutter (2- 21/2 inch diameter), the top of a glass or metal ring from a mason jar to cut dough into circle pieces.Make sure you have an even number of circles so each pie has a top and bottom. Gather up excess dough, roll out and cut out additional circles if necessary.
- Place half of the puff pastry circle on the prepared baking sheet. Add a scoop of apple mixture to each (approx. 1 Tbsp) leaving a border around the edges. Add caramel pieces (or caramel sauce). Top each pie with a puff pastry circle. and seal edges with fork. Using a fork also poke a few holes in the top of each pie.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the top of each pie with egg. Place in the oven, cook 15-20 mins. until golden brown. Remove from oven and transfer to wire rack to cool.
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