Mini fruit pies

Sugar is not good for us; however, there are holidays when everyone expects a little treat on the table. As long as the treat incorporates healthy ingredients and as little sugar as possible, then we can indulge once in a while. Below is a recipe for one such treat prepared with fruit and served in small portions.

Dough: mix 1 cup of whole-wheat flour, ½ cup of cornmeal, ½ tsp. salt and 6 Tbs. Smart Balance. Mix these ingredients with your hands until crumbs form. Add ¼ cup of water and 1 beaten egg, incorporate by mixing. Wrap the dough with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour (maximum of two days). Spray/oil the muffin pan. To make crust, separate dough into four balls and roll each thinly (1/8 of inch) to yield 6 circles (or 24 circles total). I use a a bowl to cut circles of dough (approximately three times the diameter of a muffin well). Transfer dough circles onto the muffin wells, and fold dough to cover the walls of the well to form “cups”.

Filling:  Mix chopped apples (approximately 1/3 medium size apple per mini-pie) or any other fresh fruit (plums, peaches, pears, etc.) with as little sugar as you can tolerate. To an apple filling, you can add cinnamon, walnuts, and raisins.  For a filling made with pumpkin puree, add sugar, cinnamon, and walnuts to taste. Distribute filling into the dough “cups”. Roll the remaining dough, cut decorative shapes (use a cookie cutter), and put them on top of each mini-pie.  Bake at 375°F for 35-40 minutes or until the crust on top is golden color. Optional: lightly sprinkle sugar or cinnamon sugar on top of the muffins.