Dried And Fried Fruit Pies Food

FRIED FRUIT PIES

Steps:

• Place apricots in a saucepan, and add water to cover. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 minutes, or until tender. Drain, reserving 5 tablespoons liquid.
• Place apricots and reserved liquid in a food processor container fitted with steel blade. Process until smooth. Add sugar, butter, and cinnamon; process until blended.
• Roll out one crust on lightly floured surface and cut it into six 4 inch squares. Place 1 tablespoon apricot filling in the center of each square. Fold each square in half diagonally to form a triangle. Press a fork dipped in flour onto the edges to seal, and poke tops to permit steam to escape. Repeat with remaining crust and apricot mixture.
• Heat oil in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Cook triangles, a few at a time, 2 to 3 minutes on each side; fry until the crust is golden brown. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar.

FRIED FRUIT PIES

Steps:

• Mix together the flour and salt. Cut in the shortening with a pastry blender, fork, your hands, or whatever method works best for you, until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
• Stir together the beaten egg with the water and sprinkle over flour mixture. Sprinkle in the vinegar, mixing lightly, until ingredients are well combined.
• Form the dough into a ball and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least one hour.
• In a nonreactive pan on very low heat, simmer the dried fruit in the water for 30 to 45 minutes, or until very tender. Add water if necessary to prevent scorching. Allow to cool; mash fruit slightly.
• Stir in the sugar and spices. This step of the preparation may be done in advance and refrigerated; however, warm up the fruit (microwave is fine) enough to take the chill off and make it workable before filling your pies.
• Remove the pastry from the refrigerator and cut it into four equal pieces. You can then cut each of the four pieces into three equal pieces, leaving you with 12 golf-ball-size dough balls.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball into a 5- to 6-inch circle. Your circles don't have to be perfect, and ragged edges are okay.
• Put about 2 generous tablespoons of filling onto one side of the circle of dough. Seal the pie by wetting the inside edge of the dough with water (use your finger) and then fold over the dough, making the familiar half-moon shaped pie. Make sure the edges of the dough are even, and press and crimp to insure a good seal. You can use a fork to give you a bit of a decorative edge if you like. You can also correct the more ragged edges during this step because the dough is pliable. Just make sure the filling is sealed in and that any holes in the dough are crimped.
• Using a deep fryer set at 350, carefully lower the pies into the oil, one at a time. Cook until they turn a nice even golden brown in 3 or 4 minutes. You don't have to worry about cooking the filling -- it's already cooked. The frying process is merely cooking the dough.
• Drain on paper towels.

FRIED DRIED PEACH PIES

Steps:

• 1. Cook dried peaches on medium low heat in 2 cups of water, sugar, lemon juice, butter and cinnamon until peaches are soft and consistency is thick. Approx. 35-45 minutes.
• 2. Place flour and salt in a medium sized bowl. Cut in shortening until crumbly. Add milk and mix until soft dough forms. Divide dough into 10 portions. Roll each portion into a 6 inch circle. Place 1 heaping teaspoon of filling on half of dough. Fold over and seal edges.
• 3. In a large electric skillet bring 1/2 inch of oil to 350 degrees. Place 5 pies in oil and fry for 3-5 minutes on each side. Place on paper towel then sprinkle with sugar.

FRIED APPLE PIES-DRIED FRUIT

Steps:

• Cook the apples with the water in a large covered pot over medium-low heat for 1 hour, or until all liquid has been absorbed.
• Stir occasionally.
• Add the sugar, butter, and cinnamon, mixing well.
• Set aside to cool.
• Prepare recipe# 22729 by Darleen Summers or Unfold the refrigerated pie crust and roll out until a 12 inch circle has been formed-repeat with the remaining crust.
• Cut each crust into 9 4-inch circles (do the same with the homemade crust if using).
• Place one heaping Tablespoon of pie filling onto each circle, slightly off center.
• Moisten the edges with water and fold over, gently pressing out any air.
• Crimp with a fork.
• In a heavy skillet melt/heat oil over medium high heat, bringing it to a tempture of 350 degrees.
• Fry pies in batches, 2 minutes per side or until golden brown.
• Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.
• Makes 16-18 fried pies.
• If you wish while hot sprinkle with granulated sugar.

MAMA'S FRIED PIES

Steps:

• Cook fruit in water until tender. Drain and mix with sugar and margarine. Mash well. Refrigerate overnight if possible. Roll out homemade piecrust dough and cut into saucer-sized circles.
• Spoon fruit onto circles and fold over into crescent shapes, then close the edges completely with a fork. Fry until golden brown. Place fried pies on paper towels to absorb excess oil.
• Variations: For baked pies, place crescents on a lightly-greased baking sheet in a 400 degree oven until golden brown.
• For apple pies, use dried apples and add apple pie spice (or nutmeg and cinnamon) and vanilla to taste.
• For prune pies, use dry, pitted prunes and add vanilla to taste.
• Place the flour and a dash of salt in a mixing bowl. Add the shortening and cut it in with a pastry blender or use your hands, as I do. Add the water, a teaspoon at a time, kneading until the dough is smooth.

APRICOT FRIED PIES

Steps:

• Place apricots in a medium saucepan; add water to cover.
• Cover pan and cook over low heat 15 minutes or until tender.
• Mash appricots, and add sugar; set aside.
• Combine flour and salt; cut in shortening with pastry blender until mixture resembles coarse meal.
• Sprinkle cold water (1 Tablespoon at a time) evenly over surface; stir with a fork until dry ingredients are moistened.
• Shape into a ball and chill.
• Divide dough in half.
• Roll one portion to 1/8" thickness on a lightly foured surface; cut into 3 1/2-inch circles.
• Spoon aout 1 teaspoon apricot filling on half of each pastry circle, moisten edges and fry.

DRIED AND FRIED FRUIT PIES

Steps:

• In a small, heavy saucepan, combine the apricots with the water. Simmer over low heat until the fruit is plump and soft and most of the water has been absorbed, about 25 minutes. Add more water if needed.
• Drain the apricots and chop them. Mix the apricots in a small bowl with the jam or preserves, and the nuts or bread crumbs. Refrigerate the filling, if you wish, for as long as 24 hours.
• Roll the pie dough out 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Cut it into rounds with the top of a coffee can or with a large round biscuit or cookie cutter. Spread equal portions of filling on each round, moisten the dough edges lightly, and fold the rounds over into half moon shapes. Crimp the edges with a fork.
• In a heavy saucepan or Dutch oven, heat at least 4 inches of shortening to 350°F Fry the pies in batches, turning them over midway through the cooking, after they rise to the surface. Remove them when they are golden brown and crispy, about 3 minutes. Drain them, and sprinkle them with sugar. Let them cool for at least 5 minutes before eating. Makes 8 pies.
• Variations: The pies can be baked rather than fried. Place them on a greased baking sheet, brush them with a little beaten egg (1 egg is enough for this batch of pies), sprinkle them with sugar, and bake them at 375°F for about 20 minutes, or until they are lightly browned.
• Experiment with other dried fruit or jam fillings. Try dried peaches simmered in peach nectar with a touch of jalapeno jam, or dried apples with cider, a splash of applejack, and cinnamon.
• FOR THE PIE CRUST: Using a food processor, a bowl with a pastry blender, or your fingers, cut the lard, butter and vegetable shortening into the flour and salt. Whatever method you choose, be careful not to overwork the dough, which would reduce flakiness. Add the water a few tablespoons at a time, until the dough just holds together. Divide the dough into two mounds, wrap them in plastic, and refrigerate them at least 30 minutes (or wrap one mound for the freezer, if you don't plan to use it in the next couple of days).
• If the pie crust is to be baked, preheat the oven to 400°F
• On a floured board or pastry cloth, roll out the dough in a circle a couple of inches larger than the pie pan. To avoid stretching the dough excessively, roll it from the center outwards, lifting the rolling pin after each stroke rather than rolling back over the dough in the opposite direction. Loosen the dough, drape it around the rolling pin, and center the crust over the pan, dropping it gently into place.
• If you're making a one crust pie, crimp the edges decoratively. If your pie is to have two crusts, roll out the second mound of dough, too.
• For a single pre-baked crust, prick the dough in several spots. Cover the pie shell with foil, and weight the foil with dried beans or pie weights. Bake the crust for 10 minutes, and then lower the temperature to 350°F and bake for an additional 15 minutes, or follow the directions in your pie recipe.
• One cowboy commented that a chuck wagon cook "is a sort of human that was kicked in the head by a brindle cow or a cross-grained mule when very young...They're temperamental as wimmin too; an' like the bosses, don't need no sleep neither." -Quoted in Ramon Adams, Come and Get It.
• Texas Home Cooking.

DRIED-FRUIT MINCEMEAT PIE

Steps:

• Make mincemeat:
• In a food processor coarsely chop mixed dried fruit and dates with spices, salt, and sugar. In a heavy saucepan combine dried-fruit mixture, cranberries, and 2 cups water and cook at a bare simmer, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes, or until fruit is tender (mixture will be very thick). In a small bowl stir together cornstarch and 2 tablespoons water until combined well. Stir cornstarch mixture into dried-fruit mixture and simmer, stirring frequently, 2 minutes. Stir in brandy and cool mincemeat. Mincemeat may be used immediately but will improve in flavor if kept, covered and chilled, at least 1 day and up to 1 week. Bring mincemeat to room temperature before proceeding.
• Preheat oven to 375°F.
• Keeping remaining dough chilled, on a lightly floured surface with a floured rolling pin roll out half of dough into a 13-inch round (about 1/8 inch thick). Fit round into a 9-inch (1-quart) glass pie plate and trim edge, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang. Chill shell, covered, 30 minutes, or until firm.
• Coarsely chop pecans and in a shallow baking pan toast in middle of oven until a shade darker, about 4 minutes. Stir pecans into mincemeat and spoon into shell, smoothing top. Roll out remaining dough 1/8 inch thick and arrange over filling. Trim dough, leaving a 3/4-inch overhang, and fold overhang under edge of bottom shell, pressing to seal. Crimp edge decoratively.
• In a small bowl whisk together 1/2 tablespoon water and yolk and lightly brush crust with egg wash. Sprinkle crust with sugar and with a knife cut several steam vents.
• Bake pie in middle of oven until crust is golden, 30 to 35 minutes, and transfer to a rack to cool. Pie may be made 8 hours ahead and kept at room temperature. Serve pie warm or at room temperature.