Raspberry Pie Bites

So in complete juxtapose to my last post, it is currently rainy here. In fact, it rained yesterday and the day before as well. Yes, a rainy week indeed – a rarity for Colorado, I know. Denver even got some gnarly hail (we’re talking almost tennis ball size), luckily, the Boulder Bubble prevailed and protected us from any hail damage. Huzzah for living in a microclimate!

Anyways, this rainy weather has got me all hygge again. This involves digging out my favorite sweaters, lots of curries, reading and of course, baking. Speaking of baking, I realized that I leave for home in less than week and head to IRELAND in 2 weeks, which is insanely exciting, but I also have about 4 recipes that I planned to make and photograph before I left. Hello, crunch time in the kitchen. So in a way, the rainy weather has been great, it makes me want to stay inside and bake. On the downside, all that cloud coverage is cramping all that natural light I usually photograph in. Also, it means we need to find a way to pawn off a ton of baked goodies before we leave…any takers?

Anyways, that brings us to this little recipe that I’ve been sitting on for a while.  You know the saying “dessert before dinner”? Well, I’m going along with that mantra today. A while ago I bought a Ravioli Ejector Stamp. If you don’t already have one, go on amazon, order one. I’ll wait.

Okay, all ordered? Super. Let’s bake!

Back to what I was saying…I bought a ravioli stamp a few weeks ago and instead of sharing my recipe for homemade ravioli first, I’m sharing a way to use that ravioli stamp for dessert! Jesse calls them “dessert ravioli”, but I think Raspberry Pie Bites sounds a little bit more elegant and doesn’t lead people to think I’m trying to convince them that eating a meat, cheese or veggie filled pasta counts as dessert. Not on my watch.

These teenie-tiny pie bites are a great way to get a second use out of that ravioli stamp you just bought – because if there’s one thing I truly can’t stand (okay, there are lots of things…) it’s a single purpose kitchen appliance. After making these pie bites with my ravioli stamp it got me thinking of all the things I could turn into bite size (you better believe a homemade version of pizza rolls is in the making).

So here they are – Raspberry Pie Bites. I was hesitant to call them pie bites, because really they’re slightly doughier than pie crust, but not quite on fig newton chewy level. They are a perfect as is for a simple dessert, a treat to pair along with your afternoon coffee or a questionably hearty breakfast. If you want to amp up the dessert-ness, sprinkle some more sugar on top, some coconut whipped cream or maybe even a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

If you’re not a fan of raspberries, you can swap out for any fruit you like. If you don’t have fresh berries or fruit on hand, use some jam! I think some chocolate would also be divine, especially with some extra sea salt sprinkled on top.

Raspberry Pie Bites

Crust

3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 cup oats, blended
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
6 tablespoons cold water
1 tablespoon coconut sugar (or cane)
2 tablespoons honey*
1/4 teaspoon fine salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Filling

1/2 cup fresh raspberries
1 1/2 teaspoons corn starch
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons coconut sugar
squeeze of lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a medium sized mixing bowl, pour your flours, salt and cinnamon. Using a high speed blender or food processor, blend your oats until the consistency is mostly flour and some small bits. Pour oat flour mixture into the mixing bowl. Stir until combined. Then, add melted coconut oil and honey. Use a spatula to combine, then add the water one tablespoon at a time, stirring in between tablespoons. Your dough should feel sticky and elastic.

In a small sauce pan, crush your raspberries with backside of a fork. Turn onto a medium heat and add water and sugar. Stir until combined. Add corn starch. Stir until thickened. Off the heat and add the lemon juice. You can start right away on the assembly process, but I recommend popping the filling into the freezer for 10 minutes. This will make filling your pies and using the ravioli stamp so much easier. And less messy.

While the filling is chilling, roll out the dough onto a very well floured surface. I recommend placing some parchment paper or a silicone baking sheet on the counter, and then flouring that. It just makes clean up quicker and saves your dough from becoming permanently stuck on the counter. Roll out dough until about 1/8″ thick. Try to keep the dough shape in an even rectangle – this will make folding it over its self easier and resulting in more pies! Once rolled out, use the ravioli stamp to gently mark the placement for your filling.

Place about a teaspoon of the filling in the center of the indentations you made with the ravioli stamp. Once all the indentations have filling, gently fold the other half of the dough rectangle over them. Use your fingers to gently push down around the piles of filling (so you can see them better), then cut the dough using the ravioli stamp. Place pie bites on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Combine scraps and roll out once more, repeat steps for filling and cutting. Bake for 12-14 minutes. Will keep in air tight container for 4 days.

Thanks for baking with me! I hope you enjoy.

Notes

*If you’re vegan and not down with honey, sub maple syrup plus a tablespoon of brown sugar.

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