Tomato Hand Pies
Servings: 24 Hand Pies
These delicious hand pies are the perfect addition to any picnic or backyard BBQ. Find a variety of the best, freshest tomatoes you can get your hands on and get started!
Blitz Puff Pastry
600 g All purpose flour
454 g Good quality cold unsalted butter
300 g Cold water
12 g Fine sea salt
5 g / 1 tsp Lemon juice
Filling
3 lbs Mixed heirloom tomatoes chopped (½” pieces)
2/3 cup Shaved parmesan or crumbled blue cheese
1/4 cup Mixed fresh herbs (basil, thyme, oregano, italian parsley, rosemary)
2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp Fennel seed
2 Cloves red russian garlic, minced
To taste Coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Egg Wash
1 Egg yolk
1 tbsp Heavy cream
Blitz puff pastry
Cut the butter into approximately 1” cubes. Whisk together the salt and flour. On the counter using a bench knife, cut the butter into the flour leaving the butter in large chunks (approx. ½”).
Make a well in the centre of the flour mixture and add the cold water and lemon juice. Slowly mix in the flour by hand just until a rough dough forms. Press into a square, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Place the dough on a lightly floured counter and lightly flour the top of the dough. Roll the dough out to an approximately 12” x 32” rectangle, lightly flouring and flipping the dough as necessary.
Give the dough a double fold. To do this, on a lightly floured counter roll the dough out to approximately 4 times its width. If the dough begins to stick, dust it with flour, flip it over and dust the other side. Fold approximately ⅛ of the dough toward the middle at one side. Bring the other side over to meet the first. Finally, fold the dough in half again resulting in 4 layers of dough. Return to the fridge for 20-30 minutes.
Give the dough 3 more double folds, resting 20-30 minutes in the fridge between folds. It is important that the dough remains cold throughout the whole process so that the layers of butter remain intact. After the last fold, refrigerate at least one hour before rolling out for your recipe.
Filling
Preheat oven to 400˚F on convection, or 425˚F without convection.
In a large bowl combine the chopped tomatoes, herbs, olive oil, garlic, and fennel seed. Season generously with coarse salt and fresh cracked pepper. Gently toss to avoid crushing the tomatoes and set aside while you line the muffin tins.
For the pastry
To avoid warming the puff pastry too much, work in two batches.
On a lightly floured counter roll half of the pastry dough out into a 17” x 13” rectangle. Square the edges by trimming back to 16” x 12” with a sharp knife, pastry cutter, or pizza cutter (the layers will open better on the freshly cut edges).
Divide the rectangle into 12 4” squares. Place the squares on a cookie sheet in the freezer for 3-5 minutes to chill.
Remove the squares from the freezer. To make it easier to neatly line the tin, fold each square as shown in the diagrams.
Place the folded pastry in a buttered muffin tin and open it up by unfolding the corners.
Place the lined tray in the freezer for 10 minutes to chill the pastry before filling.
Repeat steps 1-5 to line the second tin.
Assembly and baking
Drain excess juice from the tomato mixture.
Fill each pastry-lined muffin cup, alternating small amounts of cheese with tomato mixture until mounded slightly over the top of the muffin tin.
Combine the egg yolk and cream and brush on to the exposed corners of pastry.
Bake for 30 minutes or until pastry is dark golden brown and the edges of the tomatoes are slightly blackened.
Cool in the tin for five minutes before removing and cooling on a wire rack.