A few days ago I made some apple turnovers loosely following a recipe I found on Allrecipes.com. We're in the midst of final exams here in Pittsburgh and although I don't mind putting time into making the apple filling, there was no way I was making pastry dough from scratch; so I finally got myself to the grocery store and purchased a package of Pepperidge Farm's frozen pastry dough. Then I set about making the turnovers; I took some pictures of the entire process, from start to finish. Here is my attempt at Apple Turnovers:

If you're using a frozen pastry sheet, set it out to thaw before you begin. I started out by peeling, coring, and chopping my apples. (I used two Granny Smith apples.) Then, to make it easier for myself later on, I combined 1/2 cup of brown sugar and 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and set the bowl aside.

Melt some butter in a large skillet over medium heat and toss in your chopped apples. Cook and stir the apples for about 2 minutes.

Add the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture, and cook, still stirring, for 2 more minutes.

In a small bowl, stir together 1/2 tablespoon of cornstarch and 1/2 tablespoon of water. Pour the liquid into the skillet, and mix well. Cook for another minute; once the sauce has thickened you can remove the skillet from heat to cool slightly.

Here is where I started taking less pictures and I missed a few steps. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Unfold your puff pastry sheet and repair any cracks by pressing them back together. Trim your sheet into a square (the Pepperidge Farm sheets are already square). Cut the large square into 4 smaller squares. Spoon apples onto the center of each square. (To note: Mike requested I add coconut to a few of the turnovers as well, as you can see from the picture above.) Fold over from corner to corner into a triangle shape, and press the edges together with a fork to seal. Place the turnovers on a baking sheet, leaving about 1 inch between them. I lined my baking sheet with foil to catch any drips (and believe me, there were puddles when I pulled them out).

Bake the turnovers for 20-25 minutes in the preheated oven, pull out and set out to cool when turnovers are puffed and lightly browned.
These are the turnovers straight out of the oven, cooling on a rack. I stuck the oven mitt in there for a size comparison; they were fairly large.

And, cut in half and ready to eat! I put two turnovers in the freezer for later and baked the other two immediately. By the time I got to eat one they were cold and, although appetizing, not quite as good as I was expecting. Mike and I baked the frozen turnovers for breakfast the next day and we ate those warm; they tasted so much better! I guess I'll need to try another recipe next time.

Labels: apples, turnovers