Blueberry Hand Pies

2 1/2 C blueberries + 1/2 – 1 C reserve for later
1/4 C sugar
3 T lemon juice
2 T water
2 t cornstarch
1 t tapioca

Wash the 2 c blueberries. Check to be sure that there are no stems or leaves.
Add blueberries to a medium saucepan.
Pour in the water and lemon juice.
In a small bowl mix together the sugar, cornstarch, and tapioca until blended.
Mix into the blueberries.
Set the pan on medium-medium high heat. heat. Bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to prevent burning. Allow mixture to and thicken so that the starch is cooked.
Cook a minute or two longer Add 1-2 t of butter.
Remove from heat and allow to cool completely. Mixture will continue to thicken as it cools.

Pastry:
3 C all- purpose flour
2 T sugar
1/2 t salt
1 C unsalted cold butter cut into small cubes
2 egg yolks
2/3 C sour cream

In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the dry ingredients.
Pulse to blend. Cut the butter and add it to the bowl. Pulse to a crumble mixture, do not over mix.
Mix the egg yolk with the sour cream.
Move the dough mixture into a bowl and gently mix in the sour cream and egg tossing the mixture with a fork.
Gather the dough into a ball handling the dough as little as possible. Cut in half, flatten to a disk. and wrap each 1/2 in plastic or wax paper.
Chill for a couple of hours or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 425
Remove one package of dough from the refrigerator, roll out on a lightly floured board into a rectangle 15×10, trim to make dough even.
Cut 6 – 5” squares, fill one side of the dough(triangle) with a heaping Tablespoon of filling. Dot with some of the reserved blueberries. Fold over to form a closed triangle and seal edges with a fork or crimp as you would a pie crust. Cut some little vents to allow steam to escape.
Beat an egg with 1 T of water. Lightly brush the turnover, sprinkle with a little sugar. Repeat with theremaining dough.
Place turnovers on a baking pan lined with parchment. Place the baking sheet in the freezer for 15 minutes to ensure that the pastry is cold.
Lower the oven temperature to 400 bake for 8 minutes and lower the temperature to 375 and bake for an additional 8-10 minutes.
Turnovers should be lightly browned, filling should be bubbling.
Cool completely before cutting. Sprinkle with just a touch of powdered sugar.
Best served the day they are made. They can be frozen before baking and placed into a zip lock bag to bake later . Yield 1 dozen turnovers.

Farm Kitchen Tip -filling can be used with purchased pie crust, phyllo, or frozen puff pastry sheets.

Recipe provided by culinary & educational specialist, Jenn Borealo at Alstede Farms

For more information on blueberries, visit our blog.