Crispy Apple Turnovers

By minicoopercraig

American as it may be, the price of apple pie at a restaurant is a steep one to pay. For that matter, so, so, is the one we pay at Grandma's house when she serves us a warm slice a la mode. But to ditch the dessert over caloric concerns would be downright unpatriotic so instead we salved apple pie's biggest nutritional setback - serving size - by wrapping up neat little packets of sweetened, spiced apple chunks in flaky puff pastry. The result is a perfectly portioned individual turnover with fewer calories than you'd get from two bites of Cheesecake Factory's Warm Apple Crisp.
Puff pastry-made mostly with butter and flour-isn't exactly light fare. But if you roll out a sheet until thin and cut into six squares, you have a 150-calorie wrap that you can use to house a variety of sweet and savory combinations. Swap out the chunky apple filling for any of the following:
Shredded Chicken, sauteed onions, peppers and Monterey Jack Cheese
Leftover Guinness-Braised Short Ribs and sauteed mushrooms
Sauteed spinach and onions tossed with feta cheese
Bourbon-spiked bananas and crushed walnuts (see French Toast recipe.)

Ingredients

• Flour
• 1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 3 Granny Smith apples
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp ground ginger
• 1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten

Details

Servings 6

Preparation

Step 1

Generously flour a working surface. Roll the puff pastry into a 9"X15" rectangle. Cut the pastry into 6 equal squares. Refrigerate until needed.
Bring the water and sugar to a boil in a large saucepan. Peel and core the apples; cut into 1/2" chunks. Toss the apples with the cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and lemon juice, then add to the sugar mixture and simmer until the liquid thickens, 5 to 7 minutes. Set aside to cool.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. When the apple mixture cools, spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of apples onto the puff pastry squares, off center. Fold the pastry over the apple filling to make a triangle and seal the perimeter by pinching the edges or pressing the tines of a fork into the dough.
Place the turnovers on a baking sheet and brush with with egg white. Bake until the dough is crispy and golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes.