Helen Goh’s recipe for toffee apple hand pies | The sweet spot

These plump and rustic little parcels are perfect for Bonfire Night: warming, portable and, wrapped in a napkin and held in one hand, easy to eat outdoors. Filled with gently spiced, toffee-glossed apples, they are deliberately more homely hand pies than anything overly neat or patisserie-like. The small amount of miso in the filling deepens the toffee flavour and rounds out the sweetness, without making it taste too savoury or funky.

Miso-toffee apple hand pies

Prep 10 min
Macerate 30 min
Cook 1 hr 15 min, plus chilling and cooling
Makes 8

800g apples, ideally a mixture of granny smith and pink lady (about 3 of each), peeled, cored and cut into 1½-2cm pieces (650g net)
80g light brown sugar
2 tbsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground nutmeg
¼ tsp fine sea salt, plus a generous pinch for the egg wash
50g unsalted butter
20g white miso
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 small egg
50g plain flour
2 320g packs shop-bought puff pastry
1 tbsp demerara sugar

Put the apple pieces in a large bowl with the brown sugar, vinegar, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt, and toss to combine. Leave to macerate at room temperature for at least 30 minutes, tossing occasionally.

Strain the apples, reserving the liquid; you should have about 100ml. Melt the butter in a large, wide frying pan on a medium-high heat. Add the strained apples and cook, tossing occasionally, for four to five minutes, until they begin to soften. Pour in the reserved liquid and cook for a further three to four minutes, until the liquid reduces and a glossy caramel forms around the apples. Stir in the miso and vanilla until evenly incorporated, then take off the heat. Spread the filling over a tray or large plate, so it can cool quickly, then refrigerate until completely cold.

To assemble, lightly beat the egg with a generous pinch of salt and put the flour in a small dish. Unroll one sheet of pastry, leaving it on the baking paper it comes with, and cut into four equal rectangles. Keep the second sheet refrigerated while you assemble the first four pies.

Spoon about 60g filling on one half of each pastry rectangle, leaving a 1½cm border around three outer edges surrounding the filling, then brush these borders lightly with egg, keeping the egg wash just inside the cut edges (brushing it over the sides can seal the pastry layers and prevent them from rising properly). Fold the uncovered half of pastry over the filling and gently press the three edges together. Dip the tines of a fork in the flour, then use this to crimp all around the edges to seal.

Slide the four pies on their baking paper bases on to an oven tray and refrigerate while you repeat with the second pastry sheet and the rest of the filling on a second tray. Refrigerate both trays for 20-30 minutes, until the pies are cold and firm.

Meanwhile, heat the oven to 200C (180C fan)/390F/gas 6. Brush the tops of the pies with the remaining egg wash and sprinkle with demerara sugar. Using the tip of a small, sharp knife, cut three slashes in the top of each pie, so the steam can escape, then bake for about 30 minutes, swapping the trays around halfway through cooking if necessary, until puffed and deeply golden. Leave the pies on the trays for 10 minutes, then transfer to a rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.