Tiny Urban Kitchen

Exploring Food from Boston to Hong Kong and Beyond

  • About Me
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Michelin
  • Subscribe
  • Taiwanese
menu icon
go to homepage
  • About Me
  • Travel
  • Recipes
  • Michelin
  • Subscribe
  • Taiwanese
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • subscribe
    search icon
    Homepage link
    • About Me
    • Travel
    • Recipes
    • Michelin
    • Subscribe
    • Taiwanese
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    • Nanjing, China
      Weekend Trip to Nanjing China
    • Po Toi Island and Stanley Hong Kong
      Po Toi Island and Stanley Hong Kong
    • Wakaran Hong Kong
      Wakaran Wan Chai
    • Godenya Hong Kong
      Godenya Hong Kong (revisited)
    • The Chairman Hong Kong
      The Chairman Hong Kong (1 Michelin Star)
    • Hanu Wan Chai Hong Kong
      Hanu (Korean Beef) Wan Chai
    • Always Joy Hong Kong
      Always Joy Hong Kong
    • Michael Chiarelli Ottimo Yountville California
      Bottega + Ottimo Yountville
    • Ciccio Yountville California
      Ciccio Yountville
    • Charter Oak St. Helena Napa Valley California
      Charter Oak St. Helena Napa Valley California
    • Cole’s Chop House Napa California
      Cole's Chop House Napa California
    • Compline Restaurant Napa California
      Compline Restaurant + Wine Shop Napa
    Home » Recipe » Dessert » Baking

    Inside Out Apple Pies

    Published: Oct 26, 2010 · Modified: Oct 28, 2014 by Jennifer Che

    IMG_3809-1
    This dessert is part of a larger meal "A Taste of Autumn" where every single dish was made using "edible" or natural "bowls." That post is my entry for Project Food Blog Round 6. You can check out the post and vote for me here.

    I'm not a baker.

    Bakers are precise, careful, planned, and detail-oriented people. They have to be this way, for baking is such a precise art. Change the ratios of something, and the whole thing could totally fail.

    I'm more of a throw-it-all-together-without-measuring type cook, which can often lead to failures if you're trying to get cake to be a certain texture, a crust to be flaky, or dough to rise properly.

    This was my first time ever making any pie from scratch. As a non-exact imprecise sort of cook, you would naturally assume the odds would be stacked against me. Thankfully, the pie turned out great, mostly due to some interesting techniques and also flexibility in the recipe (and maybe beginner's luck!).
    _MG_5322-1
    This recipe is a twist on the traditional apple pie because it's sort of an inverted apple pie. For starters, there's apple on the outside and crust on the inside. There's ALSO more apples and cinnamon on the inside too, so it's more than just inverted. It's really really confused.

    The Crust

    Your goal in a pie crust is to make a flaky crust. This is achieved by making pie dough that still has visible bits of butter spread throughout. When this butter melts, it creates all those lovely layers in the pastry!
    MakingPastryCrust-1
    The key is to use really cold butter - like frozen butter. I used this great recipe from Simply Recipes. What I like about Elise's technique is that you pre-cut the butter into ½ inch chunks and freeze them  (I think I had it in the freezer for close to an hour). You then pulse the cold butter with flour, salt, and sugar just enough for the butter to be reasonably cut up.  Start adding ice cold water, 1 T at a time until the mixture is just sticky enough that the clumps will hold together when you pinch it (about 7-8 T).

    At this point you use your hands and try to form a ball with the mixture. Knead just a few times before dividing the dough in two and rolling out two pretty thick disc (about ¾ inch thick). Wrap in plastic wrap and put in refrigerator for at least an hour but up to two days (I waited overnight).
    IMG_3767-1
    The next day (or, an hour later), roll out the dough until it's about ⅛ inch thick. Cut out little circles about 4 inches in diameter. [of course, I didn't measure - I just sort of guessed]. Stick them in a muffin tin to make little crusts (bottom right photo).
    PreppingApplePie-2

    The Apples
    Meanwhile, slice up apples. I love sour apples, so I used a mixture of Granny Smith and Cortland apples. Thinly slice the apples and toss them in a mixture of sugar, cinnamon, and lemon/lime juice. I really don't like my apple pies very sweet, so I only added a little more than ⅛ cup sugar for 2 apples, which I think is on the low side.
    IMG_3770-1
    Fill up your muffin tin, and you're ready to bake!

    Bake at 400 °F for about 25-30 minutes.

    The Outer Apple
    IMG_3803-1
    Meanwhile, prepare your apple outsides. I scored the apple first and then used a spoon to sort of "flick" out the pieces. I ended up using the spoon to scoop out the remaining apple as well. It's possible that a melon baller would have been useful here, but I had no such gadgets in my tiny little kitchen.

    Putting It All Together
    IMG_3811-2
    Finally, when the pie is done baking, let it cool a little before placing inside the cored out apple. And that's it! If you plan on transporting it, I would recommend packing the two pieces separately and then assemble it at the final location.
    _MG_5318-10
    If you want, you can use the "cap" as a base, making a goblet of sorts.

    Serve and enjoy!
    JenEatingInsideOutApple-1
    I can't really take credit for this ingeniously creative little thing. My husband, who can be oh-so-creative when you least expect it, came up with this cute apple pie idea. 

    ©2009-2014 Tiny Urban Kitchen
    All Rights Reserved

    More Baking

    • Totoro Valentine Cookies (Matcha)
    • Matcha Mochi Cake
    • Chinese Eggnog Tarts
    • Kabocha Pumpkin Mochi Cake

    Recent Posts

    • Weekend Trip to Nanjing China June 20, 2025
    • Po Toi Island and Stanley Hong Kong June 17, 2025
    • Wakaran Wan Chai June 15, 2025
    • Godenya Hong Kong (revisited) June 12, 2025
    • The Chairman Hong Kong (1 Michelin Star) June 6, 2025
    • Hanu (Korean Beef) Wan Chai June 2, 2025
    • Always Joy Hong Kong May 29, 2025
    • Bottega + Ottimo Yountville May 14, 2025

    Trackbacks

    1. Pinterest Feature Friday - Mine for the Making says:
      June 26, 2015 at 6:31 am

      […] Inside Out Apple Pies from Tiny Urban Kitchen look so yummy and so fun! Find them pinned to Carrie’s Dessert Love […]

      Log in to Reply
    2. Pinterest Feature Friday - PFF 186 - The Scrap Shoppe says:
      June 26, 2015 at 1:00 pm

      […] Inside Out Apple Pies from Tiny Urban Kitchen look so yummy and so fun! Find them pinned to Carrie’s Dessert Love […]

      Log in to Reply
    3. Apple Newton Fail | 4500 Apple reviews says:
      December 13, 2015 at 4:55 pm

      […] PDF File Name: Inside out apple pies – tiny urban kitchen Source: http://www.tinyurbankitchen.com » DOWNLOAD « […]

      Log in to Reply
    4. Reflections on a Decade of Blogging: Happy Birthday Tiny Urban Kitchen! - Tiny Urban Kitchen says:
      October 1, 2019 at 8:34 pm

      […] Inside Out Apple Pie […]

      Log in to Reply
    Jennifer Che Tiny Urban Kitchen

    Hi, my name's Jen and welcome to my cooking, eating, and travel site! I am an expat who moved from Boston to Hong Kong 5 years ago. Born and raised in Ohio to Taiwanese immigrant parents, I am a chemistry nerd, patent attorney by day, blogger by night, church musician on weekends, and food enthusiast always. Feel free to explore away, maybe starting with the Recipe Index or one of the travel pages! I hope you enjoy this site!

    More about me →

    logo
    Food Advertisements by

    Explore

    • Recipe
    • Restaurant
    • US Travel
    • World Travel

    Popular Posts

    • Napa, California
      Thomas Keller's La Calenda: A Tribute {Now Closed}
    • Ad Hoc Thomas Keller Brunch Yountville California
      Thomas Keller Ad Hoc + Addendum + Bouchon Bakery
    • Mandalay San Francisco
      Mandalay San Francisco (Burmese Food)
    • Boulettes Larder Ferry Building San Francisco
      Boulette Larder (Ferry Building) San Francisco

    Recipes

    • Appetizer
    • Snacks
    • Meat
    • Vegetables
    • Soup
    • Salad
    • Seafood
    • Noodles

    Recently Traveled

    • Hong Kong
    • France
    • Belgium
    • Boston
    • California
    • United Kingdom
    • Germany
    • Spain

    Support Us

    Support Tiny Urban Kitchen by making purchases on Amazon through our affiliate link:

    Recognition


    Featured on the front page
    of the FOOD Section: 2015

    Best Food Blog Awards:
    Restaurant & Dining 2012

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • About Me
    • My Equipment
    • In the Press
    • Project Food Blog
    • Privacy Policy

    Eating Guides!

    Eating & Travel Guides
    Trip Reports
    "Kawaii" (Cute Foods)
    Around the World

    • Pinterest
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn
    • YouTube
    • Mail
    • RSS Feed

    As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

    Shop at Amazon

    Copyright © 2024 Tiny Urban Kitchen