{ mini pies for the soul }

The other night I was in charge of hosting book club.  And like any decent hostess, I wanted to serve a little treat for the ladies.  I also wanted to use up the pie filling I had leftover from making these puppies {which are heavenly on the lips, but not so much on the hips. So a little advice: if you make them, make sure you are wearing your stretchy pants--or jeggings--when you eat them}.  I racked my brain, and decided that bite-sized pies where in order. So I fed Mr. L {so as not to be disturbed during the creation process} grabbed my pie crust recipe, scalloped cookie cutter, mini muffin tin and kicked everyone out of the kitchen while I concocted.  I was so pleased with the result that I thought I would share {really quickly}, this awesomeness with you.  Makes approx. 24 mini pies.

PIE CRUST:

· 1 1/2 cups of flour

· 1 Tablespoon of sugar

· 1/4 teaspoon of salt

· 1/4 cup of oil

· 3 Tablespoons of milk

· 1/2 teaspoon of almond extract

Place in 400° oven for 15-20 minutes or until the edges are golden brown.  When cool, sprinkle with powdered sugar.  {Whipping cream, or even cream cheese frosting on top would be delicious as well. And naturally I think of these things the day AFTER. *face palm*} 

They turned out super cute.  And if I didn't need to use up the pie filling in the fridge, I would have made a homemade filling instead of from the can.  But a little bundle of cuteness keeps me from doing all the things I envision me doing in a day.  But I wouldn't trade him for the world, so naturally, I cut corners. ;)

Other Ideas For Filling:

· cheese cake

· lemon meringue 

· pumpkin

Sugar cookie dough, instead of pie crust would be amazing, too! {Oh, the wheels are turning now, dang-it!} 

Let me know if you have ever made mini pies, or if you try these ones and switch things up a bit, how they turned out.  I'm always looking for new ideas to spice up my cooking life. ;)  -xoxo