Holiday Baking with Land O’ Lakes Butter {Caramel Apple Pie Pops Recipe}

Over the weekend I had my sister, best friend and their families over for a little holiday crafting date. Basically this translates to: my best friend brings some yummy food, I bake, my sister does all the crafting, the kids get to play and the husbands watch football. It was a great excuse to get everyone together even if that meant we barely got any real crafting done. We can partially blame that on the food coma and maybe a glass of wine (or two!)

The day before I stopped by Walmart to pick-up some last minute craft and baking supplies. The one thing about my refridgerator is that it is usually fully stocked with butter, I mean who doesn’t love butter? But, with all the holiday baking I have been doing lately I was all out of the good stuff. When I bake I make sure to use quality butter and always choose Land O’ Lakes.

Since going gluten-free over two months ago I have been brainstorming my baking list to see where I can make some changes with treats I enjoy. One of my favorite desserts during the holidays is my dutch apple pie. I tweaked the recipe slightly by taking away the crumb topping, added in mini caramel bits, switched the all-purpose flour to gluten-free flour and made them pops! They are so stinkin’ cute and taste that much sweeter. I would love to say that making them mini would stop me from eating more but I cannot. The crust is my favorite part! Land O’ Lakes butter makes the crust so flaky, delicate and perfectly crisp that you don’t even realize that it’s gluten-free.

• 2 cups gluten free flour
• 2 tablespoons sugar
• 2 teaspoons guar or xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 stick Land O’ Lakes butter cut into pieces
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten
• 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract 
• lollipop sticks (optional)
•  
• Instructions:
• In a food processor mix: gluten-free flour, sugar, guar or xanthan, baking powder, and salt. Cut in chilled butter.
• In a separate bowl, combine: eggs and apple cider vinegar. Add to flour mixture and stir to blend. You may need to add a tablespoon or two of water to dough.
• Gather dough into a ball, wrap, and refrigerate until slightly chilled.
• The easiest way to roll out the dough is between layers of plastic wrap or parchment paper. Roll dough fairly thin, but thick enough so it does not tear. Using a biscuit cutter, cut an even amount of circles. Place the cut circles onto a parchment lined baking sheet. Place a lollipop stick half way onto the dough. I found red stripe sticks but plain sticks will work too.

 

 

 

 

• 2-3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored & diced 
• 2 TB brown sugar
• 2 TB granulated sugar
• 2 TB cinnamon
• Caramel Bits (2-4 bits per pie)
• half & half
• sanding sugar
• In a mixing bowl, combine: apples, sugars and cinnamon. Place a heaping teaspoon onto each dough circle. You will want to make sure the mound isn’t too high as the top layer of dough will tear.
• Add 2-4 caramel bits on top of the apple layer. Place second piece of dough on top. Slightly push the two pieces of dough together. Take a fork around the edges to crimp the dough together. You can add a decorative piece of dough onto the pies like I did if you wish. I’ve made some with acorns for Thanksgiving and some with stars for Christmas, the options are endless.
• Brush a little half & half onto the crust and sprinkle sanding sugar. Bake at 350º for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. I tend to like my crust a little darker so mine were baked for roughly 33 minutes. Let cool & enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Caramel Apple Pie pops will bring a smile to anyone’s face this holiday season! For additional holiday ideas using Land O’ Lakes butter make sure to visit their holiday recipe collection.