Barefoot Bloggers-Apple Turnovers

I was really excited about this month's Barefoot Blogger's bonus recipe. These apple turnovers looked good but I have to say they exceeded my expectations. I love the combination of the apples, dried cherries, and oranges. It reminds me of the wonderful pairing of flavors in Ina's Apple and Pear Crisp. I can't even describe how ridiculously easy these were to make. I'm imagining serving them warm out of the oven for a dinner party with homemade vanilla bean ice cream. Thanks to Anne Strawberry for choosing such a wonderful recipe. The recipe makes more apple pie filling than will fit in the turnovers. I tossed mine into a small casserole dish and baked the filling alongside the turnovers. My toddler absolutely loved it! I've been a bit behind of my Barefoot Blogger recipes this month but am almost caught up. Check back tomorrow for Ina's Grown Up Macaroni and Cheese and Thursday for Wild Mushroom Soup. Quite a cooking marathon in one week!

Apple Turnovers
Source: Ina Garten/Foodnetwork.com

1 teaspoon grated orange zest
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice
1 1/4 pounds tart apples, such as Empire or Granny Smith (3 apples)
3 tablespoons dried cherries
3 tablespoons sugar, plus extra to sprinkle on top
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Pinch kosher salt
1 package (17.3 ounces, 2 sheets) frozen puff pastry, defrosted
1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Combine the orange zest and orange juice in a bowl. Peel, quarter, and core the apples and then cut them in 3/4-inch dice. Immediately toss the apples with the zest and juice to prevent them from turning brown. Add the cherries, sugar, flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt.

Flour a board and lightly roll each sheet of puff pastry to a 12 by 12-inch square. Cut each sheet into 4 smaller squares and keep chilled until ready to use.

Brush the edges of each square with the egg wash and neatly place about 1/3 cup of the apple mixture on half of the square. Fold the pastry diagonally over the apple mixture and seal by pressing the edges with a fork. Transfer to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper. Brush the top with egg wash, sprinkle with sugar, make 2 small slits, and bake for 20 minutes, until browned and puffed. Serve warm or at room temperature.