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Japanese knotweed and strawberry handpie recipe
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Japanese knotweed strawberry hand pies

A delicious hand pie dessert recipe made with tangy Japanese knotweed and strawberries that's even better than strawberry rhubarb pie!
Course Dessert
Cuisine American
Keyword japanese knotweed dessert, japanese knotweed pie, japanese knotweed recipe, japanese knotweed strawberry recipe
Prep Time 1 hour
Cook Time 40 minutes
Servings 10
Author Susan von Frank

Equipment

  • food processor
  • Rolling Pin

Ingredients

For pie crust:

  • 338 grams organic whole wheat PASTRY flour (slightly more than 2.5 cups, measured with spoon and sweep method)  (Note: Standard whole what flour is not ground fine enough to make a good crust. If substituting, use conventional pastry flour.)
  • 1 tbsp maple sugar (or leave out for less sweet pastry)
  • 1/2 lb chilled unsalted organic grass-fed butter, cut into 1" cubes (2 standard sticks)
  • 1/2 cup ice cold water (you'll actually use a little less than 1/2 cup, as detailed in instructions)
  • 2 tbsp organic apple cider vinegar
  • 1 egg (NOT added to dough - you'll whisk the egg and use it as a "wash" on dough surface)
  • 1 tsp salt

For filling:

  • 3 cups Japanese knotweed, measured cut into small rounds
  • 3 cups fresh, organic strawberries, measured thin-sliced
  • 1 cup organic cane sugar
  • 3 tbsp organic corn starch
  • pinch of salt

Instructions

  • Start making your pie crust at least a couple hours before you plan to bake because you want the pie crust dough to be rested and chilled before rolling and filling it.
    Put ice in 1/2 cup water, then set aside to allow water to chill. Mix dry ingredients in bowl, then transfer them to a food processor. Cut cold butter into ~8 equal sized chunks or 1" cubes. Add butter to food processor and use pulse setting to work butter into flour mixture. Do NOT over-blend; you want butter chunks of varying sizes for ideal crust.
    Next, remove 2 tablespoons of the ice water, then add 2 tablespoons of vinegar back to the water. (Adding a bit of vinegar to pie dough makes it easier to work and creates a better finished crust.) Next you're going to slowly add your ice water/vinegar combination to the dough by slowly pouring it into the food processor, then pulsing after each addition. You don't want to over-process/over-mix the dough so don't keep the food processor running the whole time.
    This will create a fairly wet dough, but you're going to add/fold in more flour as you're rolling it out in the next steps!
  • Cover and chill dough in fridge for AT LEAST one hour.
  • Once dough is chilled, pre-heat oven to 400°F (204°C). Cover two cookie sheets with parchment paper. In small bowl, whisk 1 egg and set aside along with a kitchen baster for egg wash (before baking).
    Generously dust countertop with pastry flour and roll out dough to about about 1/8" thick (or slightly more, but not less or it's more likely to tear). You'll want to occasionally dust rolling pin, dough surface, and counter surface with more flour as you go.
    Use a form or bowl to cut out circular hand pies. Use a dough scraper to remove and transfer each circle of dough and transfer it to a covered baking sheet. You should end up with 8-10 hand pies if you cut 4-6" dough circles.
  • Next, cut your knotweed into 1/4" rounds and slice your strawberries into thin pieces. Put them in a mixing bowl along with sugar and corn starch and give them a good stir until all ingredients are combined.
  • Next, spoon knotweed-strawberry filling into the middle of each hand pie. A little less than 1/4 cup of filling seemed to be ideal us. Use baster to apply a rub of egg to half of the outer edge of the dough (like you're creating a smiley face) - this will help the dough better stick together when you fold it in half. Fold dough over filling, then smush together with fingers. Next, use a fork to push down on the outside edge of each hand pie, further helping the dough stick together and providing a decorative touch.
    *You should have plenty of filling left over! You'll make this into a sauce that you'll pour over vanilla ice cream when you serve your hand pies.
    Score (make small incision) each hand pie with a sharp knife, wiping the knife clean between each cut. (We made three small cuts as you can see in pictures.) This isn't just for decoration, it allows steam to escape and keeps your hand pies from exploding.
    Apply final egg wash to each hand pie, which gives it a beautiful, shiny finish.
  • Place pies in pre-heated 400°F oven for 10 minutes. (Set timer.)
    IMPORTANT: After 10 minutes, turn heat down to 350°F (177°C) and bake for another 30 minutes until hand pies are golden brown. Remove from oven and put baking sheet on cooling rack until ready to eat.
  • While hand pies are baking, put your remaining filling into a saucepan over medium heat. Cook for about 10 minutes, stirring regularly, then remove from heat and let cool.
  • Once cooled, knotweed-strawberry hand pies can be stored covered at room temperature for a few days. For longer storage, refrigerate or freeze.
  • We recommend serving a warm hand pie in a bowl with a scoop of vanilla ice cream covered with knotweed-strawberry sauce.