A Chocolate Banana Hand Pie is covered in cinnamon sugar. The hand pie is broken in two to show the chocolate banana filling. The hand pie is on a white plate covered in cinnamon sugar.

Chocolate Banana Hand Pies

I love it when an experiment exceeds expectation. I made these Chocolate Banana Hand Pies just to see what would happen. I mean, a hand pie from scratch made entirely in the microwave?

A few years ago, I'd chuckle at the absurdity. Now I'm enjoying a tender crust hand pie with a chocolate banana filling. It pays to keep an open mind.

The crust is a biscuit dough. Haven't tried it with a proper pie dough; that's an experiment for another day.

I don't recommend making the filling and dough on the same day. I didn't. And I won't. Let the flavors of the banana jam meld and deepen. Cold jam yields the best results in the microwave.

The exciting part? I can freeze the unbaked pies. Then I can microwave them frozen at my leisure. So exciting.

Chocolate Banana Hand Pies

Text and Photo by Jac Kyles Baker

Makes 4 hand pies

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

3 TB granulated sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

2 TB vegetable oil

2 TB unsalted butter, softened

3 TB sour cream

1 cup chocolate banana jam (recipe below)

Preparation

Whisk together the flour and baking powder in a large mixing bowl. Make a well in the center.

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the oil, butter, salt, sugar and sour cream till well blended.

Pour into the well, and stir until a soft dough forms.

Divide dough in half and press into disks on two sheets of parchment or plastic wrap. Refrigerate dough for at least 30 minutes.

Roll dough into a 1/4 inch disk. Cut out four 6 inch circles and spread 1/4 cup of jam on half of each circle. Fold over the other half of the dough to form a semi circle. Fold seam over. Press seam closed with a fork.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.*

Place two tarts on microwave safe plate or parchment. Microwave on HIGH for 1 to 2 minutes (times vary by microwave).

Carefully remove from microwave. Dough should be dry and puffed. Cool on rack.

Coat pies with cinnamon sugar or powdered sugar if desired. Repeat with remaining two tarts.

Cook's Notes

*Pies can be frozen, perhaps up to a month. I know they can be frozen for two weeks without any ill effects.

Don't thaw frozen pies. Just increase the cook time by a minute or so.

Banana Jam

Makes 1 1/2 cup of jam

4 ripe bananas (not overripe or with black peels), diced

1/2 cup granulated sugar

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

juice of 1 small lime

Toss lime juice with diced bananas. Place mixture in a large microwave safe bowl (ceramic or pyrex glass). Microwave on HIGH for 1 minute.

Carefully remove bowl and drain bananas of water. Repeat microwaving bananas on HIGH until little water remains. About a cup of banana water will be extracted.

Add sugar to bananas and microwave in two 1 minute intervals until thickened, stirring after each minute.

Cool mixture to room temperature and refrigerate.

Chocolate Banana Jam

Warm 1 cup of refrigerated banana jam in the microwave for 1 minute.

Add 2 TB semi sweet chocolate chips to banana jam. Stir until chocolate chips melts and combines completely with the jam.

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