blueberry pie cookies

I saw these cookies on Building Buttercream the other day and I knew I had to make some! They are so adorable! I love that they look just like little pies. How can you go wrong with blueberry pie in a cookie? Such a genius idea!

photo credit: Building Buttercream

Blueberry Pie Cookies
Makes approximately 32 3-inch pie cookies.

Ingredients for Pie Crust
2 ½ cups flour (whole wheat pastry or all-purpose)
6 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 ½ sticks cold unsalted butter
~½ cup ice water

Ingredients for Filling
2 ½ cups blueberries
½ cup sugar (my blueberries were a little sour, lower this if yours are riper)
juice and zest from ½ lemon
1 tablespoon melted butter
1 tablespoon cornstarch

Method

1. Mix the flour, sugar, and salt together with a fork.
2. Cube the butter and "cut" it into the flour mixture with a pastry cutter until there are no butter bits that are bigger than a pea.  Make sure you don't go smaller than this, however, since you'll start to lose flakiness if the butter is too small.
3. Add the ice water, a tablespoon or two at a time and use a fork to wet the flour/butter mixture. 
4. Keep adding until the dough just starts to hold together.  You don't want the dough too wet, and you don't want to mix in the water too much.  I find it useful to just use my hands to mix at this point.
5. Divide the dough in two, cover each half with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for a couple hours at least (overnight is best).  This is especially important with the whole wheat pastry flour since it makes the dough a little easier to work with.
6. Toss the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice and zest, butter, and cornstarch in a medium bowl.  Set aside.
7. Preheat your oven to 350° F.
8. Line the bottom of a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
9. Remove one of the covered dough halves from the refrigerator.  Divide this in half and roll out on a floured board.
10. Using a 3-inch round cutter, cut eight circles out of the pie dough.  Place these on the parchment paper, evenly spaced.
11. Spoon a small amount (5-6 blueberries and a little sauce) into the center or each pie circle.
12. Cut eight more circles out of the pie dough (you may have to gather the scraps and re-roll it out).  Place each circle on top of the blueberry-topped bottom circles.  Press down the edges with something thin (the top of a paintbrush or pen would work).  Brush with egg yolk and sprinkle with sugar.  Cut some small slits in the top.
13. Bake for 10-14 minutes, or until the filling is bubbly.  Cool on a wire rack.  Repeat in three more batches with the rest of the pie crust and filling.

 photo credit: Building Buttercream