Sunny-Side Up Breakfast Pies

Just in time for Easter Sunday, I wanted to share with you a recipe I found in the Williams Somona Catalog. I was looking for a savory recipe for my Mini Pie Maker (which LOVE), I found "Sunny-Side Up Breakfast Egg Pies." This recipe is fun and easy to make, I also think that this recipe is ideal for children to make and will be a hit at bridal showers, brunches and tea parties!
What I love about Mini Pies, is that you can use store bought pie crust or homemade pie crust. I, myself have never used the store bought stuff, I have read online that that taste of frozen pie crust isn't worth the time you save. Pie crust is pretty easy to make, once you get use to it. If you are planning to make a mini pie recipe for a family meal or a party, think about preparing the pie crust the night before, so the baking time of the actual pie is cut into half the time.

Ingredients:

• 18 bacon slices, cooked until crispy
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 Tbs. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 8 Tbs. (1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/4-inch cubes
• 3 Tbs. ice water, plus more as needed
• 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
• 8 eggs
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 1 Tbs. finely chopped fresh chives 

Directions:

Place 2 bacon slices (cooked, crispy) in a food processor and pulse until coarsely chopped. I tore the bacon pieces in smaller bits, to chop faster. Add the flour, sugar and salt and pulse until combined, about 5 pulses. Add the cubed butter and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, about 10 pulses. Add the 3 Tbs. ice water and pulse 2 or 3 times.

The dough should hold together when squeezed with your fingers but should not be sticky. If it is crumbly, add more water 1 tsp. at a time, pulsing twice after each addition. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and shape into a disk. Wrap with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or up to overnight. Basically, this is a basic, traditional recipe for pie crust, with the exception of adding more butter (instead of shortening) and adding 2 cooked pieces of bacon). I waited 3 hours to take out my pie dough out of the refrigerator. When I was rolling my pie dough into a 'ball,' the dough seemed too crumpling, so I added more water to get the consistency I wanted. 

Preheat a pie maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 


Let the dough stand at room temperature for 5 minutes. On a floured surface, roll out the dough into a round 1/8 inch thick. Using the larger side of the circle cutter, cut out 8 rounds, rerolling the scraps as needed. Flour both sides of the dough rounds and prick the dough with a fork. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet.

Flour the pastry press. Open the pie maker and place 1 dough round in each well. Use the press to push the dough down into the wells to form the bottom crust. Close the lid on the pie maker, ensuring the latch clicks into place. Bake until the crust is golden brown, about 5 minutes. (My Mini Pie Maker was pretty accurate in cooking times, so watch the clock!) Open the pie maker. Sprinkle 1 Tbs. cheese over each crust and crack 1 egg into each one. Close the lid and cook until the eggs are set, 8 to 10 minutes. Using a nonstick heatproof spatula or a mini-pie lifter, carefully transfer the pies to a wire rack. (I just used a fork and spatula, some people say that a mini-pie lifter is a must, but I haven't needed to buy one yet).

Repeat the process with the remaining dough rounds, cheese and eggs. Season the pies with salt and pepper and garnish with the chives. Serve each pie with 2 bacon slices. Serves 8. (I didn't serve the breakfast pies with extra bacon. I figured bacon flavored crust should be more than enough for my taste buds, but if you love bacon, than go for it!)

(recipe from: Williams-Sonoma Kitchen)

All photos were taken on my iPhone. 

And the last 2 images were actually posted on my Instagram account.