Strawberry Rhubarb Mini Pies

Directions

1. Pie crust: whisk together flour and salt. Add in the cold cubes of butter and mix with your hands until cubes of butter are dispersed well With flour until tiny soft totally mixed with the dry ingredients. Add slowly some of the ice water and mix well with your hands, keep adding the butter and mixing well until it comes together into dough must have all the flour is mixed in until no more flour left but just a nice big mound of dough.  Take the round dough and form into a large disc and wrap in Saran Wrap and place into refrigerator for one hour to chill. Then pull out from refrigerator and roll out on a hand full of flour. Run some flour onto your rolling pin to keep dough from sticking.  Use a large biscuit cutter and cut out the mini pie dough rounds and place in the bottom of each cup in your greased standard size muffin pan. Make sure the dough has not air gaps, must be pressed in well and have a little of the pie dough to go up the sides to create a little pie cup to hold the fruit filling.

2. Crumble Topping: Whisk the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Cut the butter into a few large pieces and toss these in the dry ingredients. Using your fingers, a fork, or a pastry cutter, work the butter into the dry ingredients until large, heavy crumbs are formed.

3. Add a good tablespoon of the fruit filling to each dough cup. Top with the crumble topping and bake in a preheated oven at 375 for 30-35 minutes until crumble is golden brown.
   

4. Optional additional topping (is highly recommended) Lemon Crème Anglaise: Heat the milk in a medium saucepan and stir in about half the sugar. Bring to a simmer, then remove the pan from the heat. Combine the yolks in a small bowl with the remaining sugar and whisk until smooth. Add the flour and vanilla and mix until well incorporated (the mixture will be very thick at this stage). Thin with half the warm milk, mix well, then pour the mixture back into the saucepan. Stir constantly over medium heat with a small whisk or a wooden spoon; the mixture will thicken as it cooks. When the custard comes to a boil, stir for a continuous minute, then remove from heat, add the lemon zest, and transfer to a bowl. Cover and refrigerate up to three days. When ready to serve, re-whip the custard to loosen it (it will be very thick). Whip the cream to a soft peak and fold it into the custard, in two or three batches, until well combined.