Cookbook Author Julia Turshen on Laid-Back Sundays and the Magic of Breakfast Hand Pies

Prep: 15 mins

Cook: 25 mins

Difficulty: Easy

Servings: 4 Servings

For food writer and cookbook author Julia Turshen, Sundays are about relaxing, recharging, and reconnecting. She and her wife, Grace Bonney, are both self-employed and worked from home pre-pandemic, so they’re well-versed in the all-the-days-run-together phenomenon. But on Sundays, they make a conscious effort to take a break and slow down, and that includes in the kitchen.

Ingredients

5 large eggs
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
4 scallions, ends trimmed, thinly sliced
1/2 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for your work surface
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
2/3 cup plain, full-fat Greek yogurt
To finish: 1 tablespoon everything bagel seasoning

Instructions

First, preheat your oven to 375ºF.
Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.
Next, make the filling:
Place the eggs and salt in a small bowl and whisk well to combine. Place 2 tablespoons of the egg mixture in a small bowl and reserve it (this is your egg wash that you’ll use later to brush the hand pies).
Place the butter in a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Once it melts, add the remaining beaten eggs and scallions and cook, stirring, until the eggs are just set, about 3 minutes. Transfer the eggs to a plate to stop them from cooking any longer and let them cool to room temperature. Reserve them.
Place the flours, baking soda, sugar, and salt in a medium bowl and whisk well to combine. Add the yogurt to the bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until the mixture is crumbly. Switch to your hands and knead the dough directly in the bowl until it’s smooth, about a minute of kneading. If the dough sticks too much to your hands, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it’s no longer sticky. Alternatively, if there are dry crumbs at the bottom of your bowl, add more yogurt, 1 tablespoon at a time, until they’re all absorbed.
Next, assemble and bake your hand pies:
Lightly flour your work surface and transfer the dough to it. Evenly divide the dough into 4 pieces and form each into a small ball. Dust each ball with flour and press each into a small disc. Lightly dust a rolling pin with flour and use it to roll each piece of dough into a circle measuring about 6 inches in diameter. If the dough sticks to the rolling pin or your work surface, just dust it with more flour.
Evenly divide the cooled egg mixture among the dough circles. Form each dough circle into a half moon, covering the egg mixture. Roll the edges of each hand pie to form a thick edge and then dip the tines of a fork in flour and use it to press the edges of each hand pie (the quick flour dip will keep the tines from sticking). Transfer the pies to the parchment-lined sheet pan.
Brush each pie with some of the reserved egg wash and sprinkle the everything bagel seasoning evenly on each pie. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 18 minutes. Serve hot.