This was Dried Apple Phyllo Turnover.
J's mother kindly gave us a bag of dried apple. Cooking fried apples seems one of Southern traditions. J remembers his grandmother's "Jack Pie." According to him, Jack Pie was something like half-moon-shaped pancake filled with apple. It could be made with store-bought biscuit dough. I never heard Jack Pie, so I googled it briefly. Unfortunately I didn't find an exact answer of what Jack Pie was, but in South, apparently fried apple pie called Apple Jack exists. Some look like just what J said, pancakes with apple filling; some with more like pie crust. Apple filling is made with dried apple. While apple seems to be the original, I saw a peach version too: Peach Jack.
Then, what could I do with the dried apple? I wasn't sure if I would like to go with substantial dough or deep-fry (apparently traditionally in lard) for a little dessert with tea or coffee after dinner. I knew my creation would be a way far from J's childhood memory, but my choice was Phyllo. Oven-baked light dough would allow us to focus on the filling and enjoy it more, I hoped!
In terms of the filling, I hadn't deal with dried apple before. Majority of the recipes called for cooking with water (or apple juice) and sugar. I simmered dried apple just in couple of cups of water and tasted soften apple. Sweet! Glad I didn't add any sugar or sweetener. The cooked apple, which became almost like jam, was very tasty. I added a little bit of cinnamon. And lemon juice and zest from 1 lemon to bright apple taste and ease the sweetness. The result - crispy, buttery Phyllo triangles filled with simple dried apple jam - was simply delightful. Now I am a big fan of dried apple!
