Happy January! When I was a kid, I remember as a treat we'd sometimes go to the neighborhood bakery for apple turnovers. They were little rectangles of pillowy puff pastry filled with apple pie filling and topped with coarse sugar. I loved them so much, so today we're making a simple take on those. They're made with crisp phyllo pastry {found in your grocer's freezer section}, apple sauce, and vanilla. I think they're some of the easiest {and prettiest!} apple turnover I've ever made.

You'll need:
18 sheets frozen phyllo pastry, thawed
1/2 a vanilla pod  
1/2 cup apple sauce {store-bought or homemade}
3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted {approximately}
1/3 cup granulated sugar {approximately}

Here's how:
1. Preheat the oven 375°F. 
2. Stir the scraped contents of the vanilla pod into the apple sauce {like for the pretty pear tarts}.
3. Cut phyllo sheets in half horizontally and cover with a damp towel. 
4. Lay 1 sheet on your work service and using a pastry brush, brush with butter then sprinkle with sugar and follow with 2 more sheets {cover the remaining with a damp cloth}.
5. Slice lengthwise into 3 strips. 
6. Place a heaping teaspoon of apple sauce at one end and fold into a triangle as you would a flag.
7. Arrange on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sugar.
8. Bake at 375 for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Makes 12 triangles.

*For an apple cinnamon version omit the vanilla bean and add a sprinkling of cinnamon between each sheet of phyllo.

And if I may, I think these are best served warm from the oven with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. But they make a great snack too! You can store them in an airtight container for up to two days.

—Nikole

{photos by Michael Graydon, styling by Nikole Herriott for Oh Joy}