Mini Pumpkin Hand Pies (Vegan, Gluten Free)

• In a small bowl mix the ground chia seeds and water. Let it sit for 10-15 minutes to thicken.
• In the meantime, mix the almond flour, tapioca flour and sea salt. Stir until there are no clumps.
• Using a pastry cutter, cut the solid coconut oil into the flour. As the coconut oil softens you can use your hands to mix it with the flour. There should be small chunks of coconut oil mixed with the flour, no larger than a small pea. Add the maple syrup and the chia mixture. Gently knead the dough with your hands in the bowl until the mixture comes together. It should be slightly sticky. Remove about 2 tablespoons of the dough and set aside. This will be used for the matcha leaves. Form the remaining dough into a ball. Wrap it with plastic wrap and put it in the fridge to chill for 1 hour.
• Place the 2 tablespoons of reserved dough in a small bowl and add 1/4 teaspoon of matcha. Knead the dough with your hands to mix in the matcha. It should be a very dark green as it will lighten when it bakes. Add more matcha if needed. Wrap with plastic wrap and place into the fridge for 1 hour.
• While the dough is in the fridge, make the pumpkin filling. In a medium sized bowl mix the pumpkin puree, maple syrup, vanilla extract and pumpkin spice. Place into the fridge until the dough is ready to use.
• Once the dough has chilled preheat to oven to 350℉. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Roll the dough between 2 pieces of parchment paper to 1/8" thick. Use a pumpkin cookie cutter (3.25" x 3") to cut out 14 pumpkins. Use an offset spatula to transfer them onto the baking sheet. Gather the leftover dough and roll out again, cutting out another 14 pumpkins. Set aside.
• Spread about 1-2 tablespoons of the pumpkin mixture on to the 14 pumpkins on the baking sheet, leaving a border around the edges. Place the remaining 14 pieces of dough on top. Use a fork (a small dessert fork works best) to press the edges together and poke a few holes on the top.
• Next, roll out the matcha dough between two pieces of parchment paper. Use a sharp pairing knife to cut out small leaves. Shape the leaves with your fingers and lightly press them on top of the pumpkins. I like to place two leaves per pumpkin so 28 leaves are needed.
• Lightly brush the pumpkins with almond milk. Bake for 25 minutes. The edges will be lightly browned. Let them cool on the pan for 15 minutes and then transfer them to a cooling rack. They should be completely cooled before icing.

Icing

• In a small bowl add the icing sugar. If using a water based food coloring add it to a small bowl of almond milk. Slowly add the almond milk to the icing sugar, whisking until you reach a glaze consistency. If using a gel based food coloring it can be added to the icing afterwards. For a natural food coloring carrot juice or powder should work though I have not tried it.
• Once the pies are cooled spread the icing on top. Sprinkle with demerara sugar or cinnamon. Once iced they are best eaten the same day. If you want to store them place them into a sealed container in the fridge for 2-3 days. They can be reheated and then iced the day of serving. Enjoy!