What to do with extra pie crust dough…Lecken Daubs.

So.  You made some pies and you have some extra pie crust dough. Whatever you do…don’t throw it away!  If you don’t have the time or the energy to do something edible with it at the very least, put it outside for the birds to enjoy.  

My mother used to make “lick daubs” (from German lecken daub) when she had a small amount of leftover pie crust dough.  Lick daubs are like mini versions of German Strudel.   Our name for them, “lick daubs”, came from my father’s German speaking Grandparents.  In German, lecken means to lick and daub means to spread.  My mother would roll out the dough and spread  a thin sweet filling on it.   I  couldn’t stand to wait for them to come out of the oven.  Waiting for them to cool was torture.  We couldn’t help but lick every last sweet crumb from our fingers.  Those mini bite sized lick daubs filled with cinnamon sugar and butter or simply strawberry or peach jam, were splendid, mouth watering treats.  There were usually only a few, 6 maybe 8 sliced from the rolled dough and baked, they didn’t last long once out of the oven.  I still make them and usually eat them all myself !!!

Once in a while I have enough leftover dough to make a tart.  I fill it with a bit of extra fruit filling (if I have any left over from the pie(s) I’ve made) or I fill it with fruit jam.  

Roll out the extra dough to the same thickness as you would a pie crust. Then, gently spread any type of fruit jam you have on hand onto half of the rolled out dough.  Stay an inch or better away from the edge of the dough.  Once you have a thin layer of jam spread on the dough, fold over the other half of the dough onto the jam side.  Roll and crimp the edges as you would a pie crust.  

Or, spread the dough with a thin layer of soft butter and sprinkle with a generous amount of cinnamon sugar.  Or, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove sugar.  Anything goes.  You can’t mess this up.  

If I’m thinking along the lines of a breakfast type tart I will drizzle pure maple syrup over half the rolled dough and then sprinkle crushed walnuts and a bit of diced apple on top.

Use your imagination.  How about something with chocolate…almonds…dates…?  The possibilities are endless.  

Once in a while I haven’t got enough pie crust dough left for a tart.  Time for “Lechen Daubs”.

Prepare them much the same way as you would a tart with the exception of spreading jam, cinnamon sugar or what ever filling you choose, thinly over the rolled dough and then roll it up.  Crimp the ends and press the edge gently against the roll without flattening.  Using a sharp knife blade, cut the roll into 4 or 6 or 8 pieces.  Place them on a small pan or pie plate.

 

I bake these treats in the same 425 degree oven as I bake the pies or a tart.  Keep an eye on them though, they are small and will bake quickly.  Usually 15 minutes or so for lick daubs and maybe 25 minutes for a small tart.

 

With house guests arriving tomorrow for this weekend, I have spent today baking.  I can do a lot of prep work ahead of time.  My friend Nikki and I love to cook together (our husbands are our biggest fans).  I get as much prep done ahead of time as I can which gives us time to relax and visit too.    

 I’ve roasted butternut squash, sweet onion and apple that I will use tomorrow to make  butternut bisque.  I’ve made apple walnut cake and an apple pie.  There was just enough pie crust dough left for me to make a half dozen Lechen Daubs.  With apricot jam filling.

Two are missing already!!!  And there is no one home but me!!!  Funny how that happens…my treat.

 Enjoy this beautiful fall day.  

Many Blessings…