Instructions

1. First make the filling.Take about 5 cherries aside. Put the rest in a saucepan, add its juice if using defrosted cherries, or half a cup of water. Add the cinnamon stick, sugar and vanilla. Bring to the boil, then reduce it to a thick sauce.
2. Meanwhile, peel & core the apple and cut it into tiny bits. Add these to the sauce and remove the cinnamon stick.
3. Preheat oven to 180°C.
4. Oil a shallow muffin tin or prepare about 9 silicon pie cases.
5. Unroll the pastry and, using two different sizes mugs or cookie cutters, cut out about 9 or 10 large circles then the same amount of smaller circles (they should fit in the tin holes). Line the tins or baskets with the bigger circles, pushing them into the holes with your finger. Bake them for 5 minutes.
6. Spoon the filling into the pies, then brush the edges of smaller pastry circles with the egg and secure them onto the filled pies.
7. Halve the cherries. Cut out small rounds then cut them in half to form half moons. These will be the "eyelids" - make sure they are re big enough to wrap around the cherry. Using a blunt knife, make a little line on these to create a double eyelid.
8. Wrap the cherries with the eyelid and secure them onto the top of the pies with the egg - one on each pie.
9. Brush the pies with the egg, then bake for 8-10 minutes until golden.
10. Let them cool in the tin, then carefully remove them. Draw a white line under the cherries, and a tiny dot on them, using icing or cream cheese.
11. Serve warm or at room temperature.