This hand pies recipe is so good! Imagine the best blueberry pie filling nestled in bite-sized in buttery, flaky pie crust. You can also make any filling you like. I share a few of my favorites below. Apricot, apple, cherry, pumpkin, and even...Yep, 🍍 pineapple.
My Grammy always made homemade hand pies. I love how adorable these are.
If you're asking, what is a hand pie? Let me tell you.
A hand pie is essential pie dough that is cut into a circle and then stuffed with filling. The dough is folded over and then crimped shut. The filling can be savory or sweet.
After the hand pies are filled, they are either baked or fried.
This blueberry hand pies recipe is a combination of my Grammy's super flaky pie crust and her blueberry pie filling recipe.
I usually bake these hand pies in the oven. But you can for sure, make fried fruit hand pies.
What You’ll Love About This Recipe for Hand Pies
- Ultra-flaky pie crust.
- Sweet fruity filling.
- Portable pie.
Recipe Notes
You can use any flavor of pie filling to make these hand pies. Blueberry is one of my favorites. My Grammy loved apricot filling. Just imagine peaches, apples, or cherries, even pumpkin pie filling.
Ingredient Notes
- Pie crust. Use one of my two pie crust recipes, they are both completely fail proof. Flaky Buttermilk Pie Crust OR Simple All-Butter Pie Crust.
- Pie filling.
- Turbinado sugar.
Step-by-Step Instructions
PRO-TIP: I like to make my pie dough and pie filling the night before and let it chill in the fridge overnight. I find that the crust is easier to work with and bakes up flakier if you put it in the fridge overnight.
- Make the pie dough.
- Make the pie filling.
- Roll out the pie dough and cut it into circles.
- Fill with 1 to 2 tablespoons of pie filling.
- Bake or fry.
Recipe Variations
The instructions for these baked hand pies are pretty much the same no matter which type of filling you chose to use.
You'll want about 2 cups of pie filling for this recipe. Here are a few easy variations. Just swap in a different fruit and spices.
- Apricot filling. Apricots + ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon + 1 teaspoon coriander.
- Apple Pie Filling. Apples + cinnamon + cardamom.
- Pumpkin Pie Filling. Pumpkin + pumpkin pie spice + sugar.
- Cherry Pie Filling. Cherries + ½ teaspoon of almond extract.
- Pineapple Filling. Crushed pineapple. See my Pineapple Sweet Rolls for complete instructions.
Storing + Freezing Tips
How to store
At room temperature: Store hand pies in an air tight container for several days at room temperature.
In the fridge: You can store hand pies in the fridge in an airtight container for up to a week. Reheat according to the directions below.
How to freeze
You can freeze these adorable hand pies before or after baking.
To freeze before baking:
- Assemble the pies and then place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Place the uncooked hand pies in the freezer and freeze until they are frozen solid.
- Store in an airtight container in the freezer until you are ready to bake.
- When you are ready to bake, bring them to room temperature for about an hour and then bake according to the directions
To freeze after baking:
- Assemble and bake the pies according to the instructions.
- Let the pies come to room temperature and then place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Freeze until solid.
- Store in an airtight container until ready to reheat.
How to reheat
When you are ready to reheat bring the pies to room temperature and then reheat at 350℉ for 10 to 15 minutes. [I like to use my toaster oven for this.]
How to make the best blueberry pie filling
I don't want to brag but this blueberry pie filling recipe is a keeper. I am definitely going to make it again and put it into a full-sized double-crusted pie.
PRO TIP: You can make a blueberry pie with frozen berries if fresh blueberries aren't in season.
STEP 1: Start with 6 cups of Berries: Use fresh or frozen berries. Add them to a large skillet.
STEP 2: Add the sugar to the skillet and cook on medium. Continue to cook the berries until the sugar is dissolved and all of the berries have broken down. You can cook the berries for a longer or shorter time depending on how "jammy" you want your filling to be. The longer you let them cook, the thicker the filling will be.
STEP 3: Add the cornstarch slurry to the berries and bring the berry filling to boil. You can also use arrowroot powder for this step.
STEP 4: Remove the berries from the heat. Then add the lemon, the lemon zest, and the cinnamon.
Making a perfect hand pie dough.
The pie dough that I used is my Flaky All-Butter Pie Crust recipe.
Or my Buttermilk Pie Crust.
Both of foolproof pie crusts are made in the food processor, and both are super easy.
Tips for making ultra flaky homemade pie crust
- Use fresh, high-quality flour
- European butter
- Keep the butter really cold
- Do not overwork the dough
- Refrigerate the pie dough overnight before rolling it out
- Refrigerate the hand pies (or pie) before baking
I usually make the crust the night before, letting it rest in the fridge overnight. I find that this technique yields a flakier crust. Making sure the pie dough is cold before it goes into the oven is one thing that helps to ensure that your pie crust will be super flakey.
How to make mini blueberry hand pies
- Roll the pie crust to about an eighth of an inch thick.
- Use a circular cutter to cut each circle of pie crust. (3 inch round)
- Fill each little hand pie with about a teaspoon of filling. Use a handy scoop.
- Brush the edges with an egg wash and pastry brush to seal them closed.
- Use a fork to crimp down the edges.
- Once closed, each pie is brushed with an egg wash and then sprinkled with a little turbinado sugar before baking.
FAQs and Expert Tips
Yes absolutely! Frozen berries are a great way to have berry pie all year round.
Yes, if you do not like cinnamon. By all means, leave out the cinnamon.
Yes, cook the frozen blueberries down with sugar to make sure you get a thick bluberry filling.
Yes, I refrigerate my blueberry pie if I have leftovers. Refrigeration will stretch out the shelf life of your pie.
Blueberry pie filling is most often thickened with cornstarch. Arrowroot powder or tapioca starch are two other options.
Interestingly, when I looked this up I was a little shocked. Technically turnovers are made with folded dough. They can be made with pie dough, puff pastry, and even with a yeast dough, like pizza crust dough. i.e. the calzone.
So apparently this recipe is technically a blueberry turnover recipe.
Hand pies are usually round. Who knew?
FUN FACT: I used an heirloom family biscuit cutter. My dad made this biscuit cutter for my Grammy (his mom) in his metal shop class in high school. How cool is that? And now I got to use it to make these fantastic mini blueberry pies.
If you don't have one of these, you can pick up a set of round pastry cutters on Amazon.
Other Pie Recipes That You’ll Love
For more sweet treats, check out some of my most popular pies and sweet rolls.
Plus you can use any of these fillings in the hand pies above. I highly recommend the pineapple ones.
- Pineapple Filled Hawaiian Sweet Rolls
- Apple Pie recipe with Fresh Apples.
- Classic Pumpkin Tarts
- The Best Caramel Sauce Recipe
If that isn't enough, check out my readers top favorite dessert recipes.
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Mini Blueberry Hand Pies
Ingredients
Pie Crust
- All Butter Pie Crust Or Buttermilk Pie Crust
Blueberry Pie Filling
Final Touches
- 1 Egg whisked to seal edges and wash tops of pastries.
- Turbinado sugar for sprinkling
Instructions
Pie Crust
- Make a batch of pie crust according to instructions. Refrigerate overnight.
- Alternatively, this recipe can be made with a store-bought pie crust.
Blueberry Pie Filling
- Place the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice and zest into a large skillet.
- NOTE: Swap in 3 cups or apples, apricots, cherries, or peaches.
- Heat over medium-high heat until mixture comes to a boil.
- Continue to heat until sugar is dissolved and berries are broken down. Reduce the heat if necessary.
- Once the mixture begins to thicken add the cornstarch slurry. (Make the slurry by adding water to the corn starch and mixing until it is a thin paste and has no lumps.)
- Bring the mixture to a boil. Increase the heat if necessary.
- Boil until the fruit mixture begins to thicken.
- Remove from heat and let the fruit mixture cool.
- Place in an airtight container and refrigerate overnight.
Assembly
- Remove the pie dough from the refrigerator. Let is warm slightly for about 10 to 20 minutes before rolling out.
- Prepare several baking sheets by lining them with parchment paper or a silpat.
- Tear or cut the pie crust into two equal pieces. Roll one section into a ball and then out to a thickness of about ⅛ of an inch.
- Cut the dough into rounds using the round pastry cutter and place onto parchment paper.
- Add about a teaspoon of filling to each mini pie.
- Wash the edges with an egg wash using your finger or a small brush.
- Fold over the pie dough and crimp with a fork.
- Wash the entire surface of the pastry with egg wash and sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
- Place the hand pies into the fridge and preheat the oven. The colder the pie dough is when it goes into the oven, the flakier the pie crust will be after baking.
Baking
- Preheat the oven to 450℉
- Pierce the top of each hand pie with a sharp knife to vent it while baking.
- Bake for 12-15 minutes. Oven temperatures vary so watch your first batch closely
Laura's Tips + Notes
- Assemble the pies and then place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Place the uncooked hand pies in the freezer and freeze until they are frozen solid.
- Store in an airtight container in the freezer until you are ready to bake.
- When you are ready to bake, bring them to room temperature for about an hour and then bake according to the directions above.
- Assemble and bake the pies according to the instructions.
- Let the pies come to room temperature and then place them on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Freeze until solid.
- Store in an airtight container until ready to reheat.
- Bring the pies to room temperature and then reheat at 350℉ for 10 to 15 minutes. [I like to use my toaster oven for this.]
Nutrition
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My Fourth of July plans changed last minute which left me abandoning my pre planned triple berry trifle as I wouldn’t have access to refrigeration. I had oodles of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries and no idea what to make. I don’t remember what I started searching for but it landed me here. As I read through the post I could hear the heavens singing and knew that this was THE recipe. I tripped the recipe (made 3 batches) to accommodate the amount of fruit that I had. By the time I was done baking I was certain that I’d made wayyy to many even though I had enough filling for another batch of dough (it made awesome ice cream topping). There were two other deserts at the bbq that were barely touched due to this phenomenal recipe. I think that even if I had made more I still wouldn’t have had leftovers. I had to pinky promise to make these every time we get together lol. I’m planning on trying these with your lemon curd and pineapple fillings. I’m also thinking about a caramel apple, pumpkin pie and a chocolate version. Seriously, thank you. This got my creative juices flowing again and I haven’t felt this excited to bake in a long time.
Jennifer, I can't tell how happy I was to read your comment. Thank you so much for taking the time to share it. Nothing brings me more joy than knowing that someone else in the world is enjoying cooking a recipe as much as I do. Happy baking!
These are so delicious! Love all the variations you suggest! Thanks for sharing this!
Thank you, Seanna. I hope you'll let me know your favorite variety.
I would also like to know how to freeze. It's not on the recipe yet.
Thanks for the reminder! The recipe is now updated with the How to freeze and reheat instructions. Enjoy 💜
How do you freeze these? Before they are cooked or after they are cooked? And then how do you cook or reheat? Thanks!
I was wondering the same thing, but looking it up, it says that for fruit pies you should freeze before you cook. It said that freezing it before baking it can actually help prevent a soggy pie crust. Here is the link https://comfortablydomestic.com/2016/11/make-pies-freeze-bake-later/#:~:text=Fruit%20pies%20freeze%20beautifully.,of%20a%20soggy%20bottom%20crust!
Hope that helps!
Tara
Briana, Thanks for the question. I will add this to the recipe today! I hope you enjoy them!