If you’ve been reading my blog for a few years, you may be familiar with my annual July 4th tradition. 🙂 Every year on or around July 4th, I share a new apple pie recipe. This year marks year 6! Apple pie, an American classic, is my all-time favorite dessert. I shared my first recipe back in 2013 and every year since then:
- 2013: Salted Caramel Apple Pie
- 2014: Apple Pie Bars (with Salted Caramel on top)
- 2015: Apple Crumble Pie
- 2016: Apple Slab Pie with Maple Icing
- 2017: Traditional Apple Pie
- 2018: Apple Hand Pies
My recipe for homemade individual apple hand pies is really fun for summertime; hand pies are an easy grab and go dessert, so they’re great for summer picnics. Awesome portion control. No serving utensils or plates required. Can be served warm, room temperature, or cold and honestly taste great each way. Kids can help shape them and hand pies can be prepared days ahead or frozen.
And, best part of all, you literally have an apple pie just for yourself.
Today I’m sharing my apple hand pie recipe, step-by-step photos, and a video tutorial. I also include alternate filling suggestions just in case apple isn’t your thing. Lots to go over so let’s get started!
Homemade Pie Dough
First step is to make your pie dough. There’s a higher crust-to-filling ratio in hand pies, so we want a crust that tastes GOOD. I recommend using my homemade pie crust. This crust, prepared with a mix of butter and shortening, is sturdy enough to bake in different shapes and designs. Pie crust may intimidate you, so let’s go over my pie crust tips and tricks:
- Why a mix of butter and shortening? Not all fats are created equal. With its high melting point, shortening helps pie crust hold its shape and since it melts slowly, creates flaky layers and a tender texture. Butter imparts unparalleled, impeccable flavor. So I use both fats to create a strong, flaky, and buttery crust.
- Use cold fats and ice cold water. Keeping the pie dough as cold as possible is imperative, especially in the summertime. If room temperature or warm, the fats will melt as you mix and roll out the pie dough, rendering it impossible to work with. The baked crust will be tough and dense. In the summer months, I even suggest beginning with cold flour. Stick the bowl of flour + salt in the freezer for 30 minutes before adding the fats. This acts as extra insurance to help guarantee your pie dough will be (1) easy to work with and (2) taste good!
- Handle the dough with care. When rolling out pie dough, go slow. Always start from the center and work your way out in all directions, turning the dough with your hands as you go. If the edges are cracking, smooth them out with your fingers and hands. (You can see me do this in the video below.)
- Marbles and specks of butter in the pie dough are a good thing. All the more buttery pockets and flakes in the baked pie dough!
- All is not lost. If you notice the dough is cracking or too dry, dip your fingers in cold water and smooth out any cracks. If it’s cracking, it needs some moisture. If the dough seems really flimsy and sticky, lightly flour it. If it’s sticky, it’s too wet.
Here’s the full recipe for pie crust. More tips and troubleshooting assistance over that way. The recipe yields 2 crusts, and you’ll use both in this recipe to produce 10 hand pies.
Apple Pie Filling
Just apples, sugar, spices, and butter. What more could one want?* The hand pie bake time isn’t long enough to really soften the apples, so let’s get them started on the stove. The filling is buttery, pleasantly sweet, and filled with cinnamon spice. You can prepare it a couple days ahead of time (along with the pie dough!) so all you have to do is assemble and bake the hand pies for dessert.
*Salted caramel. One could also want salted caramel. That’s going on top!!
Whenever I make apple pie bars, apple pie, or even apple cake, I always use 2 different kinds of apples for more depth of flavor. (half sweet variety, half tart variety.) For a detailed list of my favorite apple varieties and when to use each, you can visit my post The Best Apples for Baking.
My only tip for the apple pie filling: cut the apples into small bite-size pieces. That way you can fit more into each hand pie.
Alternate Fillings
So many delicious options!
- Blueberry: Combine 2 cups of fresh blueberries (I don’t recommend frozen—too wet), 1.5 Tablespoons cornstarch, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, and a splash of lemon juice together in a saucepan. Cook the filling just like you would with the apple pie filling in the directions below.
- Strawberry: Follow blueberry instructions, but use 2 cups chopped fresh strawberries.
- Cherry: Simply follow the filling recipe + instructions for my cherry pastry pies (step 1 in that recipe).
- Jam: fill with a spoonful or 2 of your favorite jam or preserves.
- Brown sugar cinnamon: Just make my homemade brown sugar cinnamon pop tarts. They’re hand pies. 🙂
Alternate Shapes
You can shape the hand pies whatever shape you want. I use a 3.5-inch round cookie cutter. I don’t suggest anything smaller than 3 inches in diameter because you can’t fit enough filling in a pie that small. You can also shape into rectangles. See my homemade brown sugar cinnamon pop tarts as an example. I use a ruler and cut into 3×4-inch rectangles. Bake time will be more or less depending on size—just bake until crust is golden brown. Use the same oven temperature.
Watch me assemble the hand pies in this video:
Easy, right? After I cut the dough into circles, I pile it on a plate and refrigerate for about 15 minutes. Remember what I said above? The colder the pie dough is, the easier it is to work with. After the hand pies are assembled, crimp the pie crust edges, brush with a little egg wash to help the crusts brown, sprinkle with coarse sugar for added crunch and sparkle, then bake until golden brown.
Best served with salted caramel on top, but bowl + spoon + vanilla ice cream is perfectly acceptable! Maybe a dollop of whipped cream too? Eat your heart out!
See Your Apple Hand Pies!
Many readers tried this recipe as part of a baking challenge! Feel free to email or share your recipe photos with us on social media. 🙂
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Apple Hand Pies
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 45 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 3 hours, 15 minutes
- Yield: 10-12 3.5-inch hand pies
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Homemade apple hand pies with buttery flaky pie crust and a juicy cinnamon apple pie filling! Topped with salted caramel, these mini apple pies are both delicious and adorable.
Ingredients
- Homemade Pie Crust (makes 2 crusts, use both)
- 3 medium apples, peeled and diced into small bite-size pieces (about 2 and 1/2 cups, or 300g, diced)
- 1/3 cup (70g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
- egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon (15ml) milk
- optional: homemade salted caramel for topping
Instructions
Preliminary note: you can shape the hand pies whatever shape you want. I use a 3.5-inch round cookie cutter. I don’t suggest anything smaller than 3 inches in diameter because you can’t fit much filling in a pie that small. You can also shape into rectangles. See my homemade brown sugar cinnamon pop tarts as an example. For those I use a ruler and cut into 3×4-inch rectangles. Bake time will be more or less depending on hand pie size—just bake until crust is golden brown. Use the same oven temperature.
- The crust: Prepare my pie crust recipe through step 5. The dough must chill for 2 hours in the refrigerator. You can make pie dough ahead, see instructions below.
- The filling: Combine the diced apples, granulated sugar, butter, cinnamon, nutmeg, and allspice together in a medium saucepan or skillet over low-medium heat. While occasionally stirring, bring to a simmer. Allow to simmer for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool uncovered at room temperature for 30 minutes. You can make filling ahead, see instructions below.
- Roll out the pie dough: See my video above as a visual guide for the next few steps. On a lightly floured work surface, roll out one of the discs of chilled dough (keep the other one in the refrigerator). Turn the dough about a quarter turn after every few rolls. At any sign of sticking, sprinkle some flour underneath then keep rolling. Roll out until it’s about 12 inches in diameter and about 1/8–1/4-inch thick. Using your cookie cutter, cut into circles. Re-roll any scraps and cut into circles. Place cut circles in the refrigerator to keep cold. The colder the shaped dough, the easier it is to work with. Repeat with 2nd pie dough and refrigerate cut circles for at least 15 minutes before filling the hand pies.
- Meanwhile, preheat oven to 375°F (191°C). Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Fill the hand pies: Arrange half of the circles about 3 inches apart on prepared baking sheets. These are the bottom crusts. Using a sharp knife, cut slits into the remaining circles. These are the top crusts. The slits act as vents so that steam can escape as the hand pies bake. Place about 2 Tablespoons of filling in the center of each bottom crust. (Or however much fits while leaving the edges bare.) Place top crust on top. Press your fingers all around the edges to seal, then crimp the pie crust edges with a fork. If the hand pies lost some shape, use your hands to form a round circle again. It’s OK if some filling juice is leaking out. Lightly brush the top of the pie crust with egg wash mixture. Sprinkle with coarse sugar, if desired.
- At this point the hand pies can be baked, but if they don’t feel cool to touch anymore, freeze for 10 minutes before baking. The colder they are going into the oven, the better they’ll hold their shape.
- Bake for about 28–32 minutes or until they’re golden brown on top and around the edges. Rotate pans halfway through baking. Remove from the oven and allow the hand pies to cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool until ready to handle. You can serve warm or at room temperature. If desired, serve with a drizzle of warm salted caramel.
- Cover leftovers and store in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Notes
- Make Ahead / Freezing Instructions: A couple ways to make ahead of time! The pie crust dough can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before using. Filling can also be prepared ahead of time. Cover tightly and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. Prepared filling can be frozen up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator before using. Assembled and unbaked hand pies can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days or frozen for up to 3 months. If frozen, no need to thaw before baking; simply add an extra couple minutes of bake time. Baked hand pies can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature before serving.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Medium Saucepan or Skillet | Pastry Cutter | Rolling Pin | 3.5-inch Round Cutter | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Pastry Brush | Cooling Rack
- Half Recipe: If desired, you can halve the the filling recipe and only use 1 pie crust to yield about 5 hand pies.
- Apples: Use any apples you like best. I always use Granny Smith + a red variety for a tart/sweet combination. I love Pink Lady, Honeycrisp, Jazz, or Fuji.
This recipe was awesome. I usually make an oil-based pie crust, but decided to try the one listed in this recipe. The crust is amazing!
Also, the filling recipe was just the right amount and the right sweetness for the honey crisp apples that were given to me.
I’ll be returning to your web site!
I made 10 of these. Between your recipe for the most amazingly delicious crust and the most delicious apple filling, I have to give you all the props for never, and I mean NEVER having a bad recipe on your site. The only small thing I did was add a small amount of cornstarch to the pot of simmering apples. Thank you!!!
I made 10 of these. Between your recipe for the most amazingly delicious crust and the most delicious apple filling, I have to give you all the props for never, and I mean NEVER having a bad recipe on your site. The only small thing I did was add a small amount of cornstarch to the pot of simmering apples. Thank you!!!
Sally you are an angel. You have legit taught me how to bake. Your instructions and recipes are always clear, honest and delicious. I can cook this recipe with complete confidence from beginning to end. (including the homemade pie crust!) Thank you from the bottom of my heart. I will be prepared for the upcoming holiday season because of YOU!
I’ve been making pie dough for years and this was the worst recipe I’ve ever used. All butter is needed for hand pies!!!
If I wanted to make these peach instead of apple, how would I go about doing that?
Hi Andee, for a peach filling, we’d recommend following the directions for blueberry filling (under “Alternate Fillings”) but swapping for 2 cups of diced peaches. You may also enjoy adding a bit of ginger to the filling like we do for peach pie. Let us know how it goes!
I love this recipe. I have made these little three other times with 100% success. However, this time they came out so dry. I followed the recipe and can’t figure out what happened to the apples. The apple filling seemed very dry as I was assembling them. I figured they would create some juice as the cooked, but that didn’t happen
I really liked these individual little pies
I will get better at creating then
I did not use your recipe for dough because I use only butter..so Used another easier dough…very simple ..it said enough for 2 crusts..but it did nit ..it only made 6
Little pies .I will make more next time
Better to make more .I found this to be a lot of work
I really like the single pies
Thank you for sharing your recipes
Appreciate it and video instructions
Very helpful..God Bless You !!
Can I use a dutch topping for the pies?
Hi Debbie, a crumble-type Dutch topping isn’t best for hand pies like this. We’d recommend using it on a full pie, like this apple crumble pie.
I have made this recipe several times and everyone loves loves it. I can not make enough of them, ever! Takes a bit of time but so worth it!
What kind of egg wash do you use on the hand pies? I have seen some with the egg mixed with water and some wh milk?
Hi Penny, you can really use either, but this recipe calls for 1 T. milk beaten with the egg.
Hi, can I use store bought pie dough?
Hi Deb, yes, you can.
Hi Sally, My first bake was your apple pie w/lattice top… oh my. Not only was your butter crust awesome and easy to work with, but the flavor was exactly what an apple pie should be.
I got brave after that, I made both the apple hand pie using salted caramel on top and blueberry hand pies with lemon juice and zest both in the filling and the light glaze over the top. The family loved them and they were also a sellout at my grand kids bake sale!
Thank you, it has “been a pleasure doing business with YOU!” Can hardly wait for my next bake…
Happy 4th of July Sally!
What temperature for oven
Hi Peggy, see step 4: “Preheat oven to 375°F (191°C).”
I made a half batch as a test for a shower and they were delicious! Most of the liquid ran out before got them sealed… and were a little dry. I noticed the video yours didn’t. Any suggestions?
Hi Sharon! If the filling is more liquid-y, this can happen – try simmering for a little longer to help it thicken up before filling the hand pies.
Very good. did use the leftover apple and cinnamon juices to make a caramel with which I topped the pies.
I just made these and they are delicious! I am wondering how you made that caramel from the leftover juices though – I have a lot of yummy-looking leftover apple juices here! I’m struggling to find a recipe for something like that and I have only made caramel a couple times. Do you have any suggestions?
I’m going to make these for my daughter in law’s baby shower. They look delicious! ( I’ll cone and rate) There will be 20 in attendance any tips on how to make sure I get 12 out of each batch? Thanks!
Hi Sharon! Just make sure to roll the crusts thin enough and re-roll the scraps.
Thank you!
Could I use the mixed berry filling from your berry turnover recipe here?
Absolutely!
Would this pie dough work well for frying? Like if I wanted to adapt it into a fried pie?
Hi Liah, we haven’t tried frying the dough, so we’re unsure of the results. Let us know if you decide to give it a try!
Wow! Just made these for the first time for Christmas. Let’s just say I believe it’s going to become a new tradition. Excellent recipe to follow and they are magnificent. Delicious, tender crust and very flavorful filling.
Very Yummy!! I had a question on the crust. Is the crust supposed to be really soft? It was so soft it was hard to handle. Even after chilling and freezing. Tasted delicious, but just concerned I did something wrong with the crust.
Hi R, we’re glad you enjoyed these! Was the crust still soft after baking? It sounds like the fats may have been overworked a bit, especially if it was hard to handle before baking, too. For next time, be sure the dough looks like coarse meal—crumbly with lots of lumps—see our pie crust post for helpful visuals. Hope this helps for your next batch!
Hi, no it was not soft after baking. It baked like pie crust, it was delicious. I’ve made the all butter crust as well, and that was much more like dough. This crust was not sticky, just really soft.
These were absolutely AMAZING! I made them in advance and froze them raw (individually wrapped). I didn’t defrost them (as per your tip) and added the egg wash (which dries up fast btw) & a sprinkle of coarse sugar. I also added a few minutes to the bake time (as stated). So sooo good. I’m so happy I made a million of these little things!
My son is allergic to butter and milk . Can I use a plant based butter in my crust? ( already in apple mixture and it tastes yummy!)
Hi Cindy! We haven’t tested plant-based butter here, but let us know if you do.
My husband is also allergic to dairy. I used Country Crock plant based olive oil or avocado butter for this recipe and it turned out wonderfully. This is the best plant based butter I have found. It behaves very much the same as real butter. And Oatly oat milk works well too.