Once You Try These Easy, Golden Apple Hand Pies, Full-Size Pie Feels Overrated

Apple hand pies are easier to make than full-size apple pie, and there is no need to share! These adorable mini apple pies are made of flaky pie dough and a creamy spiced apple filling. They are super easy to make and totally irresistible.

Best apple hand pies recipe

Nothing beats homemade apple hand pies! They have the perfect texture. Crispy yet juicy without being soggy and the ideal crust-to-filling ratio that makes the pies perfectly balanced.

The buttery pie crust is loaded with sweet, fresh apples, making this hand pie irresistible!

What's more, they are so quick & easy to make. This is a really simple pie, much easier than making full-sized pies. Even if you are a beginner in the kitchen, you can comfortably try this recipe.

Ingredients

You only need apples and a few simple pantry staples, such as butter, flour and sugar, to make this recipe. For a printable recipe card with exact ingredient quantities, visit the original Apple Hand Pies recipe at Spatula Desserts.

When making pie dough, all of your ingredients must be cold

In a large bowl, mix the flour, sugar, and salt until fully combined. Cut the cold butter into small chunks, and measure out the water and vinegar separately. Place all the ingredients in the freezer for 5-10 minutes.

Now, add the very cold butter chunks to the bowl of flour and rub the mixture between your fingers until it reaches a sand-like consistency. It is okay if some of the chunks are still larger or more visible; this will help contribute to a flaky dough.

Now begin slowly adding the cold water and apple cider vinegar to the dough while stirring with a spatula or wooden spoon. A clump of dough will start to come together in the middle.

Once about 75% of the liquid has been used, remove this part of the dough from the bowl and continue adding water to the remaining dry dough. You might need slightly less or slightly more water depending on your ingredients.

Move the pie dough on a lightly floured surface (or silicone baking mat), and start working it with your hands quickly, just until it comes together. Do not use a mixer, and do not overwork it.

Form the dough into a disk, cover it with plastic food wrap, and place it into the fridge to rest for a minimum of 2 hours.

Use my easy lamination technique for the flakiest pie dough

For extra flakiness, you can add an optional step here. What you can do is laminate the pie dough pastry in a similar way to puff pastry.

After 2 hours, take the pie dough disk out of the fridge and let it rest for a few minutes on the kitchen counter so it can be rolled out, but is still cold.

Roll the dough out into a rectangle roughly 11x17 inches / 28x43 cm in size. Always work quickly so the dough won´t warm up.

Fold the left half over the right half. Then, fold this long rectangle into half by folding the bottom half over the top half. Lastly, fold the bottom half over the top half again. You will end up with a 5.5 x 4 inches / 14 x 11 cm rectangle. Cover the dough with plastic wrap again and let it rest in the refrigerator for an additional 2 hours.

In 10 minutes, you will have the most delicious homemade apple pie filling

Peel (optionally) and cut apples into small pieces. Squeeze lemon juice over them to prevent them from browning.

Cook the apple pieces with the brown sugar, cornstarch, and cinnamon in a saucepan over medium heat for about 5-10 minutes. The apples will cook slightly, and the hand pie filling will thicken due to the cornstarch, which will prevent it from leaking out when baking the pies.

Cool the filling to room temperature or chill it in the fridge before using it.

While assembling the apple hand pies, remember to keep the dough cold!

Roll the dough until it reaches a thickness of around 3mm, turning frequently to ensure an even thickness. Use a cookie cutter to cut out circles around 8-10 cm (3-4 inches) in size. The top part should be slightly larger in diameter, allowing you to pack a generous amount of apple filling in between. Save the pastry offcuts to use as 'stems' for your apple hand pies.

Refrigerate the cutout circles for 10-15 minutes, then place half of the circles (the smaller ones) on parchment paper or a Perforated "air" baking mat. Place a small piece of pastry at the top to make a stem. These will be the bottom of the hand pies on the lined baking sheet.

Using a sharp knife, cut slits into the remaining circles - these will be the top pies. The slits will help steam to escape as the hand pies bake and also look pretty.

Apply a light egg white wash around the bottom pie circle. This will help to "glue" the top and bottom together. Then, place about 1-2 tablespoons of filling in the center of each bottom crust,

Finally, place the top crust over the filling, gently press around with your fingers, then crimp the edges with a fork. Make sure that you do not overfill the pies.

Whisk together one egg with a splash of milk, and using a pastry brush, gently apply egg wash on top of the pastry. Sprinkle also with a small amount of granulated sugar, if desired.

Now it is time to bake

Place the filled apple hand pies into the freezer for 15 minutes while pre-heating your oven to 190 °C / 374°F. 

Bake the mini apple hand pies on the prepared baking sheet for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the bottoms are evenly baked.

Allow the hand pies to cool for 5 minutes on the baking tray, then transfer them to a wire cooling rack.

Serve the mini apple pies dusted with powdered sugar.

You can easily store and freeze any leftover

Leftover apple hand pies (if any) should be stored in an airtight container at room temperature or in the fridge for 2-3 days.

You can easily freeze mini apple pies as well! Wrap in plastic food wrap and defrost thoroughly before enjoying.

Customize your mini pies

Try flavoring the apple hand pie filling with different spices like ginger, cardamom, or vanilla bean. You could also make it with pears instead or a mixture of apples and pears. Blackberries also taste delicious when mixed in with apples, as do raspberries!

I love adding some chopped pecans to the filling, or drizzling the apple hand pies with pecan butter or homemade caramel sauce before serving. Of course, it goes without saying that serving these hand pies warm with vanilla ice cream and a dollop of chantilly cream is the ultimate luxury!

Expert tips to make apple hand pies

1. Use high-quality 82% fat content European style to make the pie dough. The butter needs to be chilled, so cut it into cubes and then place it into the freezer for 10-15 minutes before using it. Working with cold butter is absolutely key to reaching the right consistency of your pie dough.
2. Work as quickly as possible while assembling and kneading the dough without overworking it or making it too warm. Kneading literally should not take more than a minute or two. Do not use a food processor or mixer.
3. You should not need to add too much flour while rolling out the pie dough. It should not stick to the kitchen counter if it is cold enough. If the dough gets too warm at any point, pop it back into the freezer for a minute and continue.
4. Don't overcook the apple filling, as it can become mushy. Only cook it for 5-10 minutes until it thickens slightly.

You will hardly need any equipment to make this recipe

Weigh your ingredients by the gram using a digital scale for accuracy. Baking is a science and requires precision, so you will always get better results this way.

Roll out the easy pie dough with a rolling pin between two silicone baking mats so it won´t stick. Otherwise, roll the dough on a lightly floured work surface. Use a round cookie cutter or a knife to cut out the circles.

All ovens vary, and oven temperature is vital in baking. So I recommend using a digital oven thermometer to accurately measure your oven temperature.

Try some of my other apple dessert recipes

• Apple pie cupcakes
• Apple Dutch baby
• Apple crumble pie
• Apple crumble muffins
• Cinnamon apple cake

And for even apple desserts, check out my roundup of the 50+ Best Apple Desserts.