In the echelon of pies, hand pies rank at the very top for me. They’re the portable, shareable, adorable cousins of traditional fruit pies, plus they maximize the ratio of flaky pastry to juicy flavor-packed filling, packing more buttery pastry into each bite than a traditional pie. Hand pies are equally at home next to a cup of coffee for breakfast, tucked into a lunchbox as a snack, or served alongside a scoop of ice cream for dessert.
So when the first chill of fall is in the air, making juicy apple hand pies full of fragrant warm spices is one of my favorite ways to celebrate the season. Because there’s only a small pocket of filling inside a hand pie, it really needs to pack a punch. When I was creating this recipe, I wanted my filling to deliver deep apple flavor with lots of warm spices, and to be tender without being mushy or messy. I wanted the pastry encasing the filling to be buttery and crispy, not soggy or overly thick. I'm happy to say that after rounds and rounds of testing, I've landed on an apple hand pie recipe that delivers on all of those directives. Here’s how to make them.
Tips for Perfectly Baked Apple Hand Pies
Select a combination of apples. As Kenji discusses in his guide for picking the best apples for apple pie, the apples you pick greatly affect both the flavor and texture of the filling. To get a filling with tender but still intact chunks of apples and a bright fruity flavor, I settled on a mix of tart Granny Smiths and sweet Golden Delicious, both of which hold their shape nicely during baking—no mushy filling here!
Precook the filling. I knew that these small pies would bake much faster than a full-sized traditional apple pie. To ensure the apples are softened at the same time the pastry is golden and flaky, the filling needs to be cooked before you assemble the individual pies. Pre-cooking the apples on the stovetop allowed me to tenderize them, concentrate the flavors of the filling, and also drive off excess moisture from the fruit. When the pliable cooked apple pieces are spooned into each hand pie, they nestle nicely together into a cohesive filling, which ensures there are no air gaps inside the baked pies. And since excess moisture has been removed by pre-cooking, there’s also no need to cut any vents in the top crust to allow steam to escape.
Build the flavors. I start the apples in butter for nutty richness, cook them until caramelized, then deglaze the pan with apple cider to double down on the deep apple flavor. Brown sugar and warm spices, including cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and allspice, amp up the classic apple pie flavors, and a splash of lemon juice keeps things tasting bright. (In a pinch, you can substitute two teaspoons of apple pie spice for the blend of spices in this recipe. Note that various brands use different kinds and quantities of warm spices in their apple pie spice blends, so each will be a bit different.)
Thicken with cornstarch. The filling for hand pies should be juicy but not so wet that it makes the pies messy to assemble or to eat. A good dose of cornstarch absorbs the juices from the apples and the cider, making the filling shiny and smooth and firm enough to easily fill and shape the pies.
Take the time to make your own pie dough. I adore the ease of Stella Parks’s Buttery, Flaky Pie Crust (made by hand in a bowl!), and it proved to be a wonderful base for these hand pies. But you can substitute your favorite double-crust homemade pie dough recipe if you prefer. You may get a yield of one to two more or fewer pies, depending on the amount of dough your recipe makes. Store-bought refrigerated pie dough, such as Pillsbury, can work in a pinch, but is more prone to bursting and won’t be nearly as flaky or flavorful as homemade pie dough.
Go round. While you can shape hand pies in any number of ways—half-moons, rectangles, and squares are common—I prefer a circle. I found that pressing the two rounds of dough together kept the filling neatly enclosed (versus squishing or tumbling out if folding the dough over itself) and maximized the amount of buttery crust all the way around the edges.
Cutting the dough into four-inch rounds allowed me to squeeze in about a quarter cup of filling to each pie while still ensuring the pies were easy to close and shape without leaking. I like to use a fluted pastry wheel to trim the edges of the dough for a neat appearance (though a paring knife or 3 ½-inch circle cutter work, too).
Refrigerate before baking. Chilling the assembled pies in the fridge while the oven preheats ensures they bake up extra flaky. Cold butter creates pockets of steam in the hot oven, giving the pie dough flaky layers rather than a mushy or crumbly texture. The resting time in the fridge also allows the gluten in the dough to relax, helping the pies keep their intended shape rather than shrinking.
Finish with egg wash and sugar. A brush of egg wash and sprinkle of turbinado sugar gives the exteriors of the pies an attractive sheen and delicious crunch. Buttery, flaky, and perfectly apple-y inside, these impressive hand pies are a dessert you’ll want to make and share all autumn long.
In a medium bowl, whisk together apple cider, brown sugar, lemon juice, cornstarch, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, and salt until sugar is dissolved and mixture is smooth.
In a 12-inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add apples and cook, stirring occasionally with a rubber spatula, until softened and beginning to caramelize, 12 to 15 minutes.
Pour cider mixture over apples and stir until well coated. Cook, stirring and scraping bottom of pan, until bubbling and thickened, about 1 minute. Remove pan from heat. Transfer apple mixture to a shallow rimmed dish and let cool to room temperature, about 45 minutes.
Meanwhile, line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Remove pie dough from refrigerator; if needed, let stand at room temperature until slightly softened, 5 to 10 minutes.
Lightly flour work surface and use a rolling pin to roll one dough disk to a 12-inch circle, about 1/8-inch thick. Use a 4-inch circle cutter to cut 6 rounds from dough (see notes). Transfer rounds to parchment-lined baking sheet. Gather scraps together and reroll to 9-inch long, 5-inch wide oval and cut out 2 more rounds. Discard dough scraps or save for another use.
Repeat rolling and cutting with second disk of pie dough for 16 dough rounds total (rounds can overlap on sheet). Cover baking sheet with plastic wrap and refrigerate to chill until filling has fully cooled.
When ready to assemble hand pies, arrange 8 dough rounds on lightly floured work surface. Using a #20 portion scoop or 1/4 cup dry measuring cup, add scant 1/4-cup cooled filling to center of each dough round, mounding in center and leaving clear 1/2-inch border around edges.
Top pies with remaining dough rounds, and use your hands to gently bend and cup them around filling. (If dough is stiff and begins to crack, let stand for a few minutes to warm and soften before proceeding. If dough rounds become too soft, refrigerate until firm again.) Use your fingers to press top and bottom dough edges together to seal, then crimp with a floured fork. Use a small pastry wheel or sharp paring knife to trim and discard 1/4 inch of ragged edges of pastry from each pie.
Transfer assembled pies to parchment-lined baking sheet, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to 1 day.
30 minutes before you are ready to bake, adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). When oven reaches temperature, brush chilled hand pies with egg wash, then sprinkle with turbinado sugar.
Bake until hand pies are golden brown, 22 to 30 minutes. Transfer baking sheet to wire rack and let hand pies cool on sheet for at least 15 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Special Equipment
12-inch skillet, rimmed baking sheet, parchment paper, rolling pin, ruler, 4-inch circle cutter, pastry wheel, pastry brush, wire rack
Notes
Fresh, unfiltered apple cider (usually found in the refrigerated produce section at the grocery store) lends extra apple flavor to this recipe, but you can substitute 100% apple juice if you can’t find it.
A mix of tart Granny Smith and sweet Golden Delicious apples bring a balance of flavors and optimal texture for the pie filling, but you can use all Golden Delicious or swap in Gala or Braeburn as acceptable substitutes for the Golden Delicious.
If you don’t have a 4-inch circle cutter, use a paring knife to cut around an overturned 4-inch diameter small bowl or other round container to cut out the dough rounds.
A heaping #20 portion scoop or slightly under-filled ¼-cup dry measuring cup both work well for adding the filling to the pies, keeping it in a neat mound in the center before adding the top pastry.
Make-Ahead and Storage
The apple filling can be made through step 3 and refrigerated for up to 3 days in an airtight container before assembling the hand pies. Chiling it ahead of time makes the filling firmer and the pies easier to shape.
The assembled hand pies, made through step 9, can be frozen on the baking sheet until solid, at least 8 hours, then transferred to a zipper-lock bag or other airtight container and frozen for up to 3 months. You can bake them as directed straight from frozen, with no need to extend the baking time.
Leftover baked hand pies can be stored covered at room temperature for up to 3 days.
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