Air Fryer Hand Pies
Posted: 05/17/2021
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Air fryer hand pies are such a fun portable dessert or snack and they couldn’t be easier to make! Choose your favorite fruit filling.
Imagine crisp, flaky pastry surrounding a warm fruit filling in an easy hand-held dessert. Or maybe we should call it a snack since it’s really very casual. Yet you could serve these pies on a dessert plate with a scoop of ice cream for a pretty fabulous dessert.
You have to love air fryer desserts. There’s no need to turn the oven on. Your air fryer turns out beautifully golden baked goods in just minutes without heating up your kitchen. Anyone can make beautiful and delicious hand pies!
About these pies
These hand pies remind me of camping. Have you ever made fry pies in a hot fire, using buttered bread slices and pie filling? Squishing them together between the two halves of the cast iron fry pie maker, grabbing the long handles, and sticking them into the coals — it is a total guessing game when they’ll be done. And so hot! I always burn my mouth. But it’s fun and crazy.
You’ll be glad to know that these pies are nearly as easy to make, taste way better, and you don’t have to get a campfire going.
The complete printable recipe is at the end of the post but here’s a quick run through of what you need and how to make them.
What you need
- Pie Crust: Any brand will work. Refrigerated pie crusts are the easiest but if you prefer to make your own, homemade pie crusts are just wonderful, too.
- Fruit Pie Filling: Choose your favorite fruit filling: cherry, apple, raspberry, peach, apricot, whatever you like. Again, homemade pie filling is great, too, as long as it’s thickened and sweetened. If you use something with larger pieces of fruit (apple or peach, for example), you might want to roughly chop it before filling the hand pies.
- Egg Wash: The pies are brushed with a simple egg and water mixture and topped with coarse sugar.
How to make it
Hand pies are so simple and fun to make especially if you use refrigerated pie crust and a can or jar of pie filling. Kids can have lots of fun putting these together and the end result is so satisfying.
Begin by rolling out the crust to make a large circle. Use round cookie cutters, biscuit cutters, or a drinking glass to cut circles of dough, three and a half to four inches in diameter.
Put a dollop of filling in the center of half of the rounds.
Lightly moisten the edges of the pastry round and lay another round on top. Crimp the edges together with a fork.
Brush the tops with egg wash and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Air fry the pies until they are crisp and lightly browned.
Let them cool slightly before taking a bite — the filling gets very hot!
FAQ
What is a hand pie?
A hand pie is a filled pastry, a mini pie, that can be held in your fingers. You may know them as turnovers, pasties (with a savory filling), Hostess fruit pies, or the deep fried fruit pies that fast food restaurants offer.
Should you refrigerate hand pies?
Hand pies can be stored at room temperature in a covered container for a day or two but if you want to keep them longer, refrigerate or freeze them.
How to make these fry pies your own
- There are so many varieties of pie filling available or you can make your own filling. The possibilities are nearly endless. Jam or preserves can be used, too, but will make a sweeter pie.
- Cut the pastry into different shapes. Keep it simple though or they’ll be difficult to seal. An easy variation is to cut 5-inch circles, put the filling on one side, and fold the pastry over to make half circles or crescents.
- Add spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, or ginger to the filling. Apple pie spice mix is really good added to almost any fruit filling.
- Add orange, lemon, or lime zest to the filling. Lime goes great with cherry filling, lemon with apricot, or orange with raisin or fig.
- Make a glaze for the pies. A simple glaze of confectioner’s sugar and water is fine, or add flavoring to the glaze by adding fruit juice, vanilla, rum, or bourbon.
- Bake the pies. Preheat the oven to 350°F, put pies on baking sheet, and bake for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack.
Make Ahead Ideas
Cut the pastry rounds, form the hand pies, and refrigerate them until ready to bake. Just before baking, brush the tops with egg wash and sprinkle with sugar. Bake as directed.
Storage & Reheating Suggestions
Once the pies have completely cooled, cover them in plastic wrap or foil. They’ll keep on the counter for a couple of days or in the fridge for up to four days.
Freeze cooked hand pies for up to a month. Individually wrapped, they make great lunchbox treats. Grab one out of the freezer, put it in your lunchbox, and enjoy it for lunch.
For best results, heat leftover hand pies in your air fryer for a couple of minutes to re-warm and crisp them up again. Alternatively, reheat them in your toaster oven for five minutes at 350°F.
Leftover Love
This is a great idea for leftover pies. Make hand pie sundaes! Crumble a pie into a two bowls and add a couple scoops of vanilla ice cream. If you like, drizzle your sundae with hot fudge, caramel sauce, or fresh berries. Yum!
More air fryer recipes
Whether it’s desserts, snacks, veggies or meat, your air fryer is a friend in the kitchen. Try:
- Air Fryer Apple Fritters with Apple Cider Glaze
- Air Fryer French Toast Sticks
- Air Fryer Coconut Shrimp
- Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries
- Air Fryer Chickpeas – perfectly crispy!
- Air Fryer Falafel – so crispy!
- Air Fryer Peanut Butter Cookies from Air Fryer Eats
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @rachelcooksblog on Facebook, Instagram, or Pinterest!
servings
Air fryer hand pies are such a fun portable dessert or snack and they couldn't be easier to make! Choose your favorite fruit filling.
Ingredients
- 1 (14 oz.) package refrigerated pie crust (see note)
- 1 (21 oz.) can pie filling, any kind (see note)
- 1 large egg
- 1 teaspoon water
- Coarse sugar (granulated sugar is fine, too)
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 350°F for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, roll out pie crusts to 13-14 inch circles. Use a 3½ to 4-inch round biscuit cutter to cut 6 to 7 rounds out of each one (see note). Re-roll scraps to to make 1-2 more rounds.
- Top half of the rounds with a tablespoon of pie filling, if using a pie filling with big pieces such as apple or peach, you’ll want to chop it up a bit first.
- Lightly moisten the edges of the filled pie crusts with water (use your fingertip dipped in water). Place the remaining pie rounds on top of the filled ones and use a fork to press the edges together to seal.
- In a small bowl, beat together the egg and water to make an egg wash. Using a pastry brush, lightly brush the tops of the pies with egg wash; sprinkle with coarse sugar.
- Cook pies for 6 to 7 minutes until the tops are a golden brown.
Notes
- A 3½ -inch cutter will yield 7 pies, a 4-inch cutter will yield 6. For half-moon pies (crescents), use a 5-inch round cutter, add the filling to one side and fold it over and seal.
- Use your own homemade pie crust recipe, enough for 2 crusts. Or make homemade pie filling. You'll need about 2 cups.
- Make a glaze for the pies. A simple glaze of confectioner's sugar and water is fine, or add flavoring to the glaze by adding fruit juice, vanilla, rum, or bourbon.
- If you using a pie filling with larger fruit, roughly chop it into smaller pieces.
- Bake the pies. Preheat the oven to 350°F, put pies on baking sheet, and bake for 13-15 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on wire rack.
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1pie, Calories: 278kcal, Carbohydrates: 35g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 8g, Cholesterol: 27mg, Sodium: 243mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 12g
This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is gathered primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or otherwise other online calculators.
Vivian says
Would this not also be good used as breakfast items or for snack-time/break- time? Scrambled eggs w/bacon/sausage/ or taco-seasoned ground beef? Peanut butter/jelly? Also, would these work with rolled out large refrigerated biscuits? Thanks for a versatile idea!
Rachel Gurk says
Absolutely! Those would all be delicious options!
denise says
sounds like a fun treat.
Rachel Gurk says
They really are!