Easy Hand Pie Crust Recipe (tutorial and video)

This is seriously the best hand pie crust recipe you’ll ever try, and my super-easy shaping trick makes these hand pies come together so easily!

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My favorite pie crust recipe

To make hand pies, I use the same flaky crust recipe that I use for homemade pie crust.  I love this recipe because you can make it quickly in the food processor. This recipe makes enough dough for 10 (2 ½ in)  hand pies. 

Here are the simple ingredients you need to make this hand pie crust recipe:

• All-purpose flour
• sugar
• salt
• unsalted butter
• white vinegar
• Ice water

💡Pro Tip: Start your dough about 1 hour early so it has time to rest in the fridge before assembling the pies.

Step-by-step tutorial for making the best hand pie crust

The trick to making a flakey pie crust is to hold back some of the flour before adding in the butter and shortening mix. It's a technique I learned from America's Test Kitchen and a total game changer for achieving next-level flakiness!

Here's how to make it:

1. Measure the dry ingredients into a mixing bowl. Stir to combine and scoop out 1 cup of the mixture.
2. Use a food processor to pulse the butter and shortening into the rest of the flour.
3. Don't over-mix! The fat pieces should be pea-sized and coated in flour.
4. Pour the mixture into a mixing bowl, and add the cup of flour that you help back.
5. Lightly sprinkle the liquids over the top of the fat and flour mix. Gently fold to combine.
6. Cover in plastic and chill for 30 minutes before rolling out.

This is the easiest way to make hand pies

I used to shy away from making hand pies because I thought they were too much work. Shaping every single hand pie took forever and the heat of my hands melted the delicate butter crust recipe. 

Then I discovered a much easier way to make and shape homemade hand pies using these Uncrustable Sandwich Cutters.

Here's a step-by-step guide on how to make homemade hand pies

1. Roll the dough out to ¼ inch thickness. You can use these rolling strips to help maintain an even thickness.
2. Next, use a 2 ½ inch circle cutter to cut out circles from the rolled-out dough.
3. Take a pastry brush and apply a small amount of egg wash to one of the dough circles. This will act as a "glue" to seal the hand pie.
4. Place about 1 tablespoon of your chosen filling in the center of the egg-washed dough circle.
5. Now, take another dough circle and place it on top of the one with the filling.
6. To seal the hand pie, use a sandwich crimper cutter to crimp the edges of the two dough circles together.

Once you try making hand pies this way, you'll be amazed at how perfectly they turn out, every time!

My favorite recipe for easy apple pie filling

Ready to make some hand pies? This recipe is so delicious and easy to make. I just love how good it smells when it's cooking. While the pie crust is chilling, you can whip up a batch of this apple pie filling.  

Here’s what you’ll need:

• 2 Granny Smith apples
• ​Granulated sugar
• ​Unsalted butter
• Apple pie spice (but you can substitute cinnamon if needed) 
• Corn starch. 

I like to dice the apples a bit smaller than you normally would when making a pie filling. This helps them fit into the little hand pies better. Be sure to allow the filling to cool completely before assembling the hand pies.

Flaky Hand Pie Crust Recipe

This is seriously the best hand pie crust recipe you’ll ever try.

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Prep Time: 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes minutes

Video

Equipment

• Food Processor - with blade attachment

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Ingredients

Flaky Hand Pie Crust

• ▢ 2 ½ cups All Purpose flour
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Granulated sugar
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Salt
• ▢ 12 tablespoon Unsalted butter 1 ½ sticks
• ▢ ½ cup Vegetable shortening
• ▢ 3 tablespoon Water very cold
• ▢ 1 tablespoon White vinegar

Hand Pie Assembly

• ▢ 1 ea Egg yolk for making egg wash
• ▢ 1 tsp. Water
• ▢ 1 Tbsp. Sugar for sprinkling on top

Instructions

Flaky Hand Pie Crust

• Measure the flour, salt, and sugar into a medium mixing bowl. Stir to combine and scoop out 1 cup of the mixture. Set that aside.
• In the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, place the remaining dry mixture.
• Add the chilled butter and shortening and pulse for about 8-10 quick pulses until the mixture resembles cottage cheese. Fat pieces should be well coated in flour and approx pea-sized.
• Pour the mixture into a medium mixing bowl, and add the cup of flour that you help back. Toss to combine.
• Lightly sprinkle the water and vinegar mixture over the top of the fat and flour mix. Using a rubber spatula, gently fold in liquids.
• Need very briefly until the mixture comes together. Cover in plastic and chill for 30 minutes before rolling out.

Making the Egg Wash

• Separate the egg and discard the white part. Blend the egg yolk with 1 teaspoon water.

Assembling the Hand Pies

• Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out until it’s about ¼ inch thick. You can use rolling strips to help maintain an even thickness.
• Next, use a 2 ½ inch circle cutter to cut out circles from the rolled-out dough.
• Take a pastry brush and apply a small amount of egg wash to one of the dough circles. This will act as a “glue” to seal the hand pie.
• Place about 1 tablespoon of your chosen filling in the center of the egg-washed dough circle.
• Now, take another dough circle and place it on top of the one with the filling.
• To seal the hand pie, use a sandwich crimper cutter to crimp the edges of the two dough circles together.
• Brush the top of the pies with egg wash and sprinkle with ⅛ tsp. sugar.
• Allow the hand pies to chill for 10 minutes before cutting the tops with an X.
• Bake at 350 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on top.

Notes

Makes 10 (2 ½ in) hand pies. 

Easy Homemade Apple Hand Pie Filling

This recipe is so delicious and easy to make and you’ll love how good it smells when it's cooking! Makes enough to fill 10 (2 ½ in. hand pies)

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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

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Ingredients

• ▢ 2 medium Granny Smith apples
• ▢ ¼ cup Granulated sugar
• ▢ ½ teaspoon Apple pie spice
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Lemon juice
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Butter
• ▢ 1 tablespoon Cornstarch
• ▢ 2 Tbsp Water

Instructions

• Peel, core, and dice the apples into small pieces
• Place a saucepan on medium heat and melt 1 Tbsp. butter and ¼ cup sugar. Add the diced apples, lemon juice, 1 Tbsp. water and apple pie spice.  Let it cook for about 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally
• In a separate bowl, mix 1 tablespoon of cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of water to create a slurry. Stir until it's smooth and there are no lumps.
• Slowly pour the cornstarch slurry into the simmering apple mixture while stirring constantly. This will help thicken the filling.
• Let the apples simmer in the filling for about 5-10 minutes or until they are tender but not mushy. Stir occasionally to ensure even cooking.
• Remove the saucepan from the heat, cover with plastic wrap, and let the apple pie filling cool.

The best hand pie crust recipe

I love hand pies because they are so versatile! You can change the filling based on the seasons, making them a great option for a wide range of flavors and occasions.

• Pumpkin hand pies
• Blueberry pie filling 
• Cherry filling
• Mini pecan pies
• Peach pie filling

Looking for more filling ideas? This Easy Copycat Costco Pumpkin Pie Recipe is perfect for filling handpies in the fall season!