Sweet pumpkin filling is nestled in-between buttery pie crust, and folded half moon style. These Glazed Mini Hand Pies are finished with a delicious powdered sugar glaze and dusted with a bit of cinnamon for a perfect fall dessert.
Halloween is just around the corner and we’re already dreaming of pumpkin spice lattes, cozy sweaters and pumpkins. This year we’re bringing you a recipe for Pumpkin Hand Pies that will make your heart go pitter-pat with excitement! The filling is made with canned pumpkin, eggs, brown sugar and cinnamon. These hand pies are perfect for any Fall gathering or Thanksgiving dinner celebration and would go well with our Apple Hand Pies.
The best part? It’s easy to whip up these bad boys in less than an hour. You don’t even have to tempt making your own pie dough because these feature store-bought refrigerated pie crust! But, if you’re already well-versed in the kitchen, break out your flour, lard, or butter and get rolling!
Ingredients Info and Substitutions
This recipe uses pretty common and inexpensive ingredients, but like with most recipes, there are a few swaps you can make! Find everything you’ll need to make these using the recipe card below.
Pumpkin Filling
The filling of these mini hand pies is super simple! Pumpkin puree, granulated sugar, egg, and pumpkin spice come together to make a perfectly spiced filling that is similar to that of a larger pumpkin pie. However, you can use pumpkin pie filling for this. Since it is already spiced, omit the extra pumpkin spice.
Pie Crust
While we used refrigerated pie crust for these hand pies, you can most certainly use your own tried and true pie crust recipe. You should be able to cut out 8 uniform pie circles, but will need to roll out the dough to produce another 4 pie crust discs. I normally use Pillsbury Pie Crust Dough which I found will produce slightly puffier pies. I used the Aldi brand this time around and did notice they were a little flatter than my normal pies. Pillsbury wins in this case for us!
How to Prevent these from Getting Soggy
If you want to get a nice golden brown coloring on your pies with a crisp outer, you’ll need to brush these pies with an egg wash. An egg wash is so simple to make! All you have to do is add an egg and one tablespoon of water to a small bowl and whisk until combined. The egg wash will have a pale look and can be applied to your pies with pastry brush.
Glaze for Hand Pies
What makes these pumpkin hand pies so delicious is the crispy set glaze. This glaze is so simple to make and uses powdered sugar, a bit of vanilla extract, and milk. Add all the ingredients to a medium mixing bowl, and whisk with a fork or whisk to mix. If you feel like your glaze is too thin add a tablespoon more of sugar to thicken it. If it is too thick add a teaspoon more of liquid to thin it. Make your glaze first to allow it to slightly thicken. It might form a skin on top but you can whisk that back in.
How Long do these Last?
These hand pies will go so quickly because they are DELICIOUS! But, if you want to make these ahead of time (i.e. the morning of an event, be sure to let them sit on the wire rack after being glazed until set. You want the pies to maintain that crisp outer so avoid wrapping them up until it is party/event time. If you wrap them too prematurely they can get soggy.
These will last up to 3 days at room temperature when stored in an airtight container in a cool dry place.
Additionally, you can freeze these unglazed. Simply bake according to the instructions below and place cooled pies on a baking sheet. Place the sheet in the freezer to freeze for about 2 hours or until frozen. Once pies are frozen, store them in an airtight container for up to one month for best taste. Thaw in the refrigerator and glaze before serving.
Pumpkin Recipes to Try this Fall
Looking for additional ways to use canned pumpkin this fall in desserts? We have tons to share! Here are a few top pumpkin desserts to try this harvest season.
- Soft & Chewy Pumpkin Cookies
- Moist Pumpkin Cake
- Pumpkin Swirl Cheesecake Bars
- Nutella Swirled Pumpkin Bread
- Baked Pumpkin Donuts
- Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies
Glazed Mini Pumpkin Hand Pies
Equipment
- oven adjusted to the center rack position
- large baking sheet
- parchment paper
- medium & small mixing bowls
- Rubber Spatula
- Whisk
- 4" diameter bowl or circle cutter
- rolling pin
- tablespoon scoop
- Fork
Ingredients
Pies
- 15 ounces pie crust I used ALDI refrigerated pie crust dough.
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon water
Pumpkin filling
- 1 cup canned pumpkin
- ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice
- 1 large egg
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
Glaze
- 1½ cups powdered sugar
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon for sprinkling over the glazed pies
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk powdered sugar, milk, and extract. Whisk until combined; set aside to thicken.
- Unroll pie crust dough on a flat surface. Using a circle cutter, or small bowl, press out circles onto the dough. Carefully peel away excess dough which you will reroll out into 1/4" thick pie crust dough; repeat until you have 12 circles.
- In a medium bowl, combine pumpkin puree, pumpkin pie spice, granulated sugar, and one large egg. Whisk until combined and fluffy.
- Using a tablespoon scoop, add one tablespoon of filling to each pie crust circle center. Fold over the pie to make a half moon shape. Using a fork, crimp the outer edges of the pie. Mix the water and egg to make the egg wash. Brush the top portion of each pie with egg wash trying to not get it on the parchment paper because it may burn while baking.
- Bake pies for 15 minutes or until golden brown with a firm feel when gently pressed. Allow pies to fully cool before icing.
- To ice, dip pies in mixed icing by placing the top part of the pie (while holding the base) into the icing. Lift, and twist pie to remove excess and place pies on a wire rack to drip. Dust with a small amount of cinnamon. Allow pies to set for 30 minutes. Enjoy!
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