Sweet Cherry Hand Pies are little packages of flaky pastry with fruity filling that don’t require a fork or knife; they don’t even need a plate. These pies are great for single-serving, parties and picnics.
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email & I’ll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
This page may contain affiliate links; please see my disclosure for policy details. I earn commissions if you shop through the links on this page.
Adding fresh summer cherries to a flaky homemade butter pie crust makes hand pies a sweet treat and a great alternative to making a big pie. Honestly, they are just fun to make; I like crimping the dough to make the pretty edge.
And if you love cherries, you will love these three old-fashioned desserts for Cherry Pandowdy, Cherry Dump Cake and this Cherry Upside Down Cake with Apricots. It’s the tastiest way to use stone fruit.
If you love handpies you will probably love these Puff Pastry Fruit Tarts too! They are super simple to make and taste amazing when you use your favorite fruit.
Why I Love Hand Pies
- They make the perfect on-the-go treat – wrap them up, take them with you for camping and picnics, and even add them to lunch boxes.
- These are great for a single serving for those days you want dessert. And, they are perfect for the kids to pick up and eat.
- Who doesn’t enjoy a tasty mini dessert?
- If you are in a hurry, make this a shortcut recipe using two store-bought pie crusts and canned cherry pie filling.
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
- Pie Crust – For today’s pie recipe I use this homemade pie crust recipe that is easy to work with and bakes up flaky and golden brown.
- Cherries – Fresh sweet red Bing cherries are easily found in groceries and farmers’ markets. Rainer cherries can also be used, but they are less sweet. You can also use frozen cherries.
- Cinnamon – I love cinnamon; it pairs well with cherries and adds a delicious flavor.
- Egg – I like to give the top of the hand pie dough a quick egg wash that creates a nice glaze.
Tools You Will Need
Since we are using a pie crust, a good rolling pin is a must, and I love this tapered French rolling pin. I find it easy to control, and it’s the perfect weight.
I love pastry cloths for rolling dough, I keep one in the freezer, and they last forever. There more you use it, the less the dough sticks.
You need a 5-inch round cutter to make the circles. This set has various sizes for other projects too.
How To Make Hand Pies
These pies are easy to make; see the recipe card for the complete instructions.
Step 1. Prepare the pie dough first so it can chill. You can make the dough and keep it in the fridge until needed.
Step 2. Mix the cherries, sugar, and cinnamon to prepare the cherry pie filling.
Step 3. Roll out the pie dough and cut it with a 5″ round cutter. If you have a 4-inch cutter, that will work too.
Step 4. Fill each round with the cooked cherries, then fold the dough over to make the hand pies and crimp the edges with a fork. Brush the pies with an egg wash and cut small vents on the tops.
Step 5. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until golden brown.
Pie tip: The importance of crimping and venting. You need to crimp around the edges of the dough, which seals the pies and keeps the filling inside. Cut a few vents in the top so the steam can escape, keeping the crust from getting soggy.
Pile your mini cherry hand pies on a pretty serving plate. Their crispy crust and juicy cherry filling make them crowd-pleasers at any gathering or event. Whether you prefer them warm out of the oven or chilled in the fridge, these little pockets of goodness will satisfy your sweet tooth.
Baking Tips
- This recipe can be used with just about any summer fruit. The filling can be prepared by cutting whole raspberries, blackberries, strawberries, peaches, or nectarines into small pieces and cooking them just like the cherries.
- You can use sliced frozen cherries. Don’t thaw the fruit before cooking, and increase the cornstarch to 2 tablespoons.
- Make sure the filling is cool when you spoon it onto the pie crust.
- If the unbaked pies get too warm or soft while assembling, pop them in the freezer for 10 minutes before baking. This will help them hold their shape in the oven.
- You can assemble these hand pies beforehand, crimp the edges, cut vents in the pies, and place them in the fridge for a couple of hours before baking.
Can I Freeze These Handheld Pies?
To freeze the unbaked pies, place them on a parchment-lined sheet pan and freeze for 30 minutes. Then, transfer them to a plastic freezer bag and store for up to three months. Bake from frozen, adding a few minutes to the baking time.
More pies to bake
- This Lemon Cake Pie recipe is unusual because it has a lemon custard filling with a thin cake layer nestled in a flaky pie crust.
- This classic is made with a twist, and it’s so delicious. Make this Bourbon Pecan Pie for the holidays, but I think it deserves to be made in the middle of the week in April too!
- No pie plate, no problem. Make this Apple-Cranberry Galette, which is a free-form pie. Just roll out the dough and fill it with fruit.
Subscribe here for more great recipes, and follow One Hot Oven for more tasty sweet and savory recipes! Pinterest | Instagram | Facebook
Recipe
Sweet Cherry Hand Pies
Equipment
Ingredients
Sweet Cherry Filling
- 3 cups red cherries pitted and halved
- ⅓ cup sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- ½ teaspoon lemon juice
Pie Crust
- 2 ½ cups AP flour
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ cup butter cubed and cold
- ½ cup solid shortening cold
- 6-7 tablespoons ice water
Topping Ingredients
- 1 egg beaten
- 1 tablespoon sugar
Instructions
Sweet Cherry Filling
- In a medium saucepan combine the cherries⅓ cup of sugar, and cinnamon. Over medium heat, cook until the cherries are juicy and the sugar has melted about 4-5 minutes.
- Turn the heat to simmer and cook 5 more minutes. Continue stirring.
- In a small bowl add 2 tablespoons of the cherry juice, then add the cornstarch. Stir to combine. Pour this mixture into the pan with the cherries, stir and cook over simmer until the mixture becomes thick; about 6 minutes.
- When the cherries are cooked and the juice has thickened, remove the pan from the burner and stir in the lemon juice. Pour into a small bowl to cool.
Making the Pie Dough
- In a large bowl mix the flour and salt.
- Cut the butter into small cubes, then add to the flour along with with the cold shortening. Cut the butter and shortening into the flour with a pastry cutter or two knives, until you have pea-sized crumbs.
- Add the ice water one tablespoon at a time to the flour mixture, and mix with a fork until the dough forms into a ball.
- On a floured surface, turn out the dough and form it into a disk. Cut the dough in half and wrap them in plastic wrap and chill for 15 minutes or longer.
Filling and forming the hand pies
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line a baking pan with parchment.
- Roll one of the pie dough disks on a floured surface to make a large round. Then cut circles using a 4 or 5-inch round cutter.
- Place a large spoonful (about a heaping tablespoon) of the mixture into the center of each round. Fold half of the round over on top of itself (creating a half-moon shape) and press the edges firmly together. Use the back of a fork to crimp and seal.
- Repeat with the other disk of pie dough. Reroll any scrapes and cut more circles if you have enough dough.
- Cut two or three small slits in the top of the pies to let the steam escape while baking.
- Place the pies on the prepared baking sheet. Break the egg into a small bowl and beat with a fork, then brush on the top of the pie and sprinkle with sugar.
- If the hand pies are no longer cool to the touch, freeze them for 10 minutes before baking. The colder they are going into the oven, the better they’ll hold their shape.
- Bake for 25 – 30 minutes until the pies are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes then place on a cooling rack.
- Serve warm or at room temperature
Storing the hand pies
- Place the pies in an airtight container for a couple of days. For warm days, store in the refrigerator.
Notes
Make ahead tips
Assembled and unbaked hand pies can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days.Freeze the unbaked or baked pies
Unbaked pies To freeze unbaked hand pies, make as directed, then place the pies on a parchment-lined tray and place them in the freezer for a half-hour. When frozen place the pies in a freezer container, or a plastic freezer bag for up to three months. When ready to bake, there is no need to thaw; simply add an extra couple of minutes to the baking time. Baked pies To freeze baked pies, make sure they are completely cooled, then place them in an airtight container for a freezer bag and freeze. Thaw in the refrigerator, then bring to room temperature before serving.As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nutrition
First published: Feb. 6, 2018; last updated: April 11, 2023, for better readability.
Thank you for stopping by the One Hot Oven blog. Please leave a comment to say Hello or tell me what you are baking these days; I always love hearing from fellow bakers. Have any questions or want to chat about the recipe? Please visit my About page for information, and I’ll be happy to help!
About Jere’
From learning to cook on a farm in Indiana to culinary school in California, my passion for food is never-ending. Turning on my oven to bake something for friends and family is my happy place, and I am glad to be here at One Hot Oven sharing both sweet and savory family-friendly recipes for your cooking and baking inspiration.
We aussies love a pie!! They are a staple of the road trip, the footie and just about every one has a favourite.
As someone who isn’t a big dessert fan I am a pepper beef kind of girl, but my kids are obsessed with the apple and blackcurrant pies! So when I saw your hand pies with cherry I thought I’d give them a go as I LOVE cherries and they love sweet pies.
Let me tell you I am ruined!! These were amazing. Sweet buttery and a mouthful of perfection. The kids were a little shocked by how I inhaled mine and was ready for my second while they were still lightly blowing on them in case they were too hot.
Thank you!!! From a pie loving nation this is pie heaven!
I didn’t know pie was a thing downunder, it’s defiantly a thing in my house. We love pie too. Glad you enjoyed these sweet little cherry pies.
I just love these hand pies! The cherry filling is so good. The touch of cinnamon adds a nice spice, and the pie crust was so wonderfully flaky.
These were so luscious and perfectly sweet. The whole family enjoyed them!
These look so yummy! I love hand pies!
Those are so pretty and I bet they are yummy too. Love those heart shaped moulds.
Thanks so much. I have fun with these pastry molds, so many uses for them.
They just look so cute! The recipe sounds very easy too!
I’m a huge fan of hand pies – the little heart pies with the cut-outs are just adorable. Forget the chocolates – I want a box of those for valentine’s day!
I agree with you, I’ll take pie any day.
These remind me of pies my grandma used to make.. very heartwarming (pun intended) and a great addition to a Valentine’s Day meal.
I made these before (not as pretty as these I must say) and they are great, but you have to be so careful not to grab one too soon out the oven as that jam is burny hot.
Oh, yes I know about eating these too soon as they come from the oven, you definitely get a bad burn.
These look so pretty! I still have some sour cherries in my freezer ! I think they would be great in these cute little hand pies!
I LOVE hand pies and am always looking new fun recipes to serve these. This cherry filling sounds so wonderful. Saving to try soon. yum!
Awesome, hope you bake up a batch.
These are such pretty hand pies! They’re adorable and I love the sound of the cherry filling.
Those are so cute!! I love hand pies. I’ve mostly had apple, so I would love to try these with cherries!
Try cherry and apple hand pies. I bet that would be a good combination of flavors.
I have a similar pie mold like your and I didn’t really know how to use it. Thanks for posting this recipe so I can make these pies.
These are adorable and look so yummy! I’ve never made a cherry pie before, but these look too good to pass up!