Apple Hand Pies

Apple Hand Pies

These apple hand pies have all the deliciousness of apple pie but are so much easier to serve and share! And here’s the really great news — you can bake them in the oven or the air fryer! I love the air fryer, but if you don’t have one, the oven works just as well.

For the pie crust, you can can use store-bought pie dough or make homemade. To cut out the circle shapes for the individual pies, look around your kitchen for something that is about 6-inches in diameter. I use the lid of a small pot. For smaller circles, you can use a glass or plastic storage container with thin, straight edges. It’s kind of fun looking for something that works and I love that you don’t have to buy any special equipment.

For the filling, you need to cook the apples before adding them to the dough because the pies only bake for a short time in the oven or air fryer. Fortunately, the filling is ready in just 10 minutes and the flavor is incredible!

Be sure to brush the inner edge of the crust with egg wash to ensure a tight seal (otherwise filling will leak out), and then seal again with the tines of a fork. Then brush again with egg wash for a lovely golden finish! Looking for some other pies? Check out our Chocolate Cream Pie, Bourbon Pecan, Classic Pumpkin, Dutch Apple,  Key LimePeach & Blueberry, or No-Bake Dulce de Leche, or Grandma’s Apple Pie. So many to choose from! Hope you enjoy!

Apple Hand Pies

Ingredients

  • 2 large Granny Smith apples (about 1 lb.), peeled and diced
  • 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons packed brown sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 3 Tablespoons water
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • Pinch of ground nutmeg
  • 2 unbaked pie crusts, rolled into two 12-inch circles
  • 1 egg
  • 2 teaspoons milk

Instructions

  1. For filling, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook for about 1 minute, just until barely golden. Add apples, sugar, brown sugar and salt. Cook, stirring often, about 5 minutes. Stir in water, cinnamon and nutmeg; cook about 4 minutes more. Spread filling onto plate and refrigerate to cool.
  2. Using the lid of a small pot (about 6 inches in diameter), cut out 6 circles of dough.
  3. Whisk together egg and milk. Spoon about 1/4 cup filling into each circle, slightly off center. Brush outer edge of each circle with the egg mixture. Fold dough over filling and seal edge your finger and then for a decorative edge, press around the edge with the tines of a fork. Make three slits in the top of each pie to let steam escape while cooking. Brush tops of pies with the egg mixture.
  4. AIR FRYER: To cook pies in the air fryer, place 2 or 3 pies in the basket of an air fryer. Cook at 350 degrees F for 12 minutes. Repeat with remaining pies until done.
  5. OVEN: To cook pies in the oven, preheat oven to 400 degrees F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Transfer pies to prepared baking sheet and baked until pies are golden and filling is bubbling, about 15 minutes.
  6. Cool before serving. Goes well with vanilla ice cream or lightly-sweetened whipped cream!

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Hi! I’m Marie. Mama, wife, homebody. I’m a self-taught chef and cookbook author. 

I love sharing fast, fresh, family-friendly recipes that will, hopefully, make your life a little easier.

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15 Responses

  1. I want to print the recipe for the remoulade sauce you made for the crab cakes. Haven’t found it so far.
    Thanks!
    Carol Ryall

  2. I heard my husband say from our family room, “Oh, I’m so full!” then under his breath I heard, “Oh, those were wonderful.” He ate two! He then said that he thought they were better than an apple pie. Happy husband, happy life!

    I had a little extra dough, and a bit of liquid from the apples, and two over ripe peaches so I cooked down the peaches and used that as filling too. We’ll see how it turns out, but he said he had room to try one. LOL.

    I’m not a fan of Trader Joe’s typically, but you’re right about the dough. It was so much better than the Pilsbury brand. Glad I bought two boxes. I plan to play with the fruit and the spices….like pear with a pinch of cardamom, honey, and cinnamon. I don’t know. Love this recipe though! Thank you!

    Kendra

    1. Hi Kendra! Well there is no higher compliment that a happy husband! I am so glad you both enjoyed these, and I love the idea of using peaches! Yes, I agree the Trader Joe’s pie crust is really the best refrigerated crust out there, or at least the best I’ve tasted so far! Good plan to keep a box in your freezer! I do the same 🙂 Can’t wait to hear how your other flavor experiments turn out! Love all your ideas. Thanks so much for taking time to leave a note — means so much. Hugs, Marie

    1. Hi! Thanks so much for the note! I’m thrilled to hear that the instructions were helpful and you enjoyed the pies! Stay tuned for more new recipes coming soon ❤️, Marie

  3. Finally got my first Airfryer…..have to say watching one of your videos pushed me off the fence…..anyway, tried the apple hand pie and they came out exactly like the video…impressed the family….thanks for the recipe David

    1. Hi David! Thanks so much for the note! I’m thrilled to hear the pies were a success and impressed the family! And now you have an air fryer — it will be fun to try some other new things 👍🏻 Just let me know if you need ideas … my favorites are meatballs, salmon cakes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, burgers, … lol, you get the idea. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do. Thanks again for taking time to circle back and leave a comment. Means so much 🥰 Very best, Marie

  4. Great apple hand pies. I would also like to see you make peach, blueberry, rubarbarb strawberry, and cherry hand pies. You are an excellent teacher and I really enjoyed your video. Thank you for sharing.

    1. Hello Diane! Thanks so much for watching and for your sweet note! I’m so glad to hear you are enjoying my videos, and I’m putting all of your requests on my lists! People have really enjoyed the hand pies, so I definitely will be making more soon! Recently just posted a pumpkin hand pie video (with really fun leaf decorations!) if you’d like to check that out in the meantime. Thanks again and please feel free to send questions or requests anytime. Always love to hear from viewers ❤️, Marie

  5. It’s apple season, so looking for ways to preserve the harvest. If freezing the hand pies, would you recommend freezing before the egg wash? Or after they have baked and cooled? Thanks so much!

    1. Hi Amy! Great to hear from you! How lovely to have freshly harvested apples! For the hand pies, freeze before baking and before the egg wash. Simply wrap in Saran Wrap, and freeze flat. Once frozen, add several wrapped pies to a ziplock bag. When ready to bake, simply let sit on counter for 10-15 minutes (but do not thaw completely), add egg wash, and bake as usual, adding about 5-10 minutes to the bake time. Hope that helps and let me know if you need anything else! Very best, Marie

  6. I just finished watching your great handpie video. Thanks so much. I’d love to take these to my ladies Christmas card making group. How would you recommend storing and transporting when I bake them the day before?

    1. Hi Carol! Thanks for watching! What a fun treat to bring to a card-making group! And what a fun group! I want to join y’all 🙂 At home I just fit them on a platter and cover with foil. For transporting, if you have a large rectangular Tupperware, I think they would fit well standing up. They can be a bit delicate but otherwise are easy to move around. You could pop them in the oven right before serving to crisp up the crust and warm up the filling if there’s an opportunity. Thanks again and hope this helps. Hugs, Marie

  7. I have made these several times and they are a hit. For a bit of variety I made some with our canned peaches and they turned out great.
    Thanks for the recipe.

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Marie Saba

From My Kitchen To Yours