Is there anything more nostalgic than warm apple pie straight from the oven? A healthy alternative to fried pies, this mini handheld apple pies are refined sugar free and you wouldn’t know it. The natural sweetness of the apples shines when paired with warm pastry and cinnamon. Absolutely divine, and so easy!
Why You'll Love These Apple Hand Pies
What’s not to love?! Here are a few of the reasons we’re swooning for these little treats, and why we think you and your family will, too.
- They’re easy to make and come together relatively quickly.
- Your little ones will have fun helping make these mini apple hand pies that fit perfectly in sweet little hands.
- Refined sugar free without compromising in taste means you can enjoy these homemade hand pies without the guilt or blood sugar spike.
- This recipe is easy to double or triple when you need a side dish or dessert for a potluck or party.
Recipe Ingredients
We kept this list short and sweet, like these refined sugar-free apple hand pies. Here’s a quick list of what you’ll need:
- Egg
- Milk or cream
- Pastry dough
- Flour
- Apples
- Lemon juice
- Unsalted butter
- Cinnamon
- Cornstarch
- Turbinado sugar for sprinkling (optional)
How to Make Apple Hand Pies
Making homemade apple hand pies is easy when you have the benefit of refrigerated pastry dough. That means they’re technically not “homemade,” but if it saves (which it does!) we’re happy. The sooner these sweet little sugar-free mini pies get in our bellies, the better.
Step 1. Prepare the ingredients.
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray. You can use parchment paper if you’d prefer. Combine the egg and milk and whisky to make an egg wash. Dairy free? Feel free to sub water for the milk. Set the egg wash aside and bring it to room temperature.
Step 2. Cook the sugar-free apple filling.
Heat a Dutch oven or large saucepan to medium-high heat and combine the apples, unsalted butter and ground cinnamon. Stir in the cornstarch. Increase the heat to high and stir constantly until the mixture begins to thicken and the apples are fork tender. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let it cool.
Your kitchen should be smelling sweet right about now!
Step 3. Prepare the dough.
Prepare a work surface lightly with flour and unroll the pie crusts. Roll the dough with a rolling pin as many times as it takes to achieve a crust that is roughly 1/8-inch thick. Using a wide mouth Mason jar or mini pie cutter, cut 16 rounds from each pastry sheet. Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of apple filling on one half of the dough and fold into a half-moon shape. Use a fork to seal the edges of the crust.
Step 4. Bake the apple hand pies.
Spread the hand pies evenly on the baking sheet and gently brush the egg wash over the top of each pie. If you’d like to sprinkle a little turbinado sugar over the top, now’s your chance. It’s completely optional. You could also use light brown sugar if you don’t have turbinado sugar on hand.
Bake the mini apple hand pies for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
Step 5. Devour!
This is the best part!
When the hand pies are done, gently place them on a wire rack to cool for a few minutes. We highly recommend you serve these warm, but they’re good anyway you’d like to serve and enjoy them!
Apple Hand Pies
You don’t have to wait for apple harvest season to enjoy these darling versions of the mini apple pie! This Apple Hand Pie recipe is free of refined sugar with the exception of a few optional tablespoons of turbinado sugar for sprinkling. You won’t miss the sugar. The natural sweetness of apple season is tasted in every bite. Enjoy!
- Total Time: 45
- Yield: 16 pies 1x
Ingredients
- 1 large egg
- 1 tablespoon whole milk or cream
- 1 box refrigerated pastry dough
- Flour, for work surface
- 2 medium apples, peeled, cored and diced
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch
- 2 tablespoons turbinado sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F and spray a cookie sheet with cooking spray.
- Combine egg and milk and whisk to make an egg wash. Set aside to bring to room temperature.
- Remove the pie dough from the box and thaw according to directions.
- Heat a Dutch oven or large saucepan to medium-high heat and combine apples, unsalted butter and ground cinnamon. Stir in cornstarch. Increase to high heat and stir constantly until the mixture thickens and the apples are fork tender. Remove from heat and let cool.
- Prepare a work surface lightly with flour and unroll pie crusts. Roll the dough with a rolling pin as needed to achieve a crust that is about 1/8-inch thick. Using a wide-mouth mason jar or mini pie cutter, cut 16 rounds from each sheet of crust. Spoon 1-2 tablespoons of apple filling on one half of the crusts, fold into a half-moon shape and use a fork to seal the edges of the crust.
- Spread the hand pies evenly on the baking sheet and gently brush egg wash over the top of each pie and sprinkle with light brown sugar.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Gently place pies on a wire rack to cool. Serve warm.
Notes
- Every oven is different, so keep a close eye on the pies and adjust cooking time as needed.
- Extra pie filling? Top it over ice cream and drizzle with caramel sauce for an extra sweet treat or serve it on pancakes or French toast alongside warm maple syrup.
- Prep Time: 20
- Cook Time: 25
- Category: Dessert
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: apple pie, hand pie recipe, mini apple pies, apple hand pies, handheld apple pies, homemade hand pies, sugar-free apple pie
