If you love pies but don’t want a full one hanging around your house, make hand pies instead! These portable pies are filled with fresh peaches and are easy and fun to eat!
When I asked Addie what her favorite fruits were, she happily answered, “Mangoes, grapes and peaches. And strawberries, blueberries, watermelon, pineapple…” I was thrilled because my daughter loves her fruit. She cannot turn down a peach and begs us to buy them. Imagine my excitement when we received about 5 of them in our biweekly CSA delivery.
Naturally, I asked Addie what to make with the peaches. “Pie!” she exclaimed. I told her that I had just baked an apple pie so we should make something else. “How about hand pies?” I asked. She looked at me, puzzled, so I explained to her that it was a pie that you could hold in your hand and eat and did not require a fork. Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner.
I let Addie help me with the crust, and she had a great time pushing the buttons on the food processor. She also help me cut out the dough circles and make the filling. I gave her a break while she was watching some television so I could fill the pies and crimp the edges.
They finished baking in no time, and Addie got to enjoy one after she returned home from Chinese school. The crust was soft and flaky with a bit of tang (from the Greek yogurt), and the filling wasn’t too sweet. I could have easily eaten my weight in these hand pies and was happy that I had many of these so I could easily gift them to friends.
I bet apple hand pies would be fantastic for fall, and blueberry and strawberry for the spring. I’m just happy to be able to share these with others and eat them without making too much of a mess.
Peach hand pies
Ingredients
Crust
- 2 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 16 Tablespoons (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
- 1/2 cup Greek yogurt
- 4 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1/2 cup ice water
Filling
- 2 pounds (about 5 or 6) peaches, peeled and cut into small cubes
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/4 cup granulated sugar
- Pinch of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
Make the crust
- In a food processor, pulse the flour and salt together until well blended (if you don't have a food processor, you can still make this by hand by using a large bowl and doing everything by hand). Pulse in the butter until the crust resembles pea-sized wet sand. Add in the Greek yogurt, and lemon juice and pulse until everything just comes together. Slowly stream in the water until the crust stays together when pinched. Do not add too much water.
- Divide the dough in half and form each into a ball and cover in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 30 minutes.
- Line two baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper and set aside.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out one dough ball into a large rectangle about 1/8" thick. Cut out 4" diameter circles with a biscuit cutter or another round object like a bowl. Place the cut dough circles on your prepared baking sheet and repeat with the other half of the dough ball. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.
Make the filling
- While the dough circles are chilling, toss all of the filling ingredients together and set aside.
Assemble the pies
- Remove one tray of dough circles from the refrigerator and allow to thaw for about 2 minutes. Spoon about 1-2 Tablespoons of the filling onto one half of a dough circle. Fold the other side of the dough over to form a half circle. Pinch the seams shut and press down on the edges with the back of a fork to form a decorative edge (this also helps pinch the edges together so filling won't leak out). Repeat with all the dough circles and with the other pan.
- Place the pies back in the refrigerator to cool for another 30 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.
- If desired, brush each pastry with an egg wash (1 beaten egg) and sprinkle the tops with coarse sugar.
- Bake the pies in your preheated oven for about 20 minutes or until golden and the tops appear a bit cracked. Allow the pies to cool slightly before serving.