Fresh cherry hand pies made with frozen puff pastry dough and fresh cherries!
I'm positive your 4th of July plans include more than two people, however, hear me out: this recipe is easily scaled up to feed your crowd. Like, way too easily. And then suddenly you have hand pies for breakfast, which isn't entirely a bad thing.
I'm so dang happy right now because 1) I have a pie in my hand and 2) we will have a crowd this Wednesday night. Not only are my parents driving up for a quick visit (hooray for living close to family again!), but the Mr. and I have met some pretty wonderful people in this new city already.
I've always heard midWestern people were the nicest bunch around, and I'm happy to report it's very true.
We will be smiling from ear to ear while we cook it up for our crowd. He's in the charge of the meats on the grill (including red chile buttermilk-marinated chicken!), and I'm in charge of side dishes and dessert.
I plan on making these fresh cherry hand pies. Puff pastry makes this recipe easy peasy, and I bet you even have the other ingredients in your pantry already. I'm one of those people that always keeps puff pastry in my freezer (because you can even make puff pastry donuts with it!), but just in case you don't, I have a recipe for homemade puff pastry from scratch. And once you make your own puff pastry, you can also make ham and cheese puff pastry squares or apple turnovers. Did you know?!
Puff pastry is amazing stuff.
This recipe is a starting point for you. Simply multiply the ingredients by how many guests you have, and then bake!
I hope y'all have a wonderful 4th of July!
Dainty pies look best in rough farmer hands. Fact.
Fresh Cherry Hand Pies
Fresh cherry mini hands pies: Recipe makes 2 hand pies, but can be doubled.
Ingredients
- 5 ounces fresh cherries
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- ½ teaspoon almond extract
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons cornstarch
- 1 sheet of frozen puff pastry (½ of a box), defrosted
- 1 large egg yolk
- 2 teaspoons heavy cream
- granulated sugar for sprinkling on top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- First, pit and quarter your cherries. Place them in a bowl and add the brown sugar, extract, lemon juice and cornstarch. Stir to combine, then set aside.
- Flour the counter and unfold the pastry sheet, and then lightly roll it out pastry to be about ½" larger on all sides. Using a 6" round cutter, cut out 2 circles. Move the circles to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Divide the cherry filling evenly between the dough rounds, placing it on one side of the circle about ½" from the edge.
- Beat together the egg yolk and heavy cream in a small bowl, then brush the entire edge of the dough circles with it. Fold over the dough and crimp to seal the edges. Slice 3 slits in the top of each pie and sprinkle with sugar.
- Bake for 18-21 minutes, until nicely golden and puffy.
- Let cool for 10 minutes before serving (or hot cherry lava will erupt in your mouth upon the first bite).s
Notes
This recipe easily multiplies up to feed a crowd. Enjoy!
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Nutrition Information:
Yield:
2Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 244Total Fat: 12gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 191mgSodium: 79mgCarbohydrates: 28gFiber: 2gSugar: 16gProtein: 6g
Riya Ahuja says
this is AWESOME!!! yummy. I can’t wait to try this! Pinned! so healthy!
Tamara James says
Thank you for small recipes. I live alone and two is perfect.
Jbj100 says
Hello I was wondering could I use blueberries or apples instead ? Do I follow the recipe exactly and just change up the fruit ? Thank you
Christina Lane says
Sure! Apples aren't as juicy as berries, so add a bit more sugar :)
Tammy says
Did you use sweet cherries, or sour pie cherries?
Christina Lane says
Sweet cherries.
Michelle says
About how much does 5oz of cherries end up measuring once pitted and quartered? (I don’t have a scale). Half cup? Cup?
Danielle says
what can I use instead of almond extract? can I use vanilla instead? thank you! :)
Christina Lane says
Yes :)
Kristy says
I wonder if a person could prepare and then freeze these before baking so they can always be fresh and warm.
Rebecca Kennedy Wilsbach says
I love this recipe! I look forward to the fresh sweet cherries season every year just to make these pies. They're on the breakfast menu this morning--can't wait!
Jeannie says
Made this yesterday. Delicious. My question: while the cherries were sitting, the filling produced liquid that I did not use. How can I avoid this? I’m thinking that I lost flavor in the pies.