Pumpkin Hand Pies

Amethyst · November 10, 2025, 9:42pm

Pumpkin Hand Pies

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Waiting Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 3 hours
Servings: 8

Ingredients:

Pie dough:

250 g All-purpose flour
½ teaspoon Salt
180 g Unsalted butter very cold
80 g Water very cold

Pumpkin filling:

105 g Pumpkin puree
¼ teaspoon Pumpkin spice mix of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg
35 g Brown sugar
35 g Granulated sugar
1 Egg yolk
75 g Condensed milk

Egg wash:

1 Egg
Dash of milk

Directions:

Start with Pie dough:

In a large bowl, whisk flour and salt until fully combined. Cut butter into small chunks.

Pop the butter chunks, the flour mixture, and water into the freezer for 10 minutes.

Once all ingredients are nicely chilled, add very cold butter chunks into the flour and rub the mixture between your fingers until it becomes a sand-like consistency. Leave some bigger butter chunks in the mixture; no need to fully incorporate the butter into the flour.

Add very cold water into the dough, a small amount at a time, and stir with a spatula or wooden spoon after each addition.

Start working the dough with your hands. First, it will look crumby, but it should come together in the next minute or so. Remember, leave in some butter chunks, do not overwork the dough, and do not use a mixer.

Form a disk, cover with plastic wrap, and let it rest in the fridge for a minimum of 2 hours.

Continue with making the Pumpkin filling:

Mix all ingredients in a bowl using a hand whisk.

Assembling and Baking:

After 2 hours, take the pie dough disk out of the fridge and let it rest few minutes on the kitchen counter. The dough should stay cold but slightly warmed up to be able to roll it out without breaking it.

Transfer the disk to a lightly floured surface or Silicone baking mat and start rolling it out. Make sure you turn the dough with your hands after each rolling so it will become even. No need to add too much flour while rolling, the pie dough should be cold enough not to stick to the kitchen counter. If at any point the dough gets too warm, pop it back into the freezer for a minute and continue.

Roll the dough to 3mm thickness. Remember, do not force the dough; after rolling, it should stay smooth and cold, easy to work with.

With the help of a pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter or pumpkin-shaped paper template (about 7.5 cm / 3 inches in diameter), cut out the pumpkin shapes, then refrigerate them for 15 minutes.

Then, place half of the dough on parchment paper or, even better, if using a perforated “air” baking mat for even baking - these will be the bottom of the hand pies.

Apply egg wash all around the edges of the dough, then place about 1-2 tablespoons of filling in the center of each dough, leaving a small border around the edge. Then, place the top crust over the filling. Press your finger around the edges to properly seal them, then crimp with a fork.

Cut 4 slits on top of the pastry - carefully so you do not cut all the way down to the filling. Apply egg wash on top, then dust with some sugar.

Place unbaked hand pies in the freezer for 15 minutes while pre-heating the oven to 190C°C / 374°F (no fan).

Bake them for about 25 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the bottom is evenly baked.

Let the hand pies slightly cool in the baking tray for 5 minutes, then move them onto a cooling rack.

Serve them fresh. Any leftovers can be stored at room temperature in an air-tight container for 2-3 days.

Notes:

For a deeper flavor, use dark brown sugar. It has a little more molasses in it than light brown sugar.

Be as creative as you like by adding herbs and spices. This versatile filling is very easy to customize.

For the best taste and texture, make sure that your pumpkin puree is not watery. Strain it on cheesecloth to get rid of some of the liquid if necessary, then measure it.

Work as quickly with the pastry as you can, as over time, when the pastry warms, it will stick and make it very difficult to handle

If the pastry warms up, place it into the fridge or freezer immediately, then continue after the dough is chilled and not sticky

Be mindful of the filling. You should fill the pastry with as much filling as you can; however, avoid placing too much filling on the dough, as you should be able to “close” it with the top layer of dough. Avoid filling leaking to the edge of the pastry as you would find it difficult to seal it.

Check the bottom of the pastry - whether it is well-baked - before removing the pastries from the oven

Nutritonal Facts:

Recipe and Video courtesy of Spatula Desserts.com