Mini Pumpkin Hand Pies
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Spring into the fall season with these delicious and simple pumpkin hand pies. These mini pumpkin pies are everything you love about classic pumpkin pie in the palm of your hand. And they’re a great make ahead option for parties and gatherings.
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I love simplifying classic seasonal recipes and creating approachable bakes that look impressive without being complicated. These pumpkin hand pies are at the top of my list for fall parties, bake sales, or a fun weekend treat. They’re easy to prep ahead, keep all the nostalgic pumpkin pie flavor, and are the perfect handheld dessert for sharing. There’s a little bit of planning involved—so be sure to read through the recipe first—but every step is doable, and the results are well worth it.
They’re easy to make, always a crowd-pleaser, and perfect for a party or a potluck.
Why You’ll Love This Pumpkin Hand Pie Recipe
- The perfect make ahead dessert. They freeze beautifully, so you can enjoy that fantastic fall flavor any time!
- An easy recipe that is always a crowd pleaser and perfect for any party
- This recipe is for the crust lovers out there!
- They fit in your hand and are perfect for kids! They’ll love getting their own individual pies!
Pumpkin Hand Pie Ingredients
- Prepared Pie Dough – you can use a 9″ homemade pie crust or store bought like Pilsbury. Get the box that comes with two pie crusts (14 ounces).
- Cream Cheese – Use full fat cream cheese for a creamy pumpkin pie filling.
- Brown Sugar – Light or dark brown sugar can be used.
- Canned Pumpkin Puree – Use pure pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling.
- Pumpkin Pie Spice – I like to use my homemade pumpkin pie spice mix for this recipe, but you can also use store bought
- Vanilla Extract
- All-Purpose Flour– The flour and cream cheese help to bind the pumpkin filling to keep it from leaking out.
- Large Egg – For the egg wash on top of the pie crust and for the pumpkin cream cheese filling.
- Milk or water – to thin out the egg wash a little
How to Make Pumpkin Cream Cheese Hand Pies
Follow these step-by-step directions to get the best results when making your hand pies.
Step 1
Remove pie dough from the fridge and lightly dust your work surface with flour.
For store bought dough, remove one crust at a time and flatten it on your work surface. Keep the second crust in the fridge until ready to use.
If using homemade dough, roll it out to ⅛” thick with a rolling pin.
Step 2
Using a 3” cookie cutter, cut out circles.
Reroll any scraps and continue cutting out the pie dough until you have 24 circles in total.
Save any leftover scraps or pieces of dough for decorations and place the cutouts in the fridge while you make the filling.
Hint: If using store-bought refrigerated pie dough, I get about 10 circles per crust.
Step 3
In a small bowl, beat the egg well with a fork and set aside.
In a medium bowl, add the cream cheese and brown sugar. Mix with a hand mixer or whisk until smooth.
Then add the pumpkin puree, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of the beaten egg to the bowl and continue mixing until smooth.
Stir in the flour and pumpkin pie spice until well incorporated and smooth.
Step 4
Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and remove the pie dough cut outs from the fridge. Lay out 12 circles on the prepared cookie sheet. About 1-2 inches apart.
Step 5
Place 1 tablespoon of pumpkin cream cheese filling into the center of each dough circle, leaving a ¼ inch border of pie dough clean.
Step 6
Make an eggwash by adding 1 teaspoon of milk or water to the remaining beaten egg. Brush the border of the pie crust with the egg wash.
Step 7
For the other 12 dough circles, use a sharp knife to cut three to four slits in the dough to allow steam to escape while baking.
Step 8
Carefully place the tops with the slits on top of the pie halves with pumpkin pie filling. Press the outer edges of the two pie dough cutouts together with your fingers or the tines of a fork. This will seal in the filling. Try not to press the filling out.
Step 9
Once sealed, place the pies in the freezer to chill for 10-15 minutes until firm.
Step 10
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, and if you have any remaining pie dough scraps, now is the time to roll them out and cut out decorative shapes–like pumpkins or leaves.
Step 11
Once the pies have firmed in the freezer, brush the dough with eggwash and glue on any pie dough decorations.
Gently brush the decorations with egg wash too.
Step 12
Bake the pumpkin hand pies at 400 degrees F for about 15-18 minutes until puffy and golden brown. Cool on a wire rack until room temperature.
How to Make Mini Pumpkin Hand Pies in Advance
Assembled pies can be chilled for 1-3 days in the refrigerator ahead of baking. When you’re ready to bake, just egg wash and bake per the recipe instructions.
Pumpkin Hand Pie Recipe Variations
- The hand pie dough can be swapped for a gluten free pie dough or puff pastry. The puff pastry will give them more of a turnover feel, but they’re still delicious.
- Add a sprinkle of turbinado sugar or cinnamon sugar to the top of the hand pies before baking. This will give them a nice sugary glaze on top.
- You can drizzle a pumpkin spice icing over the top like I do for my pumpkin spice cake mix muffins.
- You can use this as a base recipe and substitute the pie filling for whatever strikes your mood! It works great for apple hand pies and blueberry pie cookies.
Tips For Making Pumpkin Cream Cheese Hand Pies
Follow these simple tips for the best results from these easy pumpkin hand pies.
- Keep the dough as cold as possible. This makes it easier to work with and bakes up the pies nice and flaky.
- Leave a big enough border around the filling to egg wash the pie dough. This will act as the “glue” sealing the two layers of pie dough together.
- Do not overload the pies with too much filling. That’ll just make a mess and leak out. Trust me.
How to Serve Pumpkin Hand Pies
These mini pumpkin pies are perfectly served with a cozy maple latte!
For a party, serve these hand pies as part of a Thanksgiving or holiday dessert platter alongside pumpkin whoopie pies, pumpkin cheesecake bars, and cinnamon pinwheel cookies.
I also love to eat these miniature pumpkin pies with a scoop or two of homemade vanilla ice cream or homemade pumpkin ice cream if I really want to get my pumpkin spice fix.
How to Store Pumpkin Cream Cheese Hand Pies
Baked hand pies will keep in the refrigerator for up to 4 days stored properly in an airtight container. Allow the hand pies to cool completely before storing to avoid condensation forming.
Warm in the air fryer or toaster oven if desired.
See the “make ahead” section above for freezing instructions.
To Freeze Pumpkin Hand Pies
Prepped and unbaked pies can be frozen for up to a month. When you’re ready to bake, egg wash the frozen pies and bake per the recipe’s instructions, do not thaw first.
Cooked hand pies should be cooled completely before freezing. Wrap individual hand pies in plastic wrap then in aluminum foil and place in a freezer safe bag for up to 3 months.
How to Reheat
These pumpkin pie hand pies can be reheated easily in the air fryer or toaster oven for the best results.
Reheat at 350°F for about 5 minutes or until warmed through.
Pumpkin Hand Pie FAQs
No. Canned pumpkin is unflavored pumpkin puree.
Pumpkin pie filling usually contains pumpkin puree plus spices, sugar, and other ingredients.
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Pumpkin Cream Cheese Hand Pies
Ingredients
- 1 homemade 9" pie dough or 1 box (2 crusts) refrigerated pie crust
- 3 ounces cream cheese
- ¼ cup light brown sugar, packed
- ¼ cup canned pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling
- 1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg, beaten
- 1 teaspoon milk or water
Instructions
- Remove pie dough from the fridge and lightly dust your work surface with flour. For store-bought dough, remove one crust at a time and flatten it on your work surface. Keep the second crust in the fridge until ready to use. For homemade dough, only roll out half the dough at a time, leaving the other half in the fridge until ready to use. Roll homemade pie dough out to ⅛” thick with a rolling pin.
- Using a 3” cookie cutter, cut out circles. You should get about 10-12 circles per half of dough. Reroll any scraps and continue cutting out the pie dough until you have 24 circles in total. Save any leftover pie dough scraps for decorations and place the cutouts in the fridge while you make the filling.
- In a small bowl, beat the egg well with a fork and set aside.
- In a medium bowl, add the cream cheese and brown sugar. Mix with a hand mixer or whisk until smooth.
- Add the pumpkin puree, vanilla, and 1 tablespoon of the beaten egg to the bowl and continue mixing until smooth. Stir in the flour and pumpkin pie spice until well incorporated and smooth.
- Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper and remove the pie dough cut outs from the fridge. Lay out 12 circles on the prepared cookie sheet. About 1-2 inches apart.
- Place 1 tablespoon of pumpkin cream cheese filling into the center of each dough circle, leave a ¼ inch border of pie dough clean.
- Make an eggwash by adding 1 teaspoon of milk or water to the remaining beaten egg. Brush the border of the filled pies with the egg wash.
- For the other 12 dough circles, use a sharp knife to cut four slits in the dough to allow steam to escape while baking. Carefully place the tops with the slits onto the pie halves with pumpkin pie filling. Press the outer edges of the two pie dough cutouts together with your fingers or a fork. This will seal in the filling. Try not to press the filling out.
- Once sealed, place the mini pies in the freezer to chill for 10-15 minutes until firm.
- Preheat the oven to 400℉, and if you have any remaining pie dough scraps, now is the time to roll them out and cut out decorative shapes–like pumpkins or leaves.
- Once the pies have firmed in the freezer, brush the dough with eggwash and glue on any pie dough decorations. Gently brush the decorations with egg wash too.
- Bake the pumpkin hand pies at 400℉ for 15-18 min until puffy and golden brown. Transfer pies to a wire rack to cool and serve at room temperature.
Notes
- If using homemade pie dough, you'll need the equivalent of 1 9" pie crust or 14 ounces.
- Keeping the dough cold at all times will make it easier to work with and bake up the hand pies super flaky.
