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Cherry Hand Pies Recipe

A tender and flaky pie crust loaded with creamy cream cheese and cherry fillings.

Course Dessert, Snack
Cuisine American
Keyword cherry hand pies
Prep Time 1 hour 15 minutes
Cook Time 1 hour
Servings 8 4" Hand Pies
Author Dikla

Ingredients

Cream Cheese Crust

  • 1 1/2 Sticks Unsalted Butter,cold. (170 g/ 6 oz)
  • 2 1/2 Cup Pastry Flour or Bleached AP flour (284 g/10 oz)
  • 1/2 tsp Salt
  • 1/4 tsp Baking Powder
  • 1/2 pack Cream Cheese, cold (128 g/ 4.5 oz)
  • 3 TBS Heavy Cream,cold
  • 1 TBS Cider Vinegar

Cherry Filling

  • 1 Pack Frozen Dark sweet cherries OR pitted fresh cherries (450 g/ 16 oz)
  • 2 TBS Water (if using fresh cherries)
  • 3 TBD Cornstach
  • 3/4 Cups Sugar (150 g/ 5.5 oz)
  • 1 TBS Fresh Lemon Juice
  • 1 tsp Kosher Salt

Cream cheese Filling

  • 1/2 Cup Full Fat cream cheese, softened (113 g / 4 oz)
  • 1/2 Cup Sugar (100 g / 3.5 oz)
  • 1 Egg yolk

Instructions

  1. Cut the butter into 1/2" cubes, warp it in plastic wrap, and place in the freezer for at least 30 minutes.

  2. Add the salt and baking powder to the flour. Place the mix in a sealed container or a plastic bag, and freeze for at least 30 minutes.

  3. Place the flour mixture in a food processor and pulse five times.

  4. Cut the cream cheese into one-inch pieces, and add it to the flour. Process until the mixture is coarse

  5. Add the frozen butter to the mixture and pulse until the butter is a little larger than peas.

  6. Remove the cover and add the heavy cream and vinegar and pulse five times, until the mixture looks like coarse sand.

  7. Place the dough mixture over a large piece of plastic wrap, and use the ends to press the dough together into a ball.

  8. Divide the dough into 2, wrap each with plastic, and refrigerate for an hour or overnight.

Cherry Filling

  1. Mix the water and cornstarch and set aside.

  2. Place the cherries and lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Toss the cherries with the lemon juice, then add the sugar to the pan.

  3. Place over medium heat and cook until the cherries release liquids, then reduce to a simmer and let simmer covered, for 15 minutes.

  4. Remove the pan from the heat and add the cornstarch, return the pan to the stove and let simmer. Cook until the filling is thick, about one minute.

  5. Remove from heat and allow to cool to room temperature.

cream Cheese Filling

  1. Place the cream cheese, sugar, and egg yolk in a bowl and mix to fully combined.

Assemble

  1. Preheat oven to 375F and line 2 pans with baking paper.

  2. Roll out half of the chilled dough to 1/8" thick. Use your choice of cookie cutter to cut the dough, and place the cutes over a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

  3. Spoon one tablespoon of cream cheese, then one tablespoon of cherry filling at the center of each dough cut.

  4. Roll and cut the second disc.

  5. Top each round with the second piece of dough that has a circle in the center, and gently press the edges of the dough with a fork to seal.

  6. Brush each pie with egg and allow to chill for a minimum of 45 minutes.

  7. Bake until the crust is golden brown, 20 -25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 1 hour before eating to let the filling set.

Recipe Notes

  • The cherry filling can be made up to five days in advance and the pie crust up to three days; store both in the refrigerator. 
  • Store the baked cherry pies at room temperature for up to three days.
  • If the cherries don't release liquids after five minutes, add three tablespoons of water to the saucepan.
  • If fresh cherries are not in season, opt for frozen cherries instead. Before preparing the filling, ensure to thaw and drain the frozen cherries.
  • For added texture, sprinkle turbinado, coarse, or cinnamon sugar on top of the pies before baking.
  • This recipe can also be prepared using puff pastry dough.