Blueberry Hand Pies
I’ve filed these blueberry hand pies under desserts and breakfast because with their not-too-sweet cream cheese and blueberry filling they really can pull double-duty as either a sweet treat for a weekend brunch or a no-plate-required dessert for BBQs, potlucks, or other summer get-togethers. And, because they are freezer-friendly, you can make a batch and have them on hand whenever a craving for a fruity pie strikes.
Some Ingredients You’ll Need
- Store-bought pie dough: I accepted long ago that homemade pie crust just isn’t my thing and happily buy pie dough at the store now. Look for boxes of pie dough – the ones that are rolled-up two to a box – where the premade cinnamon rolls and crescent rolls are, usually in a refrigerated section of the grocery store. Two rolls of pie dough will make eight hand pies.
- Fresh blueberries: Fresh is really best for these hand pies and while you can usually buy blueberries year-round at the grocery store, the best time of year to make these hand pies in the late spring to mid-summer when the blueberry season is in high swing.
- Cream cheese: Although it requires some advanced planning, it’s important that the cream cheese is at room temperature. I like to leave the cream cheese on the counter overnight and make these in the morning. Room temperature cream cheese makes the whole mixing operation so much easier.
- Lemon zest and juice
- Granulated sugar: There’s just 1/4 cup of sugar in the filling plus a little extra to sprinkle over the top of the hand pies before they go in the oven.
How to Freeze Hand Pies
- Make the hand pies following the instructions in the recipe, but instead of popping them in the oven place them in a single layer on baking sheets and pop them in the freezer just until they freeze.
- Wrap each hand pie in plastic wrap and then place them all in a large freezer bag.
- When you’re ready to bake them, just unwrap and place them on a baking sheet with parchment paper. Bake them for 40 to 45 minutes, or until they turn golden on top.
The hand pies are best served the day you bake them, either warm from the oven or at room temperature. The dough has a tendency to soften and lose it’s flakiness if they are stored too long at room temperature. Making them ahead and baking them as you need them is the best way to go.
More Summer Dessert Recipes
Freezer-Friendly Blueberry Hand Pies
Using store-bought pie crust makes these hand pies so easy to make. Plus, they are freezer-friendly, which means you can make them ahead and bake them as you need them. See the recipe notes for instructions on how to freeze them.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 8 hand pies 1x
- Category: Desserts
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature
- 1/4 cup of granulated sugar, plus 2 teaspoons
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup fresh blueberries
- 2 store-bought pie dough rounds
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, mix the cream cheese, 1/4 cup of sugar, lemon zest and juice, and 1 egg together until well combined. Fold in the blueberries.
- Beat the other egg in a small bowl with 1 tablespoon of water. Unroll the pie dough rounds and, using a pizza cutter, cut each into 4 triangles, so you have 8 pieces of dough to make the hand pies. Fill a small bowl with a few tablespoons of water.
- Place a generous 1/4 cup of the cream cheese filling with the blueberries just off-center on each piece of dough. Moisten the edges of each dough piece with a little water. Fold one side of the dough over the filling so that it meets the other edge. Gently press on the edges to seal the seam. Repeat with the other hand pies.
- Brush the tops of the hand pies with a light coating of the egg and water mixture. Sprinkle the extra sugar over the top of each hand pie. Cut a few one-inch slits in the dough to allow steam to escape and transfer the hand pies to the baking sheet.
- Bake the hand pies for 30-35 minutes, or until the tops have turned golden. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
How to freeze the hand pies:
- Follow the recipe instructions up until the point that you would bake them. Instead of popping them in the oven, place the hand pies on baking sheets and place them in the freezer just until they freeze.
- Wrap each hand pie in plastic wrap and place them in a freezer bag until you are ready to bake them.
- To bake from frozen, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the frozen hand pies on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and bake them for 40-45 minutes, or until they turn golden on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 hand pie
- Calories: 407
- Sugar: 10.3g
- Sodium: 340.9mg
- Fat: 25.2g
- Saturated Fat: 11.6g
- Carbohydrates: 40.9g
- Fiber: 1.1g
- Protein: 5.2g
- Cholesterol: 75.2mg
Keywords: blueberry hand pies, easy hand pies recipe, blueberry dessert recipe
Jan says
How long will these keep in the freezer. I’m skeptical on freezing something with cream cheese.
April Anderson says
Hi Jan, it’s true that cream cheese can lose some of its creamy texture when frozen, but I didn’t notice this when I tested this recipe. Since the cream cheese is combined with the other ingredients and then frozen inside the dough it actually bakes up nicely. They should keep well for up to two months in the freezer as long as they’re stored in an airtight container. Hope that helps!
Trish says
Where is the lemon juice used?
April Anderson says
It goes in with the lemon zest – thanks for letting me know, I’ve updated the recipe!
Bobbie says
Am making these this Sunday afternoon, using pre made crust.
🙂 home made crust isn’t as hard as everyone makes it out to be. Use real butter and its amazing!