Apple Hand Pies

Apple Hand Pies are made with apple pie filling, homemade pie crust or biscuit dough. Buttery, flaky pie crust, warm, tender cinnamon-coated apples that makes a perfect hand-held dessert. Watch the video below of how to make them!

While we love them fried, they can also be baked in the oven or in the air fryer. This apple pie recipe has been shared nearly 200,000 times- one of our most popular recipes!

This easy to make apple dessert is perfect for picnics, barbecues or as a holiday dessert.

We’ve used our favorite pie crust recipe that makes a consistent flaky pie dough. It’s the perfect compliment to this apple dessert! This is the perfect way to use freshly-picked apples.

I’ve recreated Grandma’s Apple Jack recipe. This is the perfect easy to make dessert recipe for any backyard BBQ, potluck or family gathering!

Assemble ahead of time, placed on half sheet pans and frozen for later. They’re easy to make using either homemade or store bought pie crust or biscuit dough. Although, personally we prefer homemade pie crust.

Be sure and try one of our other cobbler recipes using fresh or frozen fruit including; blueberry cobbler, apple cobbler, blackberry cobbler, peach cobbler and cherry cobbler any time of year.

Why this recipe works

• Uses simple ingredients – This apple pie recipe uses ingredients readily available at most grocery stores.
• Prep ahead of time – Make the pie filling ahead of time. Refrigerate it for a few days or freeze for 1-2 months.
• Flavor – Flaky pie crust and chunks of apples with warm spices.
• Freezer friendly – Assemble ahead of time, place on half sheet pans lined with parchment paper and freeze. Cover the entire pan with plastic wrap to prevent frost bite.
• Makes a great individual dessert – The perfect hand-held dessert for summer picnics, barbecues or even a Thanksgiving dessert. Top with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and drizzle with caramel sauce.

What you’ll need

• Apples – Granny Smith, Macoun, McIntosh and Honeycrisp are great options for apple pie. Granny Smith is tart and holds up well. Use another variety, such as McIntosh that will break down and create an apple sauce texture.
• Cinnamon & nutmeg – Warm spice of cinnamon adds plenty of fall spice to your apple pie.
• Cornstarch – Helps thicken the pie filling. Make a slurry with cornstarch and cold water mixed together.
• Butter – Adds a nice touch of flavor to the filling.
• Pie crust – Use homemade or store-bought pie dough. Refrigerated biscuit dough rolled out will also work well.

How to make apple hand pies

• Make apple pie filling – Let it cool completely. You can even make this a few days ahead of time to save time!
• Cool completely – It’s very important to let pie filling cool completely before assembling hand pies. If you put hot pie filling inside the pie dough it will melt it.
• Make pie dough – Prep and put in the refrigerator to chill for a few hours or overnight.
• Roll out pie crust – Roll out biscuit dough or pie crust on a lightly floured surface, into 4-6 inch ovals.
• Fill with cooled pie filling – Scoop about 1 tablespoon or so of the cooled filling in the center of each round.
• Seal pie crust – Fold over, lightly press down on the filling, trim and crimp edges with a floured fork. (If a little pie filling leaks out, toss a little flour on it!)
• Place on sheet pan – Place hand pies on a half sheet pan lined with parchment paper.
• Chill – Refrigerate or freeze for later. (Our preferred method is to freeze pies right away! This prevents pie filling from leaking and chills the pie dough well.)
• Fry or bake – They can be either fried or baked in the oven.

Best apples for pie

• Granny Smith – Granny Smith apples have a tart and tangy flavor, along with firmness. They are also readily available in most grocery stores.
• Macoun – A variety native to New England and perfect for pie. It’s a cross between the ‘McIntosh’ and ‘Jersey Black’ cultivars. Sweet, slightly tart and perfect for pie.
• McIntosh – This variety is sweet and tart. It also tends to break down when it cooks.
• Honeycrisp – This variety is sweet, firm, and great apple flavor. This combination of flavor and texture makes it a great choice for pie.

This heirloom recipe is just like grandma’s! Grandma would be proud!

As you create each hand pie, place them on a half sheet pan lined with a piece of parchment paper. Overlap them slightly with 5-6 in each row, with a total of 3 rows per sheet pan.

What is a Apple Hand Pie?

When we moved to North Carolina, a local gentleman asked me to make something called “Apple Jacks.” These yummy individual pies are small pieces of dough with a dollop of apple pie filling, then crimped and fried.

They are an old-fashioned tradition here in the South. Sprinkle with sugar or drizzle with a simple glaze.

History of Apple Jacks

Years ago, when ladies made these, they certainly were not using store-bought crusts. They likely did not have the disposable income that many of us have today, nor did they have access to convenience products such as these. Traditionally, they used dried apple pieces, mixing those with water, sugar and cinnamon.

Recipe FAQs

How to freeze hand pies

• As you make each hand pie, place onto a half sheet pan lined with a piece of parchment paper. Overlap them just a tad and be able to fit about 5-6 in each row, with a total of 3 rows per sheet pan.
• Wrap entire sheet pan with plastic wrap and place in the freezer flat. Be sure the entire sheet pan stays flat. Once they are completely frozen you can stack another sheet pan on top, if needed. But, not until they are completely frozen– otherwise you will squish them!

Thawing Hand Pies

• Thaw in the fridge, uncovered. This also makes the pie dough super cold when you fry them, helping them become perfectly flaky.
• NOTE: If you leave them covered with plastic wrap after being frozen, they end up with too much condensation! Just remove the plastic wrap and they’ll thaw perfectly overnight.
• Fry them right out of the fridge. You want them to be cold so the pie crust stays flaky!

More Pie and Cobbler Recipes

• Apple Pie
• Blueberry Pie
• Blueberry Hand Pies
• Blueberry Crumble Pie
• Blackberry Cobbler
• Blackberry Hand Pies
• Cherry Hand Pies
• Cherry Crumb Pie
• Cherry Cobbler
• Peach Hand Pies
• Peach Cobbler
• Pecan Pie
• Peach Crumb Pie

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