When we bought our house and moved into the neighborhood several years ago, our neighbors dropped by to introduce themselves and they brought a blueberry pie. Shane doesn’t like blueberries so I was on my own with the pie, and I devoured it in record time. I may have had blueberry pie before then, but if I had, it clearly wasn’t very memorable. Apple pie had always been my very favorite – the go-to choice when presented with pie options, but no more. Blueberry has had my heart ever since!
I’ve mentioned before, I’m really not a fan of making pies, but there seems to be an exception for hand pies. I guess technically they’re more work than a regular pie since you have to assemble each individually rather than just dumping all of the filling into the crust for a traditional pie, but I love the shorter cooking time, and I think it’s easier to avoid the dreaded runny filling I’ve encountered more times than I care to admit with traditional pie. Other good things about hand pies? The ratio of crust to filling, the fact that they’re portable, and the cute factor π
I could eat these blueberry hand pies for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert every day and be perfectly content. They were fantastic in every way! The pie crust was flaky, the blueberry filling creamy and not overly sweet, with hints of lemon throughout. They can definitely be eaten out of hand – the filling is perfectly contained, no dripping or leaking. Oh, and since frozen blueberries are used in the pies, you can make them year round! No need to impatiently wait for blueberry season to roll around π My one minor complaint is that I wish the tops of the pies had browned a little more so they weren’t quite as pale, but it really didn’t affect the texture or flavor, so no biggie.
Blueberry-Cream Cheese Hand Pies
pies from Everyday Food-May 2012, pie dough adapted from Williams-Sonoma via Annie’s Eats
Pie Dough
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons cold water
Filling
8 oz cream cheese, at room temperature
3/4 cup sugar, divided
2 teaspoons lemon zest
1 large egg
10 oz frozen blueberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
For Assembly
2 tablespoons heavy cream
sanding sugar
To make the pie dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, sugar and salt on low speed just to combine. Add the butter, and mix, first on low and then increasing the speed to medium low, cutting the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. With the mixer on low, add the cold water, beating just until the dough comes together.
Turn the dough out onto your work surface. Divide it in half and shape each piece into a disk. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.
Preheat oven to 400 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
To make the filling: In a medium bowl mix the cream cheese, 1/2 cup of the sugar, the lemon zest and egg until smooth. In a second bowl, toss the blueberries with the remaining 1/4 cup of sugar, the lemon juice and flour.
Place one of the disks of pie dough on a lightly floured work surface. Roll into a square about 1/8-inch thick – don’t worry if it’s not perfect, just trim the edges. My square was roughly 10×10-inches. Cut the dough into 4 equal pieces (so for me, it was four 5×5 squares). Spoon 1 heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese mixture into the center of each square, then top with about 2 tablespoons of the blueberry mixture. Brush the edges of the square with the heavy cream, then bring opposite corners together to form a triangle. Press the edges together, then use a fork to crimp them. Brush the top of the pie with heavy cream and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Repeat with the remaining 3 squares of dough, then do the same with the second disk of dough, making a total of 8 pies.
{Note – I did have leftovers of both the cream cheese and blueberry fillings – I probably could have made several more pies.}
Transfer the pies to the parchment-lined baking sheets. Cut a small vent or two in the top of each pie. Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the baking sheets halfway through, or until the pies are golden brown (the filling may bubble out of the vents a little too). Transfer to a wire rack and allow the pies to cool completely.
Makes 8 pies
I am a crust girl, as mucg as I love all the fillings, the crust is my favorite part, and these just sound like a cheesecake in a pie, definetely a winner for me!
Well, I have to make these. It’s been far too long since I’ve had anything blueberry!
love hand pies! so much easier to make and much easier to eat π i would fill mine with apple or strawberry..for some reason, i’m not a huge fan of blueberry either. yours looks great, i love the deep color of the blueberries that give contrast to your crust! beautiful job π
Yum! I prefer individual servings of desserts. They’re easier to share and serve.
These are fantastic little hand pies, Tracey! I’m not big into making full-sized pies either but I love recipes like this. These would be great for breakfast or dessert!
Love the combination in these, Tracey. Beautiful!!
I love how easy these are! I made blueberry hand pies last week but didn’t use cream cheese. They were awesome but I absolutely looove your idea and will try this recipe next time
I love blueberry pie, too. There is something so special about it. I’m sure I’d love these hand pies since blueberries and cream cheese sounds like heaven. Shane doesn’t know what he is missing out on.
Blueberry cream cheese sounds dreamy right about now. I grew up eating Hostess cherry pies…I admit it. Lol These look amazing!
These look fabulous! I love blueberry pie, too, and the cream cheese sounds divine! I’ll definitely have to try these – what a fun thing to take to a picnic!
I bet your neighbor was super honored to know that they changed you from an apple to blueberry pie lover. I also don’t make pie very often, but in any form. I tend to leave that to my dad for when I visit, but I’m obviously missing out. As for the runny filling, I think my dad adds a little tapioca to help firm it up.
I love hand pies! I think because they are smaller and seem easier than making a full pie. Blueberry is one of my favorites and with the cream cheese sounds amazing! I bought a few hand pie presses for my oldest to use and now he likes to make pies all the time. π
I bookmarked these when I saw them in Everyday Food, and now you’re reminding me I really must make them! Yum.
what nice neighbors! I love the color of these
The cream cheesey blueberry filling with the zest sounds to-die for. I like that you can really sink your teeth into these hand pies. There’s just something different about holding the pie in your hand- I adore this idea!
These look amazing! They remind me of the individual pies at the checkout of the grocery store. My sister and I used to beg for them as kids; I think my mom only let us have them once or twice π
these look like perfection–they belong in a magazine or something!
oh wow. Ok, Im making them! My family will love these π
Blueberry, a hint of lemon and cream cheese wrapped in flaky pie dough…sign me up! I have yet to tackle hand pies. Adding it to my baking bucket list!
These are so cute!! I LOVE blueberry pie
I love that you can hold these in your hand and eat… No dripping! I thought the ratio of filling to crust was perfect and they made a great breakfast. Thanks for offering some to us!
More crust is always a good thing! I haven’t made hand pies in forever but I’m thinking I need to change that.
These hand pies look scrumptious! Perfect for a picnic! Yum!
These are absolutely gorgeous. My hubby is a blueberry fanatic, so I’ll have to make them for him… And, sneak one away for me so he doesn’t eat them all!
Cannot wait for our blueberries to ripen. I love making hand pies. These look wonderful.
I’m not a blueberry person, but I bet these would work with other fruits, too. I bet they would be a big hit around here. As for the browning, maybe use an egg wash to stick the sugar on instead of cream?
I absolutely love this! This would be the perfect breakfast treat on my way to work.
Totally bookmarking this Tracey! Thanks for sharing!!!
These look perfect! Amazing job.
xo
http://allykayler.blogspot.com/
I baked these today and they turned out great- I got a lot of compliments. However, I do recommend adjusting the cream cheese filling part of the recipe because I didn’t use half of it. Now I am going to make another batch to freeze just so that I don’t waste it. Also, you said to “mix” the cream cheese with the egg; do you mean “beat” or mix with an electric mixer? I assumed so but the directions weren’t clear.