Easy blueberry hand pies – a flaky, crispy crust on the outside and warm blueberries spilling with their juices inside. This is definitely a keeper and a quick fix for afternoon tea.
I’ve always been fascinated with the concept of time.
The idea that time is a resource which once spent, can never be regained, has always intrigued me – the way the seconds tick by, the sudden jerk of the hour-hand on your watch, or the flip of a page on the calender, informing us that we’ve somehow slid into November and that it’ll be Christmas even before we have time to process it.
I watched the Christopher Nolan’s latest movie Interstellar the other day. I don’t want to spoil it for you if you haven’t seen it yet (no spoilers here).
I just have to say that I kept thinking about how time is relative depending on which planet you’re on; and how hours in another solar system could be translated into decades on this good earth.
Yet even on the same planet, we experience time differently, depending on where we’re located.
Our days, which are all of 24 hours, may seem much longer if we’re near the equator, and much shorter if you’re in the North or South pole.
The tropical countries like my beloved Singapore have days that start and end pretty much the same time everyday, but in seasonal countries, hours may change according to daylight savings and obviously, the length of the days and nights depend heavily on the season you’re currently in.
I’m amazed by the fact that time in Singapore is 11 hours ahead of that of Argentina, and I still can’t fully grasp the concept that when I’m getting up and preparing for work, my family and friends are just about to wrap up their day and wind down in bed. It’s strange and largely bizarre.
I’ve also always found it amusing that while you may be on the same side of the globe as someone else, they may be experiencing a completely different season from yours.
Case in point: I read alot of North American food blogs, and so many of the blogs currently feature autumn recipes for apple tarts, pumpkin pies and warm soups to combat the chilly weather.
In Buenos Aires though, my mind is constantly filled with recipes which include spring’s prettiest fruits. You know, those gems like strawberries, blueberries, raspberries..
I’m dreaming of mixed berry crumbles, strawberry galettes, and right now, these amazing blueberry handpies.
These blueberry hand pies are probably the easiest, quickest type of pies I’ve ever made, assuming you’ve got store-bought pie crusts on hand. They come together so quickly that it takes longer to watch an episode of House of Cards or Suits than it takes to make these hand pies from start to finish.
I made these early Saturday morning, cranking up the oven even though it was bright and hot outside. I couldn’t help myself. These recipes take control of me and oh well… I have to bake!
I was very pleased with how they turned out – a flaky, crispy crust on the outside and warm blueberries spilling with their juices inside – definitely a keeper and a quick fix for afternoon tea.
I have a feeling you’ll like these too, no matter which side of the earth you’re on, what season you’re in, or what time it is.
<3
Easy Blueberry Hand Pies
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 40 mins
- Yield: 15 1x
Description
A flaky, crispy crust on the outside and warm blueberries spilling with their juices inside – definitely a keeper and a quick fix for afternoon tea.
Ingredients
- 15 store-bought flaky gluten-free mini tart crusts
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 3 tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 2 1/2 cups fresh blueberries
- a pinch of salt
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 tablespoons of water
- Sugar, for sprinkling
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix together the sugar, cornstarch, cinnamon, ground cinnamon and lemon zest.
- In a large bowl, mix blueberries with lemon juice until blueberries are coated with lemon juice
- Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the blueberries and mix well until blueberries are completely coated
- Combine egg yolk and water to create eggwash
- Fill the centre of the tart crusts with 1 tablespoon of blueberry mixture, and brush the edges with egg wash, then fold the crust into half and seal the edges by pressing the back of a fork down on the top edge of dough
- Chill hand pies for half an hour in the refridgerator before baking
- Pre-heat oven to 375 deg Fahrenheit (190 deg Cel)
- Remove hand pies from the refridgerator and brush the top sides with remaining egg wash
- Sprinkle tops of handpies with sugar, then cut a small slit on the top of the hand pies for the steam to escape during baking
- Bake for around 20 minutes or until hand pies have turned golden brown and are flaky
- Let pies cool for 5 minutes before serving. (Best eaten when pies are still flaky and crispy).
Notes
Barely adapted from Pastry Affair
- Category: Snacks
How many does this recipe make?
Hi Barbara! It would make 14 – 15 small hand pies. Enjoy! 🙂
They are great! Made them with prepared pie dough the first time, was quick and easy. Second time prepared my own pie crust . Better flakiness but took longer to prepare. Made blueberry, blackberry, and strawberry/rhubarb . I also froze some and baked later berry’s were a little mushy but flavor was just as good. Thanks for the great recipe
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Hi Teri! That makes me so happy to hear!! Thank you for letting me know! Btw, that homemade pie crust sounds amazing!! And blackberry pies and strawberry/rhubarb sounds great! 😉 Have a great week ahead dear!
I can’t find the crusty dough for the pies what else can I usel
Hi Barbara, maybe you can try to make your own dough instead? The ones I used came packaged like that here in Argentina, so I don’t know what other product you can buy to substitute it. So sorry!!
Hello can you tell me what kind of pie crusts(tarts) you used? Were they a frozen kind?
Hi Aurora, yep I used frozen mini pie crusts that are from the stores in Argentina. I don’t know if they are easily found where you’re from?
HI! I just bumped into your recipe. It caught my attention because they reminded me of our “empanadas”. I live in PAtagonia now and boy! I’m full of raspberries now. I’m collecting everyday. I’ve just finished with 10 jars with whole rasberries in syrup (because I got tired of raspberry jam) to enjoy later with ice-cream. And today I started raspberry liquor to later flavor cakes. I think I will adapt you recipe with raspberries. Thanks!
Hola Natalia!! Encantada! Yo también vivo en argentina, y la verdad es que si, son como empanadas pero dulces! 🙂 Que ricas las frambuesas! Que lastima que acá en Capital no tenemos tanto!! Si hacete las hand pies con frambuesas, te van a quedar ricos!
Can I make these ahead and freeze them for another day? If so, when should I do that? Thanks
Hi Leila! I don’t see any problem with making them ahead and then freezing for another day. You could do it 2-3 days in advance (but make sure that the unbaked hand pies are placed in a single layer (or separated with a plastic sheet if you have to pile them on top of each other). As long as the pies don’t touch each other when you freeze them it should be fine.
OH MY GOSH! I so can not wait to make these!!
Hi Cynthia!! These are extremely easy and you can even substitute the blueberries for any other fruit that has been cut into small pieces!! 🙂 I plan to make a gluten-free strawberry version this weekend!
Where does step #1 come into (mixture) the recipe? I am following the directions but confused when to add in the mixture……
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Hi Jennifer! You should mix the mixture from Step 1 with the blueberries (as mentioned in Step 3). Hope this clarifies it! Let me know if you are still in doubt 🙂
Confused about step #2. “Mix blueberries and lemon juice until..”..?
Hi Julie, thanks for noting that – I’ve made the change in the recipe – it should state mix blueberries with lemon juice until blueberries are fully coated with lemon juice. Hope that clears it up!
Hello Felicia!
Isn’t it just so amazing how you have captured the essence of “time and its relativity” so well relative to location, season and planet?
Where you live, you can experience the different seasons at different time of the year whereas we in Singapore are able to experience the temperature changes with mild to strong rays of sunshine and rain (from a drizzle to heavy downpour) all in a span of one day.
On reflection of the different beauty brought about by the changes in weather conditions, I am just so amazed at God’s wondrous works of creativity for our enjoyment on this earth. I am thankful 🙂
I am also thankful for your easy-to-make recipe for blueberry hand-pies 🙂
Love and Blessings!
Mum
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Thank you mummy 🙂 When you have cell group over one of these days, you can make these blueberry hand pies for them! very very easy and good! But make sure you eat them as soon as they are baked (so they are crispy and flaky and don’t get soggy).