I’m a huge fan of hand pies. Who doesn’t love having their own individual pie, with a high crust-to-filling ratio, ready to eat with no need for silverware and plates? These easy Apple & Hawthorn Hand Pies are quintessential cozy fall baking: flaky all-butter pastry, warmly spiced apple filling, and a drizzle of pink hawthorn glaze that gives them a real pop.
If you’ve never baked with this special wild ingredient before and you’re wondering what to do with hawthorn berries, this is a wonderful introduction. They add a subtle tartness and a lovely rose color that transforms a classic apple hand pie into something even more special.
Recipe highlights
- All the fall flavors. Apples, hawthorn, and warm spices are a perfect fall trifecta.
- Buttery, flaky crust. Homemade all-butter pie dough makes these hand pies crispy, flaky, and utterly irresistible.
- Perfectly portioned & portable. Little apple pies you can hold in your hand — perfect for gatherings, potlucks, or easy snacking.
- Fun foraged twist. The hawthorn berries bring a subtle tartness and gorgeous pink hue to the glaze. An easy & excellent way to use hawthorn berries.
- Make-ahead friendly. Both the filling and dough can be made in advance, so you can assemble and bake when you’re ready.
Recipe overview
⏱️ Prep: ~1 hr • Bake: 20-25 min • Total: ~2.5 hrs with chill time
🍴 Yield: Makes 10-12 hand pies
💪 Skill Level: Intermediate (but approachable!)
How to make apple hawthorn hand pies
You’ll find full recipe instructions and ingredients in the recipe card towards the bottom of this post. Here’s a quick overview:
- Prepare hawthorn juice: First things first! Harvest hawthorn berries, rinse them well, cook them until they fall apart, and strain out the juicy goodness. Find full instructions for making hawthorn juice here.
- Make the pie dough: Prepare your pie dough recipe and let it chill until firm.
- Cook the filling: Sauté chopped apples with butter, brown sugar, spices, and seeded hawthorn berries until just tender. Cool before using.
- Roll & fill: Roll dough into 5-inch circles. Add a spoonful of filling to the center of each, fold over, and crimp the edges to seal. Cut a few vent holes in the top and chill again before baking.
- Bake: Arrange on a parchment-lined baking sheet, brush with egg wash, and bake until golden and bubbly.
- Glaze: Once cooled, drizzle with a pink hawthorn glaze made from fresh hawthorn juice.
Want to make one large hawthorn pie instead? Try my Hawthorn Curd Tart! It’s a gorgeous hawthorn dessert recipe that’s sure to impress, with flavorful orange shortcrust and a pretty-in-pink hawthorn curd.
Foraging hawthorn berries
Hawthorn berries ripen in late summer through fall and can be found on large trees (Crataegus species) in parks, urban landscaping, and woodland edges. Look for clusters of small dark red berries with a single seed inside.
Hawthorn vs. crabapple
Hawthorn berries (actually called “haws”) look like miniature apples and can often be confused with crabapples. Though they’re both edible, it’s good to know the difference.
The leaves are the main differentiating factor. Hawthorn trees have distinctive lobed leaves while crabapples have oval, lightly serrated leaves. Haws will be soft and squishy when ripe, while crabapples remain slightly firm.
Hawthorn branches often contain long thorns, so harvest carefully! Be sure to properly identify them before foraging. You can check out my full guide on how to find and use hawthorn berries for tips and photos.
Note: The seeds of hawthorn berries contain cyanogenic glycosides (just like apples do), which can release cyanide if chewed or crushed. You’ll need to de-seed the hawthorn berries before adding them to the pie filling. I find the easiest way to do this is to simply push the seed out with my fingers.
Pro baking tips for successful hand pies
Don’t overfill. It’s tempting to load up the pies with filling, but too much will make sealing tricky and can cause leaks and blowouts in the oven.
Seal well. Crimp the edges with a fork or pinch them tightly to make sure your pies stay closed while baking.
Chill thoroughly before baking. A 20-minute chill in the freezer helps the pies hold their shape and bake up extra flaky.
Sift the powdered sugar. This ensures the glaze comes out smooth and glossy without lumps.
Adjust glaze as needed. The hawthorn glaze should be fairly thick but pourable. Add hawthorn juice, a little at a time, until you have the right consistency.
Variations & substitutions
No hawthorn berries? Use cranberries or raspberries instead for a similar tartness and color.
Switch up the spice mix: Ginger and allspice are also delicious with apples.
Make them mini: Use a smaller biscuit cutter to make bite-sized versions for parties. Check out my Green Tomato Hand Pies for photos & directions to make mini hand pies.
Try a different fruit: Pears or poached quince work beautifully in place of the apples.
Storage & make-ahead
Store apple hawthorn hands pies at room temperature. Keep cooled hand pies in an airtight container for up to 3 days.
You can also keep them in the refrigerator if you’re a fan of cold pie. They’ll keep up to 5 days in the fridge, wrapped tightly or kept in an airtight container.
How to freeze unbaked pies: Fill and seal hand pies, crimping them shut and cutting a few vent holes in each. Freeze on a sheet pan (not touching), then transfer to a freezer bag. Bake straight from frozen, adding a few extra minutes to the bake time.
Make ahead option: You can make the pie dough up to 5 days ahead of time. The apple and hawthorn filling can be prepared a day ahead of time.
Did you make these Apple Hawthorn Hand Pies? I’d love to hear what you think. Please leave a star rating and review under the recipe card below. Thank you!
Apple & Hawthorn Hand Pies
Ingredients
Pie Dough
- 2 ½ cups all purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 8 ounces (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced
- ⅓ cup cold water, (more or less as needed)
Apple Hawthorn Filling
- 3 cups apples (about 3-4 apples), peeled & diced
- 1 cup* fresh hawthorn berries, seeded
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ¼ cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom
- pinch of salt
Hawthorn Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar, sifted
- 2-3 tablespoons hawthorn juice
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Instructions
- Prepare hawthorn juice. Harvest hawthorn berries, rinse them well, cook them until they fall apart, and strain. Find full instructions for making hawthorn juice here.
- Make the pie dough. In a large bowl, whisk together 2 ½ cups flour, 2 tbsp sugar, and ½ tsp salt. Add cold diced butter; toss to coat. Blend butter in with your fingers or a pastry cutter until mixture is crumbly and butter is in pea-sized pieces. Add water 1-2 tablespoons at a time, slowly incorporating with a fork until mixture starts to form a shaggy mass. Pour onto lightly floured surface and fold gently until it all comes together. Cut dough in half and form each into a 1-inch thick disc. Wrap each tightly in plastic wrap and chill at least 30 minutes before rolling out.
- Prepare fruit. Peel and dice apples. Remove seeds from hawthorn berries using a small tool or by simply pushing them out with your fingers.
- Make hawthorn apple filling. Melt 2 tbsp butter in a saucepan. Sauté 3 cups diced apples with seeded hawthorn berries, ¼ cup brown sugar, 1 tsp cinnamon, ¼ tsp each nutmeg & cardamom, and pinch of salt just until lightly softened, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside to cool completely.
- Roll & cut rounds. On a lightly floured surface, roll out one pie dough at a time to about ⅛-inch thickness. Cut out small circles (I like to use a 5" yogurt or tupperware lid) and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Place dough rounds in the fridge as you cut them out – you want them to be fairly cool when you fill them.
- Fill. Scoop about 2 tbsp of apple hawthorn filling onto one side of your dough rounds. Fold the other side over, making a half moon shape, and pinch shut to seal. Crimp edges with a fork. Slice a few small vent holes into each hand pie. Chill in the freezer until firm, about 20 minutes.
- Bake. Preheat oven to 375° F. Bake pies until golden brown and bubbling, about 25-30 minutes. Place on a cooling rack and let cool completely before glazing.
- Glaze. Whisk together 1 cup powdered sugar with 1 tsp lemon juice and 2 tbsp hawthorn juice. Add a little more hawthorn juice if needed to get the right consistency. You want the glaze slightly thick but pourable. Spoon glaze onto cool pies. Enjoy!
Notes
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