These blueberry mini pies are small packets of joy & the perfect dessert for any occasion from a Sunday brunch to a late night dessert craving. They have flaky, buttery layers of pie crust packed with a homemade or store bought strawberry jam. You can even customise them with any other jam flavours of your choice. I have made these using store bought Pie Crust Sheets that make the process a lot easier and quicker. They stay good for days and can be easily frozen to preserve for longer durations.
INGREDIENTS YOU’LL NEED
- Pie Crust Sheet: You will need one sheet of homemade or store-bought shortcrust pastry to make these mini pies.
- Fresh Blueberries: Fresh and ripe blueberries are best to make a juicy, jammy filling for these hand pies. You can also use a store bought jam instead.
- Granulated Sugar: You will need this to make the strawberry filling for these pies. Along with adding sweetness, sugar helps to give the jammy texture to it.
- Lemon Juice: I always prefer using homemade lemon juice for its freshness & best natural flavour. However, you can even use store bought one instead if necessary.
- Vanilla: You must use a high quality pure vanilla extract in your recipes. This helps to add a rich flavor to your baked goods. Pure vanilla extracts are typically dark brown in color. This enhances the flavor of all ingredients and you should never leave this out.
- Cornstarch: Cornstarch helps to thicken the strawberry jam and bring it to the desired consistency.
FAQ
You can alternatively also make a lattice design for your mini heart shaped blueberry pies. Latticed mini pies are strips of dough weaved on top of the filled pies, layered over and under one another to create a beautifully enclosed packet. The holes between the strips allow steam to escape and without them your lattice will separate from your shortcrust pastry base. When making mini pies without a lattice, make sure to cut a small cross on top to allow steam to escape from them and avoiding a disaster!
Add the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla to a small heavy bottomed saucepan.
Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until berries start to break down.
Turn the heat down to low, and let the mixture simmer for another 5 minutes.
Add in the cornstarch and salt and stir it continuously for about 1-2 minutes with a wooden spatula until thickened.
Transfer to a mason jar and then place in the refrigerator until cool and ready to use.
You can freeze these mini pies both before and after baking in airtight containers. I suggest freezing the dough and not latticed pies as they are easier to handle and store. Place these pies in an airtight container. Add a date to them so you don’t forget later & store in the freezer for upto 3 months.
Some tips to make the best blueberry mini pies:
- Allow the jam to cool: If you’re making homemade jam, allow it to cool and chill until it reaches the desired consistency before filling it on top of the pie crust. If the jam is still warm or not set, the filling will be watery and leak out of your pie while baking. It can also make your pie dough soggy. To get perfect, crisp pies, be sure to give enough time to allow the jam to cool. You can also use a store bough jam alternatively.
- Seal the edges of the pie: It is very important to tightly seal the edges of the pie. Fill the jam only in the center of the cutout heart shaped pie leaving some space around the edges. When placing the second layer on top, seal the edges with your hand and then finally once again with a fork to create the pattern shown above. This will prevent your filling from flowing out the sides of your mini pies.
- Mark a vent in the center: Now once you’ve filled and sealed your pie properly, you need to mark a vent in the center, usually a cross section. This is so important as it allows the steam during baking to escape. If you don’t mark this properly, the sealed edges of your pie will open up for the steam to escape and your filling will also flow out along with them. This is not required if you’re making a lattice pattern on top of your pies and not sealing them.
- Brush with an egg wash: To get evenly browned pies with those perfectly flaky and crisp layers, it is important to brush them with an egg wash before placing them into the oven. I don’t recommend skipping this at all.
- Do not over bake: These pies can over bake and start browning more than you’d want very quickly so keep an eye on your oven at the end of the baking cycle. No two ovens are the same so make sure to keep an eye on yours as these mini pies bakes. These pies are done when the top has browned evenly and the filling is bubbling in the center. It usually takes 18-20 minutes.
HOW TO GET THE BEST RESULTS FROM THIS RECIPE?
All of the recipes on the blog are thoroughly tested multiple times and carefully designed so that anyone can reproduce these delicious baked good in their own kitchen and enjoy them to the fullest. The only way to make this possible is when anyone can exactly replicate the measurements and temperatures.
- In order to standardise the way ingredients are measured, I highly recommend that you weigh them in grams. Volume measurements are nearly not as accurate and have a lot of scope for errors. To precisely be able to replicate the recipes, all you will need is a kitchen scale!
- Every oven heats up differently. Your oven might be over heating or under heating by around 50 degrees or more and you might not even know. In order to ensure that you are baking at the right temperatures, I highly recommend investing in an oven thermometer!
If you would still like to bake using volume measurements, I mentioned those below. However, I primarily test my recipes in grams and cannot promise the best results if you do so. Trust me, once you’ll start using these tools you’d never want to go back.
I hope you’ll enjoy these mini blueberry pies this Valentine’s Day and don’t forget to bookmark this recipe for later. These pretty & delicious tart would make the perfect delight to share with your friends & family!
Happy Baking!
Print
Blueberry Mini Pies
- Prep Time: 40 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 12 mini pies 1x
- Category: Mini Pies, Hand Pies, Blueberry, Valentine’s Day
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
These Mini Blueberry Hand Pies are small packets of joy & the perfect dessert for any occasion from a Sunday brunch to a late night dessert craving. They have flaky, buttery layers of pie crust packed with a homemade or store bought strawberry jam.
Ingredients
- 1 store bought pie crust sheet
- 400g ripe strawberries, cut into small pieces
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon cornstarch
- pinch of salt
- egg wash (1 egg + 1 tablespoon water) , for brushing
Instructions
- Add the blueberries, sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla to a small heavy bottomed saucepan.
- Cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes until berries start to break down. Turn the heat down to low, and let the mixture simmer for another 5 minutes.
- Add in the cornstarch and salt and stir it continuously for about 1-2 minutes with a wooden spatula until thickened.
- Transfer to a mason jar or bowl and then place in the refrigerator until cool and ready to use.
- Preheat your oven to 400ºF(204ºC) and line a baking tray with parchment paper. Set aside.
- Cut hearts in the pastry sheet using a cookie cutter of desired size.
- Add one tablespoon or more of strawberry filling on them.
- Cover with a lattice crust or another heart. Mark a cross for the covered ones to allow steam to pass through them. Seal the pie edges using your fingers and then a fork.
- Brush the pies with egg wash and gently transfer them to the lined baking tray.
- Bake the pies at 400ºF(204ºC) for 18-20 minutes until golden brown in color. Allow to cool before serving.
- Store pies at room temperature in an airtight container for 5 days. Enjoy!
Notes
- Make sure your mini hand pies have an air vent to let steam out as they bake in the oven. If there are no vents, the crust can detach from the base and your pies will open up.
- Prepare and cool your jam before you start making your pies. Make sure you don’t overcook it.
Keywords: individual blueberry pies, mini blueberry pies, blueberry mini pies
Great recipe! 🙂 Made them for Valentine’s Day and they were a hit. Used pre-made pastry dough and blueberry pie filling and it was ✨✨✨ Thank you!!
★★★★★