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Cranberry Hand Pies

Author: Brandy O'Neill - Nutmeg Nanny
These cranberry hand pies are the perfect festive holiday dessert. They are made with a homemade pie crust (or buy storebought for an even quicker dessert!) and packed full of an orange-scented cranberry filling. This is the perfect sweet and tart dessert!
5 from 3 votes
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Prep Time 45 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour 5 minutes
Servings 15 hand pies

Ingredients

For cranberry filling:

  • 10 ounces fresh or frozen cranberries
  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/2 orange zested
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Pie dough:

For orange glaze:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2-3 tablespoons orange juice

Instructions

For cranberry filling:

  • Combine all the ingredients except vanilla in a small saucepan.
  • Cook the filling over medium-high heat, until the mixture starts to thicken, about 5 minutes.
  • Add vanilla, stir and leave it to cool to room temperature.

For the pie dough:

  • Take the butter from the fridge, cut it into cubes and let it sit for a few minutes. 
  • In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar.
  • Sprinkle the cubed butter over the flour and squish it with your fingers.
  • Work the butter into the flour until you're left with pea-sized lumps of butter. 
  • Add the sour cream and using a fork incorporate it into the mixture.
  • Dump the dough onto a lightly floured surface and bring it together with a few quick kneads until you get a smooth ball, consistency of a Play-Doh - don't worry about over-working this dough. 
  • Split the dough in half, press each half into a disk and wrap tightly with plastic wrap.
  • Once the dough is wrapped into plastic, using a rolling pin, roll it over the dough to close any cracks.
  • Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

For assembly and baking:

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  • Take one half of the dough from the fridge and let it rest on the counter for 10-15 minutes, it will be easier to roll out.
  • Lightly flour the work surface and the rolling pin, and roll out the dough to about 1/8-inch thick.
  • Using a larger tree cookie cutter (mine was 5 inches high and 3.5 inches wide), you can use a star-shaped, or simple round cookie cutter if desired), cut out as many trees from the dough as you can.
  • Re-roll any scraps of dough and cut more.
  • On half of the cut trees, put about 1-2 teaspoons of filling straight through the middle (make sure the filling is not all over the edges), brush a little bit of water along the edges, then press all around the edge with your fingertips to seal then use a fork to crimp.
  • Poke each pie 3-4 times in the middle with a toothpick, brush with beaten egg and sprinkle with coarse sugar. 
  • Bake for 18-20 minutes (depending on the size of the pie itself), or until golden brown.
  • Repeat the process with the other half of the dough and the filling.
  • If desired, drizzle with glaze and sprinkles.

For orange glaze:

  • In a small bowl add powdered sugar and orange juice and whisk to combine.
  • If you want a thinner glaze add in more orange juice.
  • If you want a thicker glaze add in more powdered sugar.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g | Calories: 311kcal | Carbohydrates: 43g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 9g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 49mg | Sodium: 52mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 21g
Course Dessert
Keyword chrirstmas desserts, christmas recipes, cranberry filling, cranberry hand pies, cranberry sauce, dessert recipes, hand pies, holiday desserts, holiday recipes, homemade pie crust, sour cream pie dough
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