Lemon Curd Hand Pie desserts are deliciously glazed, sweet, tangy, and easy to make. Homemade Lemon Curd filling is nestled in-between flaky pie crust and baked to golden-brown perfection. This recipe is fun to make with only a few ingredients.
If you’ve ever wanted to make homemade mini lemon pies, you have come to the right place! These lemon pies are so easy that even the kids can pitch in to help make them!
The key is to make your lemon curd ahead of time so that it is chilled before working with. You can also purchase it in-store, but a chilled filling is key!
The best part of these glazed hand pies is that you can use your favorite homemade pie crust recipe or store-bought refrigerated pie crust. The magic happens with the lemon filling and easy-to-follow technique. If you like those glazed gas station pies, these will blow those away! We also have Peach Hand Pies if you like peaches!
Ingredients
Before starting this recipe, you’ll want to verify that you have the following ingredients:
- Pie Crust or Dough – While I do love my lard pie crust dough recipe, I opted for ease with this pie recipe. Using store-bought refrigerated pie crust made things quicker and easier. One box of two crusts will yield 12 hand pies.
- Lemon Curd – This rich, sweet, and tangy lemon spread can be purchased in the jam aisle at your local grocer or it can be made with fresh lemons, sugar, and butter. If you have never had lemon curd it has a pudding consistency and tastes like the lemon filling in lemon bars, or lemon meringue pie.
- Egg white – This is used to help the pies achieve a nice golden crust. You only need one and will likely not even use the whole thing.
- Powdered sugar – This key staple is what the glaze is primarily made of.
- Milk – Whole milk, almond, skim, or even water can be used to moisten the powdered sugar to make the glaze.
Equipment and Supplies Needed
We used the following equipment and supplies to make this recipe. Items that are optional or can be substituted will be noted.
- Large baking sheet – These pies do need really spread, but will puff up a bit. You will be able to bake them all on one large baking sheet.
- Rolling pin – You will have pie scraps leftover that will need to be rolled out to cut out more crusts.
- Spoon – to add one tablespoon of filling to each crust.
- 4″ diameter cutter, bowl, or mug – This will help you to cut out the circle that makes up the hand pie crust.
- Pastry brush – used to brush the egg whites onto the pies.
- Small bowl – to hold the egg white.
Recipe Tips
This recipe is easy to make if you know the right tips and tricks! Here are my tips for ensuring your Lemon Hand Pies come out perfectly.
Dough Temperature
If you are working with refrigerated pie crust I suggest allowing it to sit out for 15 minutes before working with it. I have found that unraveling cold, rolled pie crust sheets often ends with the crust cracking or breaking apart.
Wait for your dough to warm up close to room temperature. As a result, it will unroll easier and should not break apart.
Filling Temperature
It is very important that your lemon curd is fully chilled before adding exactly one (1) tablespoon to the center of each pie crust.
If you add too much it will leak out. Freezing the filling for about 15-30 minutes before assembling each pie will make it less likely to spill out.
Storage
If you want to store your Lemon Curd Hand Pies after baking or freeze them for future baking, just follow these easy steps.
Room Temperature Storage
Glazed hand pies are best when eaten on the same day. However, they do last up to 24 hours in an air-tight container.
Note: Pies should be fully cooled and the icing should be fully set before adding them to a container, or they will get mushy.
Freezer Storage
To freeze hand pies before baking:
- Assemble them, but do not egg whitewash them.
- Add them to a wax paper-lined baking sheet.
- Place baking sheet in the freezer and freeze unbaked pies for 4-6 hours or until completely frozen.
- Individually wrap each pie with plastic wrap and store it in an airtight container so they do not get crushed.
To bake from frozen:
- Remove from the freezer.
- Egg-white wash the frozen pies, and
- Bake according to the recipe below, but add an additional 2 minutes to the baking time.
To freeze baked pies:
- Bake the pies as directed, but do not add the icing.
- Allow the pies to cool to room temperature.
- Individually wrap each pie with plastic wrap and store it in an airtight container so they do not get crushed.
To defrost frozen baked pies:
- Remove from freezer.
- Allow pies to thaw fully at room temperature.
- Pat them dry and add the icing.
- Enjoy once the icing has set.
Recipe
Follow the recipe below to make Lemon Hand Pies! This recipe makes 12 pies, but you can adjust the recipe card for other serving sizes. If you love this recipe which uses lemon curd, consider these Lemon Curd Danish as well!
Easy Lemon Hand Pies Recipe
Equipment
- Large Baking Sheet
- 4" diameter circle cutter, bowl, or glass rim
- Rolling Pin
- small & medium-sized bowls
- spoon
- Pastry brush
- Whisk
Ingredients
- 14.1 ounces pie crust store bought
- 12 tablespoons lemon curd chilled
- 1 large egg white
- 1 ½ cups powdered sugar
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon whole milk
- ½ teaspoon lemon zest
Instructions
- Place lemon filling in the freezer to chill for 15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Cut 4" diameter pie crust circles. Roll out any dough scraps to make additional circles.
- Add one tablespoon of lemon filling to the center of each pie crust. Fold over the pie crust and gently pinch the edges of the pie ends to seal the pies.
- Brush each pie with the egg white using your pastry brush.
- Bake pies on the center oven rack for 15 minutes. They will be golden brown, and firm to the touch.
- To prepare glaze, whisk lemon juice, powdered sugar, zest, and milk in a medium bowl until creamy. Allow it to sit for 5 minutes to thicken.
- Allow pies to cool for 15 minutes before coating them in icing. To coat, dip clean pastry brush in icing mixture and brush over the pies. Allow pie icing to set before enjoying.
I would say no more than 3 per pie if you do them individually, or you can mix 1/4 into the lemon. However, you’ll be likely to have some leftover filling if you increase it.
Would adding a few blueberries to the filling work?
Yes, you can!
Could you use a boxed lemon pie filling as well?
Hello, a tablespoon will always equal a tablespoon as it is a unit of measure. If you have measuring spoons, use that to scoop the filling into your pies.
Can you please give details about the tablespoon of filling? Is it done with a measuring spoon and leveled off or a soup spoon type tablespoon? I know the right amount is important for success in not oozing out. Thank you in advance ❤️
Can you fry them? Or how long do they stay good after baked?
I think you missed the powdered sugar adding to the glaze. It’s there!
Hello, you’re right! It is part of the glaze! Updated!
I kept reading this to make and it never said when to add the powdered sugar?
Sounds great..did you forget the powdered sugar for the glaze in the directions?
Hi, a little smaller would make these harder to fill as I feel like they are at the smallest now. However, the cook time should remain similar give or take a minute.
These sound awesome. Used to eat the “gas station” pies all the time. If I make them smaller than 4 inch, would the cooking time be the same or less?
Hi Mary! Thank you, so much! Enjoy!
Looks absolutely delicious. So easy and fun.