The idea for these funfetti hand pies came from a childish desire to play with color. I’ve always loved anything funfetti. The colors just call to me. When I saw A Moment Of Sugar throw some sprinkles in her pie dough I was immediately taken aback. It spoke so dearly to my inner child — the one that craves creativity. I knew I had to create a version that incorporated those bright colors as well. So here we are.
Let me just say that these hand pies are a project. There is no instant gratification to be found here. The dough needs time to rest and the rolling out of the dough takes a hot minute. But, let me also say that the results are worth it. If you hold steady until the end you will have a plate full of very impressive hand pies ready to show off at your next gathering. Let’s jump in.
Funfetti Hand Pies With Raspberry Filling
Makes 12 hand pies
For the Crust:
3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 ½ teaspoon salt
1 ½ cups unsalted butter, chilled, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
⅓ cup ice water
1/4 cup sprinkles, I used these
For the Filling:
10 oz frozen raspberries
¼cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/2 cup Water, divided
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon salt
For the Topping
1 egg
turbinado sugar
Make the crust:
Combine flour, sugar and kosher salt in a large bowl, and use your hands to mix well.
Add the butter to the bowl, and use your palms and fingertips to smash the pieces into the flour until you’ve got large, flat butter pieces that are evenly distributed among the flour. Pop the bowl into the freezer for 5 or so minutes.
Add the sprinkles to the flour mixture and gently incorporate.
Combine vinegar and 1/3 cup water, and drizzle over the flour-butter mixture. Like you’re running your hands through sand, deliberately yet delicately mix the water into the flour/butter mixture. Resist the urge to add more water until you see that it’s absolutely necessary, and even then, use only an additional tablespoon or two.
Turn the dough out onto a work surface, and use your palms to knead it lightly until the shaggy ball transforms into a slightly-less shaggy ball of dough. (It should still be relatively shaggy.) Pat the dough into a disc about 1 inch thick, rotating it to create a nice circle. Wrap in plastic or place in a resealable plastic bag and chill until firm, at least 2 hours. The dough will hydrate a bit as it sets in the fridge so do not be alarmed at the shagginess of the dough.
While the dough rests make the filling.
For the Filling:
In a saucepan, over medium heat, add the raspberries, sugar, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup water. Cook on low to medium heat until all the sugar has dissolved. Stir periodically to ensure the mixture incorporates.
Make a cornstarch slurry by combining the remaining 1/4 cup water with cornstarch. Add it to the raspberries. Continue to cook on medium heat until the filling comes to a boil and becomes thick and glossy. Remove and let cool for a while. All to full cool before using to assemble to pies.
Assembling the pies:
Preheat the oven to 425. On a lightly floured work surface, roll the dough into a 9 x 13 inch square-ish shape or until it is about 1/4 inch thick. Cut the dough into 3” squares using a pastry knife or bench scraper. Transfer 6 pieces of dough to a baking sheet. This will be the bottoms of your pies. Then place 1 tablespoon of filling on each bottom.
The next part can feel intimidating, but I promise, it’s not as hard as it looks. And if all else fails here is a video to guide you. Cut some of the rolled out dough into thin 1/4” thick strips. Lay 3 strips ontop of the pie going diagnol one direction and the other 3 diagonal the other direction. Then weaves the strips of pie dough under one another as if you were weaving a basket. The video shows this well. Cut the excess pie crust with a bench scraper to create a nice sealed edge.
Whisk the egg with a teaspoon of water and use it to brush the crust. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar. Optional, but it enhances the texture of the pie so much.
Place the hand pies in the oven and bake until the crust is deeply golden brown. About 12-16 minutes.
Remove pies from the oven and let cool completely before eating.
Note: Alternatively to doing the lattice topping you could just cut another 3” square piece of pie dough and press it to the bottom pie dough using a fork. This is an equally pretty technique that might seem less intimidating.
