Cherry Hand Pies with Puff Pastry (Kirschtaschen)

Puff pastry, tart cherry jam, fresh cherries, and a little turbinado sugar make the perfect, easy Cherry Hand Pies that come together in less than 30 minutes.

How do you keep hand pies from getting soggy?

I love this recipe because the filling is only two ingredients: tart cherry jam and fresh cherries. Using cherry jam is helpful because it is already full of flavor but cooked down to eliminate extra moisture. The lack of excess liquid keeps these from getting soggy.

What type of cherries are used in hand pies?

This 100% varies depending on the recipe. This cherry hand pie recipe uses tart cherry jam, my favorite is the Bonne Maman Cherry Preserves. In addition to the cherry jam, this recipe also has fresh dark sweet cherries to add depth of flavor and fullness to the hand pies. Frozen cherries would work too but I recommend defrosting them and straining them of excess liquid.

Not a fan of Cherries?

No problem! Use your favorite jam (ideally one that is relatively thick) and add a matching fruit (I don’t recommend fresh citrus as there will be too much moisture).

Additional Recipes to try:

• Apfeltaschen – Apple Hand Pies
• Cherry Strudel
• Kirschschnecken – Cherry Sweet Rolls

Tips for making Cherry Hand Pies

• Store bought puff pastry can vary in size and shape. If yours weighs more than 250 grams, this recipe can be easily scaled up and made into as many pies as you want.
• Frozen cherries can be used instead of fresh, just be sure to defrost them and drain off excess liquid.
• An egg wash isn’t required but if you want the sugar to stick, and don’t want to use an egg wash, use water to seal the edges and brush the tops of the pies.

Ingredients

• Puff Pastry: You can use your favorite store bought or homemade puff pastry for these cherry hand pies. I use sheets that weigh approximately 250 grams but any size will work, just be sure to scale the filling proportionately.
• Cherry Jam: Any cherry preserves will work just make sure it isn’t super runny. If your jam is on the runny side, cook it down in a sauce pot to reduce excess moisture. I prefer to use a tart/sour cherry jam to balance out the sweetness.
• Dark Sweet Cherries: Fresh or frozen, see the tips section for using frozen cherries, sweet cherries round out the flavor of the cherry filling.
• Egg Yolk: An egg yolk is whisked together with 2 tablespoons of water to make the egg wash with seals the edges of the hand pie and creates a golden brown top.
• Turbinado sugar: This sure is optional on top of the pies, if you choose to not add it, I recommend dusting them with powdered sugar after baking!

How to make Cherry Hand Pies

• Preheat the oven to 400º F and place a rack in the center of the oven.
• Pit the fresh cherries and cut in half. Add an egg yolk with two tablespoons of water into a small bowl and whisk together with a fork.
• Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and defrost the puff pastry.
• Roll the puff pastry out on a lightly floured surface until it is about 1/8″ thick or slightly thinner. Cut the pastry into 6 even rectangles.
• Cut 3 slits into the pastry rectangles without cherry jam.
• Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of cherry jam on to the center of three of the rectangles. Spread the cherry jam out slightly leaving at least a 1/2″ border of pastry without jam.
• Place 8 cherry halves onto the jam on the pastry.
• Use a pastry brush to brush the edges of the rectangles of pastry with cherry filling with the egg wash.
• Lay one rectangle of pastry with slits over the top of another rectangle with cherry filling and press the edges together. Repeat with the remaining rectangles.
• Place the assembled pies on the lined baking sheet and use the tines of a fork to press the edges of each pie together.
• Brush the top of each pie with the remaining egg wash and then sprinkle with 2 teaspoons of turbinado sugar.
• Bake the assembled hand pies in the preheated oven for 10 minutes, after 10 minutes, rotate the pan 180º and bake for another 10-12 minutes until golden brown.
• Once baked, take the baking sheet out of the oven and place on a wire rack to cool for a few minutes.

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