Blueberry Mini Pies

Blueberry mini pies on a white background with a plate of pies and blueberries in the background.

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4.72 from 7 votes

Hand held mini blueberry pies are a delicious summer treat.

Prep Time2

Cook Time45

Total Time2 45

Course: Pies and Tarts

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 227kcal

Author: Cheryl Bennett

Equipment

J.K. Adams Maple Plain Rolling Dowel

Ingredients

For the Filling

4 cups blueberries 1 ½ lbs. / 690g / 2 pint containers
½ cup sugar 100g
3 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons cornstarch cornflour in UK
1 tablespoon lemon zest freshly grated
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
¼ teaspoon salt

For the crust

3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour 450 grams
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 ½ cups unsalted butter very cold and cut into small pieces / 339g
1½ tablespoons granulated sugar
¾ to 1 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon fine sea salt

For the Egg Wash

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water

Instructions

Make the dough

Whisk together flour, zest, sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl.
Using a pastry blender, cut the butter into the flour until the biggest pieces of butter are the size of tiny peas.
Gently stir in 3/4 cup buttermilk with a rubber spatula, mixing it until it starts to come together, then knead the dough two or three times to form a ball.
*If it doesn’t come together, add remaining ¼ cup buttermilk, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it does, then gently knead again. (I had to add all of the remaining ¼ cup)
Divide dough in half. Wrap each half in plastic wrap and flatten into a disc. Chill in the refrigerator for at least an hour, or up to two days.

Make the filling

Taste a few blueberries: If they are sweet, use closer to ½ cup sugar. If they are not, you may need up to ¾ cup of sugar.
Combine the blueberries with the sugar in a medium saucepan. Simmer on low heat until sugar has melted and berries begin to burst. Stir occasionally. This will take about 5 - 7 minutes.
Combine cornstarch and water in a small bowl. Once blueberries have begun to burst and sugar is melted, mash any remaining berries and slowly add the cornstarch mixture (slurry) to the pot, while whisking constantly. *Do not dump it all in at once, the cornstarch will clump.
Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until it has thickened.
Add the lemon zest, butter, and salt, continue cooking for another 30 - 45 seconds. Remove from heat and cool completely. *This can be done a day ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator.

Assembly the blueberry mini pies

Preheat oven to 400°F / 200°C, and line 3 baking sheets with parchment paper.
Generously flour the counter top, then unwrap one of your disks of dough.
Gently begin rolling it out, with a floured rolling pin, starting from the center and rolling outward. The dough will be pretty firm when you begin, so be patient. (it will warm quickly, so not too patient!)
Keep rolling from the center out, turning the dough as you go, until it is about 1/8 inch thick.
*If the butter in the dough begins to get too warm and it starts to stick to the pin, or gets sticky / mushy, slide it onto a baking sheet and put it in the refrigerator or freezer for a few minutes to firm up again.
Once dough is rolled out, use a 2 ½ - 3 inch cookie or biscuit cutter to cut out pie dough, or use a knife and cut into squares.
Prepare egg wash, get out the pastry brush & set aside.
Lightly brush the edges of half of your squares of dough with egg wash.
Cut vents in the center of the other half of your dough squares - those will be the tops.
Place 1 rounded teaspoon of filling in the center of the egg washed halves and top with the vented pieces, taking care not to overfill. *Overfilling will make it difficult to seal, and it might leak out of the side.
Lightly press in place with your fingertips, then seal the edges by pressing with the tines of a fork.
Brush with the egg wash on top and sprinkle with coarse sugar, if desired.
Chill in the refrigerator before baking if dough begins to get mushy. Repeat with remaining disk of dough and filling until you've used all of your dough. You can re-roll the dough scraps, try not to work the dough too much.
Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet 1 - 2 inches apart and bake for 15 - 18 minutes until golden and puffed.
Cool on wire rack.

Video

Notes

Cook time includes 2 hours of resting time for dough. Active time is approximately 45 minutes.
If you want to sprinkle the top with sugar, you will need sanding sugar or any coarse sugar like demerara.
If you are making these on an especially warm and/or humid day, remember to slide the dough back into the fridge when it begins to get sticky, or too slack.
You'll want to use a large mixing bowl to make the dough - You need room to work in the bowl, and a bowl that is too small will make it more difficult.
I made the dough recipe twice - once with inexpensive store-brand butter (Costco) and once with Kerrygold Irish butter. The dough actually turned out MUCH better with the cheaper butter! Don't be tempted to use your higher fat butter here.

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