Jar Lid Hand Pies

Straight up, this is a public service announcement!  I saw this SOMEwhere, and instantly I knew I HAD to do it.  These were just too precious, and too easy not to share.  After I made them and posted a couple of photos on my personal page, there were so many people who shared memories of doing this as a kid.  Like "I used to make 'baby pies' out of pie dough scraps in mayonnaise lids," etc.  It turned out to be a fun walk down memory lane.  Who knew?!  Funny thing about stuff like that - the old, simple ways sometimes got forgotten by fast moving, high tech stuff... but revisiting the old stuff can be SO MUCH FUN! 

I could totally see these being perfect for anything from a dinner party to a bridal luncheon to a picnic.  And on the other end of the spectrum, these would also make great savory pies.  Just imagine the possibilities - meat pies, taco pies, chicken pot pies, you name it! 

Print this Recipe!

Ingredients: 

• Pie dough
• I used Pillsbury rollout pie dough
• 2 boxes (will have 1 pie dough left over)
• Pie filling of your choice
• I used caramel apple, cherry, blackberry
• Water to seal the crust
• 1 egg yolk for the egg wash
• Natural sugar crystals (optional)

Step-by-Step:
Prepare pie fillings of your choice, whether they are sweet or savory.

Set out mason jar lids and rings on parchment paper on a baking sheet.  I placed them on parchment paper for easy cleanup.  You can purchase a box of lids/rings (without jars) in a quantity of 12.  These are the "wide mouth" lids, not the "standard" ones. 

Roll out your pie dough, sprinkled with a bit of flour of course.

So I went super low tech for all of this.  Instead of using any type of fancy cutters, I looked around and found a bowl that was about 1/2" larger than the lids.

I used the bowl to cut what would be the bottom dough. 

Fit the dough into the lids.  So far, easy peesy.  :)  And yes, we want the dough to be hanging over the top like this. 

Fill each little pie with about 3 Tbsp of filling.  Nope, I didn't measure anything.  I just filled until they looked right.  HaHa

For the top dough, I found a bowl that was a bit smaller than the first one.  (But still a tad bit larger than the lid.)

Remember, you can always roll the dough out if you need to stretch it a little bit larger to cover your filling.

Wet the edges of the bottom dough with water.

Cut slits in your top dough to allow the steam to escape.

Cover the pie with your top dough.

Crimp the top and bottom doughs together with a fork.

You don't have to do this, but I trimmed the excess dough a bit with a paring knife.

I made a quick and simple egg wash with 1 egg yolk and about a tablespoon of water whisked together.  I didn't even measure it.  Brush the egg wash over the crusts to help them brown nicely.  

(Optional)  Sprinkle the top with natural (raw) sugar crystals.

Bake at 375F for about 35-40 minutes until golden brown and until you no longer have any translucent areas on your crust.  Can you see now why I put the parchment paper under them?  

Allow to cool.  The ring/lid combination acts like a miniature tart pan that will allow you to pop the tiny little pies out when you are ready to serve them.  There's no struggling to get that first "ugly" piece out.  

Each person can get their own, perfect little pie!  Well... maybe a scoop of ice cream would make it even more perfect!  

Here are some bonus recipes for you:

Baked Chicken Parmesan

Stuffed Zucchini

One Pot Skillet Lasagna

Ritzy Cheddar Baked Chicken

Funky Monkey Morning Smoothies

Written Method:

• Prepare pie fillings of your choice, whether they are sweet or savory.
• Set out mason jar lids and rings on parchment paper on a baking sheet.  I placed them on parchment paper for easy cleanup.  You can purchase a box of lids/rings (without jars) in a quantity of 12.  These are the "wide mouth" lids, not the "standard" ones. 
• Roll out your pie dough, sprinkled with a bit of flour of course.
• Instead of using any type of fancy cutters, I looked around and found a bowl that was about 1/2" larger than the lids.  I used the bowl to cut what would be the bottom dough. 
• Fit the dough into the lids.  And yes, we want the dough to be hanging over the top. 
• Fill each little pie with about 3 Tbsp of filling.  No need to really measure anything.  Just fill until they look right.  
• For the top dough, find a bowl that is a bit smaller than the first one.  (But still a tad bit larger than the lid.)
• Remember, you can always roll the dough out if you need to stretch it a little bit larger to cover your filling.
• Wet the edges of the bottom dough with water.
• Cut slits in your top dough to allow the steam to escape.
• Cover the pie with your top dough and crimp the top and bottom doughs together with a fork.
• You don't have to do this, but I trimmed the excess dough a bit with a paring knife.
• I made a quick and simple egg wash with 1 egg yolk and about a tablespoon of water whisked together.  I didn't even measure it.  Brush the egg wash over the crusts to help them brown nicely.  
• (Optional)  Sprinkle the top with natural (raw) sugar crystals.
• Bake at 375F for about 35-40 minutes until golden brown and until you no longer have any translucent areas on your crust.    
• Allow to cool.  The ring/lid combination acts like a miniature tart pan that will allow you to pop the tiny little pies out when you are ready to serve them.  There's no struggling to get that first "ugly" piece out.  
• Each person can get their own, perfect little pie!  Well... maybe a scoop of ice cream would make it even more perfect!