These Mini Apple Pies are easy to make and filled with a simple homemade apple pie filling. The perfect mini dessert for fall!
This recipe was requested by a wonderful reader named Stephanie after she tried my mini pecan pies. I loved the idea of making a recipe for mini apple pies, so I held onto it until fall was getting a little closer. I have to say that I’m glad I did because these pies are absolutely delicious.
While I love regular pie, there’s something about mini pies that make them so much better. Maybe it’s the fact that they’re perfectly portioned or they make a simple dessert you can just pick up and enjoy. Or maybe it’s that you can eat two and not feel so guilty about it.
And let’s be honest, mini desserts are just better than regular desserts. Right?
To start, you’ll need a standard 12-count muffin pan. This recipe is for mini apple pies because they’re smaller than a regular apple pie, but be sure to use a regular muffin pan (not a mini muffin pan).
You’ll also need two pie crusts, you can either use my homemade pie crust recipe or buy a box of pie crusts from the store. The store-bought pie crusts usually come in packages of two so they’re perfect for this recipe. If I’m being honest, I usually just cheat and use store-bought pie crusts when I’m making these pies.
You want to cut the pie crust with a 3.5-inch cookie cutter to make circles that are big enough to fill each cavity in the muffin pan. They should look just like the picture above and mostly fill each cavity in your muffin pan. If you don’t have a circle cookie cutter that is the right size, just measure some glasses you have at your house and use that instead.
This filling is just a simple mixture of chopped apples, sugar, flour, cinnamon, vanilla, and a touch of nutmeg.
When I make any kind of apple pie I prefer to use a mix of sweet and tart apples, so I use Granny Smith and Gala/Honeycrisp apples in this recipe.
You can also decorate the tops of these miniature apple pies however you like. You won’t need all of the pie crusts for the bottom, so you’ll have some left to decorate the tops. I like to use it to make a simple lattice topping (in other words, no weaving) or cut out some cute pie crust decorations for the top with small cookie cutters.
You can also make these just a bit easier and completely leave the top off and they still taste just fine! I love to serve them with a little scoop of ice cream and caramel on top.
I mean, just look at how cute those pies are up there!
Baking Tips for Mini Apple Pies
- You’ll need two pie crusts for this recipe, you can either use my homemade pie crust recipe (linked in the recipe below) or use store-bought. Use any leftover pie crust you have to decorate the tops of the pies however you like!
- You can use any type of baking apples you prefer in this recipe. I like to use a mix of sweet and tart apples, so I typically use Granny Smith and Gala/Honeycrisp apples.
- Be sure to use the correct size muffin pan for this recipe. These are mini apple pies, but you’ll be using a regular 12-count muffin pan not a mini muffin pan.
Mini Apple Pies
Ingredients
- 2 pie crusts homemade or store-bought
- 2 and 1/2 cups (315 grams) chopped apples
- 1/4 cup (50 grams) granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons (15 grams) all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- 1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Roll the pie crusts out to 1/8" thickness on a lightly floured surface. Using a 3.5-inch cookie cutter (or a cup) cut out 12 circles from the pie crusts. Re-roll any scrap pieces of pie dough as needed to cut out the circles.
- Place each circle of pie crust in each cavity of a standard 12-count muffin pan. Gently press the dough down and around the sides, making sure the dough fits snuggly in each cavity of the muffin pan. Transfer the muffin pan and any leftover pie crust dough to the refrigerator while you make the filling.
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together the chopped apples, sugar, flour, ground cinnamon, vanilla extract, and ground nutmeg until fully combined. Remove the muffin pan from the refrigerator and evenly distribute the apple pie filling between all of the cavities in the muffin pan (about 2-3 tablespoons per mini pie).
- Remove the extra pie dough from the refrigerator, cut out your designs for the tops of the pies, and place them on top.
- Bake at 425°F for 20-25 minutes or until the pie crust is lightly golden brown and the filling is bubbly. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for 10-15 minutes. Carefully remove the mini pies from the pan and transfer to a wire rack to finish cooling.
Notes
Love mini pies? Try my Mini Pecan Pies next!
Oh my goodness, how adorable are these little pies?? I love their mini size so much! So perfect for popping one after the other. 😉
Thank you, Sarah! 🙂
It was a good idea and I think it would have been good, however, I ran out of dough and did not have enough apples. I would suggest 4 cups of apples and 3 pie crusts. Thanks!?
I’m sorry to hear that, Meredith! Did you use a 3.5-inch cookie cutter for the pie crusts? I’ve never run out of pie crust or apples when I make these mini pies.
I’m pretty sure
Can you freeze theses and then rebake?
I haven’t tried freezing these yet, but I think they would freeze fine. You can bake them, then freeze them, thaw overnight in the refrigerator and bring to room temperature before serving. If you want to warm them up you can heat them in the microwave or put them in the oven for a few minutes. Hope that helps!
Do you prep the muffin tin before you put in the crust. I would think they would get stuck.
I never do and they come out just fine. Pie crust has a good amount of fat in it, so it never sticks. You can feel free to spray the muffin pan if you’re worried about it though, it certainly wouldn’t hurt.
Can you make these in a mini muffin pan so they are bite sized apple pies?
I haven’t tried it yet, but I imagine it would work. I would use a smaller cookie cutter, maybe 2.5 inches. I would also make sure to chop the apple small enough to fit in the muffin pan as well. I would guess the baking time to be 10-15 minutes, but I’m not 100% sure.
Thanks! I just made these for my daughters preschools thanksgiving feast in a mini muffin pan. It took ~12 min at a true 425 degrees. I had a tiny star cutters that I cut the extra dough for the top crust. Super cute!
How cute, Jenny! Glad you liked the mini pies!
Hi! I’m making these tonight for a Christmas Party, but gluten free. Do you bake the crust in the tin for a few minutes before filling them? Like how you can bake a full size pie crust before filling it.
There’s no need to pre-bake the crusts for this recipe. You can just add the filling and bake them 🙂
How many apples do I need to make them?
It depends on the size of the apples, but 2 large apples or 3 medium apples should be enough.
Adorable easy and fun to make! Love this recipe: )
So glad you liked the mini pies, Karla!
Do you use shortcrust pastry or is it puff pastry?
I use a homemade or store-bought pie crusts, not puff pastry. I have a link to my pie crust recipe in the recipe if you want to make your own.
Is it possible to replace apples with pineapples crushed?
I haven’t tried it, but I probably wouldn’t in this recipe.
Thanks,have you any recipe for pineapple?
Yes, absolutely! You can find any recipes with pineapple here: http://www.livewellbakeoften.com/tag/pineapple/.
These were perfect. My son’s birthday is on Pi Day (3/14), so I made these for the party. I used up a container of bacon fat I had in the fridge. It was my first attempt at a homemade crust and they were beautiful. I used canned filling and cut the apples up small so they fit in the cups well. Next time, I’ll either brush the crust with an egg wash or sprinkle with cinnamon-sugar for a more finished look.
What a fun treat for your sons birthday, Jessie! A little egg wash and a sprinkle of sugar would definitely work great on these as well 🙂
So cute!! I just made these today with the homemade pie crust recipe!! Super delicious but for some reason my pie burnt a bit I’ll try to bake it for 15 min next time! This is really a must try if you love apple pie like me.
So glad you liked the mini pies, Abby! Your oven may run a little hot, so you can try reducing the baking time a few minutes or cover the pies with foil if they’re not quite finished yet.
I used canned apple pie filling because I’m just lazy to peel and core LOL
I found these to be very delicious PLUS once baked and cooled, they are still very tasty after being frozen. Always helps having something in the house for unexpected company. Just thaw and warm them up in the oven for 10- 15 mins @ 200
Nothing wrong with that, Lisa! 🙂 Thanks for sharing about freezing and reheating them, that will be helpful for others who may need to do the same!
Can I use puff pastry instead?
That would probably be fine, but it won’t be quite the same as a traditional pie crust.
Did you peel the apples? I didn’t see it mentioned.
Yes, I always peel my apples.
I made these pies tonight. So cute and easy. Your recipe worked just fine for me (I used store bought crusts). Waiting for them to cool so I can dig in. Thanks!
Hope you enjoyed the pies, Reema!
Can you prepare the apples a day prior to baking ? Thanks!
I haven’t tried it, but I think it may be fine. The apples will release some juice, I would use a slotted spoon to add the filling to the pie crusts if you do.
I made these mini apple pies, awesome recipe! Loved it ❤️
So glad you liked the pies, Jayeeta!
Great recipe! I just made these tonight. I only had Granny Smiths (super tart) so I used 1/3 cup of sugar instead of 1/4 cup to even out the sweet/tart flavors a bit. They turned out great. My husband, who is a chocolate-chip-cookie-aholic, even tried one and he loved it. Thank you for a delicious tart recipe that I’ve added to my permanent collection.
That’s wonderful to hear, Mari! So glad you liked the mini pies!
I love all of the mini pies, such a perfect size after heavy thanksgiving meal! Just a quick question, if you want to make them apple crumb would you suggest baking the pies slightly then adding the crumbs or just add the crumbs right from the start? Thank you in advance!
I would probably just add the crumb topping from the start. I’d love to hear if you try it!
Can these be prepared a day or so in advance? I don’t like having to do EVERYTHING on the day of Thanksgiving.
Yes, absolutely! They should be fine in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days.
Ive never used pie crusts and i can only find them frozen already in a tin dish. Is that what i am supposed to buy and defrost? I would imagine it crumbling if i tried to roll it out and break since they are molded to the tin foil dish. I’m not a baker but would like to try these. Help?
I’m not quite sure what you’re referring to. You can usually find refrigerated pie crusts in boxes close to the canned biscuits, have you looked there? If not, I linked to a homemade pie crust recipe I use all the time in the recipe.
I shop at Whole Foods and they don’t have a pie crust that can be rolled out. This is what i need, right? Like a pillsbury one? I don’t have time to make it from scratch. Thanks.
Yes, you need refrigerated pie crust for this recipe. I would suggest checking a different store to see if you can find one. It doesn’t take too long to make it from scratch, you just need to allow about an hour for it to chill in the refrigerator.
I ran out of crust so used a strussel topping. These were delicious and came out of the pan with no problems.
So glad you liked the mini pies, Nichole!
Just made these, they are DELICIOUS. Going to also make your mini pecan pies and your pumpkin pie as mini, putting out an assortment for Thanksgiving!
The recipe was easy to follow, and the amounts were perfect!
So glad you liked the mini pies, Arianna! Hope you enjoy the others as well!
Do you recommend to sauté the apple first before baking? If so, how do you do that?
I don’t find it necessary for this recipe, but you can saute them for a few minutes if you want to.
Would I add all the ingredients in the pan if I do choose to sauté them first?
Yes, all of the filling ingredients, and I would also allow the mixture to cool. You don’t want to add hot filling to a cold pie crust or it won’t be as flaky.
I just got done making a batch of the apple and pecan minis….now on to the pumpkin minis! I’m hosting a HUGE group tomorrow for Thanksgiving and absolutely love doing so! The trick I’ve learned over the years is to MOSTLY everything (that I can) the day before; makes Turkey Day so much smoother and I can actually relax a bit more! Lol. I’ve done apple minis before, but never the pumpkin or pecan so I’m hoping everyone loves them! (I’m doing 2 dozen each of each flavor in lieu of making my traditional sized pies!) wish me luck! And thanks for the recipes (and big thank you for writing out the directions in “laymen terms” for us “Blondies!” Lol! hope you and yours have a wonderful kickoff to this holiday season!!
I love to prep everything the day before too, Danielle. Makes it much easier! Hope everyone enjoys the mini pies as well! 🙂
If I used your homemade pie crusts, would I need to make two batches of it or only one? Thanks!
My homemade pie crust recipe will make two crusts, so you’ll only need to make one batch.
Do you need to spray the muffin pan before placing the pie crust?
Pie crust has enough fat in it, so I’ve never had any issues with it sticking to the pan. If you’re worried about it though, it certainly won’t hurt to spray your pan.
Hi, I’m having a Christmas party this weekend and have these cute Santa muffin liners that I would like to use. Can you use them for the mini pies? TIA
I haven’t tried it, but it may be okay. You could bake the mini pies and once they’ve cooled you could place them in the liners.
Have you tried making mini peach cobblers too?
I haven’t yet! I do have a peach crisp recipe on my site that you could probably divide up between some ramekins, not quite the same thing though. I’ll add peach cobbler to my list of recipes to work on! 🙂