These Savory Pumpkin Hand Pies deliver their thyme-laced pumpkin, Gruyere, and leek filling in a tidy, hand-size package that’s almost too cute to eat. Happy Halloween!




While I may not decorate seasonally, I still wholeheartedly embrace the holidays. I love to stomp around our small-town pumpkin patch with my family.





Savory Pumpkin Hand Pies
Makes eight 4-inch pies. Pastry 2 cups all-purpose flour 1/4 cup whole wheat flour 1/2 cup grated Gruyere Cheese (about 1 ounce) 1/2 teaspoon powdered sugar 1 teaspoon salt 3/4 cup butter, cut in slices 1 egg yolk 1/3 to 1/2 cup ice water, strained Filling 6 garlic cloves, sliced thinly 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided 1 pound chopped pie pumpkin or other winter squash, cut in 1/4-inch cubes (about three cups) 3/4 teaspoons salt, divided, plus more to taste pepper, to taste fresh thyme sprigs, to taste 1 large leek, white part only, cut in half lengthwise and thinly sliced 1/4 teaspoon dried thyme 1/4 cup white wine 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme 3/4 cup grated Gruyere Cheese (about 2.5 ounces) Egg wash 1 egg yolk 2 tablespoons cream To make pastry dough, combine flour, sugar, salt, and cheese in the bowl of a food processor. Whirl to combine. Add butter slices and pulse until butter looks pea-sized. Add egg yolk while pulsing, and then add most of the water, pulsing, in a slow, steady stream. If the mixture seems dry and doesn’t stick together, add the remaining water while pulsing. Divide dough into two portions. Flatten each one into a disk. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 45 minutes. Preheat oven to 400° F. Toss garlic, cubed pumpkin, 2 tablespoons oil, 1/2 teaspoon salt, pepper to taste, and thyme sprigs in a baking dish. Bake until squash is tender but still holds its shape, about 10 to 15 minutes. Remove thyme sprigs. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a skillet. Add the leeks, 1/4 teaspoon salt, pepper to taste, and dried thyme. Saute over medium heat until the leeks begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Cover the pan, reduce heat to medium-low, and allow the leeks to steam until tender, about 8 minutes. Add wine and cook, uncovered, over medium heat until the pan is nearly dry. Toss the squash and leeks together with fresh thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Allow filling to cool slightly before tossing with Gruyere cheese. Preheat oven to 375º F. Whisk together egg yolk and cream and set aside. Remove one of the chilled pastry disks from the refrigerator and roll the dough to 1/8-inch thickness. With the first batch, cut eight 4-inch circles, re-rolling scraps as needed. Roll out remaining dough and cut eight 4 1/2-inch circles, re-rolling as necessary. The larger circles are the tops. On the tops, using a sharp knife, score shallow lines that radiate from a center point near the upper edge of the rounds (later, you will place stems atop the center point). Create faces on each scored round using miniature cookie cutters, the pointed ends of decorating tips, or free handing with a sharp knife. Set aside. Use scraps of dough to shape eight small rectangles to use as stems. Set aside. Place the bottom rounds on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Add about 1/3 cup filling to each round, leaving a 1/4-inch margin around the edge. With a clean fingertip, spread egg wash along the exposed edge. Gently place a prepared top over the filling, lining up the edges carefully. Using the back side of a fork, press firmly to seal edges together. Add a dab of egg wash where the scored lines meet near the top of the round and attach a prepared stem. Apply egg wash lightly to the entire surface of the pie. Repeat with remaining rounds of dough. Bake until golden, about 25 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.
I love the end. It made me laugh.
Love this post so much Your pie o’lanterns are so cool.
These are adorable, and this post was wonderful 🙂 Your kids are beautiful too!
These look so tasty in addition to cute. I can think of lots of variations to stuff in them. Can’t wait to try.
This is such a creative way to celebrate this season!
Gorgeous presentation, and they sound delicious!
Made these!!!!!! So delicious!!! And simple. I do wish I had cookie cutters but bought some to try again! Love this blog!!!!!
So cute. My girls would love these.
We love these and had so much fun making them. Holden ate almost every one of them alone. We also just got a glimpse of the Extreme Learning Set from Carson-Dellosa for the Howl Giveaway. How cool is that?
Yum! Can’t wait to try these! Yeah for decorative, edible art! Thanks for sharing this through Bonbon Break and looking forward to the Giveaway!