A delicious recipe for Strawberry Turnovers with a fresh strawberry filling and a flakey crust. Think of these like mini, portable strawberry pies!
These Strawberry Turnovers, or “hand pies” if you prefer are like spring wrapped up in buttery, flaky pie crust. They are packable and transportable, perfect for potlucks, picnics and gatherings where you don’t want to deal with dessert plates and forks. A delicious hand-held dessert.
What is the difference between a turnover and a pie?
Turnovers and pies are very similar in that both have crusts and both have a filling. What makes them different is that turnovers are a folded-over, enclosed pie crust, that typically serves one person, whereas a pie is served in a pie pan and typically serves more than one person. A turnover can be made with pie dough or puff pasty dough.
How to make Strawberry Turnovers
It starts with the pie crust! Make the flakey crust from scratch, or use store-bought pie dough for even faster assembly. You can even sub-puff pastry sheets in a pinch.
The secret to turnovers is the “double fold” in the crust– which prevents all the delicious filling from oozing out while baking. Make sure to follow the directions carefully – it’s not hard, just worth noting.;)
Make the Strawberry Filling.
You’ll need two pints of berries or fruit. Remember the riper the fruit, the more intense the flavor will be.
To make the strawberry mixture, in a medium saucepan, cook the berries down into a jam-like consistency, thickening with arrowroot (or cornstarch) and sweetening with a little maple syrup. A few drops of lemon juice, brightens the strawberry filling, not only in flavor, but in color.
Time to assemble the Turnovers!
Divide the pie crust dough into golf-ball-sized balls. Roll out the dough into 6 inch rounds. I used a six inch bowl as a template, and pressed out the dough for a clean edge. But feel free to leave it a little rough.
Place a little strawberry mixture in the center.
Then fold over the pie dough ….but not all the way. Leave about an inch of dough on the bottom for the double fold.
Seal the filling in on the first fold, pressing down. You don’t really even need egg wash, just press it down firmly.
Then fold the edge up and overlap, pressing down and crimping as you go. Save a little pie dough for filling in any cracks or holes.
Place the turnovers on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Brush with an egg wash over the top and sprinkle with coarse sugar.
Bake at 400F until golden brown.
Let them cool at room temperature for a bit before biting into one… and taste the true essence of summer.
Pack them up for a picnic, or leave them on the kitchen counter and watch them disappear. They also make a delicious breakfast!
How to store Turnovers
Store turnovers in an airtight container on the counter at room temperature for 2 days, or up to 5 days refrigerated. They can be warmed and crisped up in the oven. Freeze for up to 2 months, thaw in the fridge and reheat in the oven to get them crispy.
Hope you enjoy…..happy summer!
More recipes you may like
- Strawberry Galette
- Strawberry Rhubarb Cobbler
- Homemade Strawberry Shortcake
- Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp (vegan & gluten-free)
- Strawberry Breakfast Cake
Strawberry Turnover Recipe
- Prep Time: 90
- Cook Time: 25
- Total Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
- Yield: 10-12 turnovers 1x
- Category: Dessert, pie
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Description
A simple delicious recipe for Strawberry Turnovers (aka “Hand Pies”) with tasty strawberry filling and the most flakey buttery crust, sweetened with maple syrup!
Ingredients
Pie Crust (or use store-bought, or puff pastry)
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (300 grams)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup butter, cold, cut into cubes
- 4–8 tablespoons ice water, as needed
Strawberry Filling
- 2 pints fresh strawberries
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup, honey or sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
- 2 teaspoons arrowroot (or corn starch)
- 1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- generous pinch salt
Egg wash
- 1 egg
- 2 teaspoons milk or cream
- sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Make the pie dough. In a food processor, pulse together the flour and salt. Add cold-cut butter cubes and pulse until the mixture forms pea-size pieces. Slowly add ice water, one tablespoon at a time, and pulse until the dough comes together. Place dough out onto a floured surface and roll into a ball. Flatten into a disk . Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 3 days, or freeze!
- Make the filling: Wash and cut strawberries into slices, enough to make about 2 cups. Place in a medium saucepan, and mix in 1-2 tablespoons of maple syrup, vanilla, arrowroot, salt and lemon juice. Simmer on med-low heat, for about 10 minutes. (If the mixture seems too dry, add a little water.) Taste, add more maple to taste. Let cool completely in the fridge. You can do this the night before and chill in the fridge until ready to assemble.
- Assemble: Preheat oven to 400F.Divide dough into generous golfball-sized balls and place on a floured work surface, and roll into a circle about 6 inches in diameter. ( See notes for store-bought dough)
- Spoon 3 tablespoons of filling in the center. Fold dough over filling, leaving about 1 inch of dough on the bottom side visible below the top side- see photos. Gently press dough closed around filling, using your fingertips. Fold the overhanging bottom part of the dough up over the top edge, working your way around the crust, and pinch the overhang tightly to the top part of the crust.
- Crimp the edge tightly closed, pinching a little bit of dough with the thumb and forefinger of one hand and using your index finger, on the other hand, to push a small notch into the pinched dough. Continue pinching and notching all the way around until the crust is tightly crimped together. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling. Save a tiny bit of pie dough for patching. Transfer pies onto a parchment-lined baking sheet.
- Whisk egg with milk until smooth, and brush the turnovers with eggwash to give them a nice sheen. Sprinkle with coarse sugar. With a sharp knife, slice three slits, on the top for venting.
- Bake! Place in a 400F oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden and puffed.
Notes
NOTES: If using store-bought dough, unroll the dough on a floured surface, roll out with rolling pin from the center out, just a few times. Using a 6-inch rimmed bowl as a template, press out 3 x 6 inch rounds from each roll of dough. Combine the scraps into a ball, then divide into 3 balls and roll out into 3 more 6 inch disks ( for a total of 9 hand pies)
If using very ripe local strawberries, you may need less maple syrup, and if using store-bought not quite ripe strawberries, you may need a little more. Make sure to taste the filling. 😉
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 turnover
- Calories: 268
- Sugar: 5.4 g
- Sodium: 155.4 mg
- Fat: 16.2 g
- Saturated Fat: 9.7 g
- Carbohydrates: 27.5 g
- Fiber: 1.9 g
- Protein: 3.8 g
- Cholesterol: 56.2 mg
Could I use puff pastry for this recipe?
I think you could Shannon, but it is a very different type of dough. But I bet it would taste good though!
Hey, is it possible to use frozen strawberries?
I think that would be fine!
If I don’t have maple syrup what is a good substitute
Honey or Sugar. 🙂
Fantastic recipe. Just be sure you have a good pie crust recipe and patch any holes to be sure the filling doesn’t spill out. Don’t worry about how the patches will look – they fit in with the rustic handpie look very well! They were so good I was afraid I’d eat them all so gave some to my neighbor whose teenage kids keep begging me to make more. They really were that delicious!
thanks Anne-Marie!! Glad you enjoyed it and thanks for your notes on the crust…very appreciated!
Love your presentation.Amazing site. I want to try again baking. Anyway is never comes out good for me.
Somehow whenever I want to bake something it is not properly baked or it has vinegar taste.
Like anything baking takes practice. Don’t give up…just try again. I find it really helps if you repeat the same recipe a couple times. All the best to you!!