These Peaches and Cream Mini Pies are a great dessert to celebrate summer! Bright and sweet peaches sit on a pillow of vanilla cream, and tender and buttery pie crust brings these mini pies together. The single-serve peach pies are easy to transport and great for a backyard bbq or summer picnic!
Peaches and Cream single-serve Mini Pies
It doesn’t get much better than peaches and cream. Check out my peach and custard pastries, or the peach mini clafoutis to see what I mean! And these mini peach pies are no different.
Everything To Love About These Mini Pies
- Bright Peach Flavor – Fresh peaches are the way to go with this dessert. Peaches provide a vibrant and sweet flavor that is reminiscent of summer.
- Silky Vanilla Cream – Think homemade vanilla pudding but much creamier. Because we use only heavy cream, the vanilla cream is simply luxurious.
- Flaky Butter Crust – My pie crust is always all butter. I prefer a flaky pie crust and the butter makes sure this happens. The same pie crust I use in my cherry galette and caramel corn apple galette.
What You Need To Make Mini Peaches and Cream Pies
Ingredients
- Fresh Peaches – I will always recommend fresh fruit, especially in season.
- Lemon Juice – The lemon juice brightens the flavor of the peaches.
- Light Brown Sugar – I like the rich flavor of brown sugar and think it pairs nicely with fresh peaches.
- All-Purpose Flour – You can try my gluten free pie dough to make these mini pies gluten free!
- Unsalted Butter – I prefer unsalted since we are adding our own salt.
- White Vinegar – Vinegar also helps with the tender and flaky pie crust.
- Salt – Salt enhances all the flavors in the pie dough.
- Heavy Cream – A little heavy cream to make the creamy vanilla custard.
- Egg Yolk – You can reserve the egg white to brush on the crust of the pie dough before baking. Or you can use it for your next omelet!
- Corn Starch – Corn starch thickens the custard. You can swap in tapioca or arrowroot flour.
- Vanilla Extract – For flavor in the cream!
Baking Equipment
- Muffin/Cupcake Pan – Baking the muffin pan makes these sweet little pies easy to transport and the perfect single-serve pie!
- Mixing Bowls
- Rolling Pin
Tips For Making Peaches and Cream Mini Pies
- Make the Vanilla Cream first – Or even the night before. This way it has time to cool and thicken.
- Use fresh peaches – Again, when in season, use fresh! Frozen peaches may work, but I would caution they may turn too mushy when baked.
- Slice the peaches thin – Because these are mini pies, we want to make sure we can fit the peach slices in the dough.
- Reserve the peach juices – I like to use the fruit juices to brush over the tops of the peaches before and after baking.
- Use cold, cold butter – Cold butter is what makes pie crust flaky. As the dough bakes, the cold butter releases steam which leads to flaky, tender layers of pie dough. The colder the butter, the better.
- Go rustic or refined – When crimping the edges of the mini pies, you can get super perfect with your edges. Or, not worry about it and go a little more rustic. And I will be the first to admit, I am more of a rustic pie edge person!
- Brush the edges of the pies – if you want! – You will have an extra egg white, so why not use it to create golden edges on your pies. The egg white will also help the sugar adhere – if you choose to sprinkle the edges.
Common Questions For Making Mini Peaches and Cream Pies
Can this recipe be doubled?
While I have not tested it, I think doubling the recipe would work fine.
What if it is not peach season – can I use frozen peaches?
I recommend fresh peaches. I think frozen peaches would get too soft when baked. Perhaps try a fruit that is in season instead of using frozen fruit.
Do I have to use the vanilla cream?
You do not! Though, I highly recommend it to get that quintessential peaches and cream flavor.
What am I supposed to do with the extra egg white?
Good question! You can use it to brush on the edges of the pie dough for a golden crust. Or, save it for your scrambled eggs or omelet.
Can I use shortening in the pie dough?
I have never tried making a pie dough with shortening. I know a lot of baker’s prefer it to make a soft and tender dough. My preference is a light and flaky, and buttery, pie crust. I would recommend searching for a shortening pie crust recipe that appeals to you.
Why do I have to chill the pie dough before rolling it out?
Chilling the dough allows the butter to firm up, all of the ingredients to meld together, and gives the gluten time relax.
Why do you recommend reserving the peach juice?
I like to brush the juice on top of the peaches before and after baking the mini pies. Brushing the juices on the peaches after the pies are baked makes the peaches glisten.
How should I store leftover mini peach pies?
If you have any – I recommend storing covered in the refrigerator because of the vanilla cream. Then let come to room temperature before serving.
Peaches and Cream Mini Pies
Yield: 4 Mini Pies
These Peaches and Cream Mini Pies are a delicious summer dessert! Bright and sweet peaches sit on a pillow of vanilla cream, and tender and buttery pie crust brings these mini pies together.
Equipment
- 1 – Muffin/Cupcake Pan
Ingredients
Pie Crust
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (or sweetener of choice)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon apple cider vinegar (or white distilled vinegar)
- 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
- 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water
- turbinado sugar (optional – for topping pie crust)
Peach Filling
- 2 fresh peaches, sliced (peeling the peaches is optional)
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (or sweetener of choice)
- 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
Vanilla Cream
- 1 large egg yolk
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons corn starch
- 1/2 cup heavy cream
- 2 tablespoons light brown sugar (or sweetener of choice)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons unsalted butter
Instructions
Vanilla Cream
- Make the Vanilla Cream first – In a small saucepan, add the egg yolk, cream, brown sugar and cornstarch. Whisk until the cornstarch and egg yolk are thoroughly incorporated. Turn on the heat to medium.
- Cook the cream until it thickens and bubbles slightly – about 3-5 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and add the vanilla and butter. Stir until the butter has melted.
- Strain the cream through a fine mesh strainer set over a bowl. Cover with plastic wrap – with the plastic set directly on top of the cream. This keeps a skin from forming. Set aside to cool at room temperature until ready to use.
- The cream can also be made ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to use.
Pie Crust
- Note -The butter needs to be cold. Before you begin making the dough, cut the butter into cubes and place in the freezer for about 10 to 15 minutes ahead of time.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, and salt. Add the butter cubes to the flour and press the butter cubes into small flat, flaky discs (about the size of a nickel) – making sure they are all coated with flour.
- Fill a small liquid measuring cup with ice water – as long as you have at least 1/2 cup of water. Make a well in the center of the flour and add the vinegar and 2 tablespoons of ice water to the well. Using a fork or spatula, stir the flour around the water, and continue to add water 1 tablespoon at a time until you start to get larger clumps of dough. To check if you have added enough water, grab some of the dough in your hand and squeeze it. If it sticks together without crumbling apart, you have added enough water. If it still crumbles apart, add another tablespoon of water, and check again. Note – The dough is supposed to be rough and not overly moist. Adding too much water will likely result in a tough dough. So will overmixing the dough. Work the dough gently when mixing in the water.
- Note – Weather and humidity can impact how much water you need to bring the dough together. You may find that you need more water than the recipe states.
- Pour the dough onto a sheet of plastic wrap and form into a ball, then flatten into a small disc. Wrap tightly and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
Peach Filling
- In a small bowl, mix the peach slides, lemon juice, brown sugar, and flour until the peaches are covered. Set aside. Note – You can reserve the juices from the peaches to brush on the peach slices before and after baking the pies.
- Baking – Preheat the oven to 375F degrees and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Lightly grease 4 muffin cups in the muffin baking pan.
- Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature for at least 15 minutes. Lightly flour your work surface. Cut the dough disc into 4 equal pieces. Working with one piece at a time, gently shape the dough into a ball, and roll into a 6-inch diameter circle. Press the dough circles into the prepared muffin cups – working the dough so it touches the bottom of the cup, and leaving about a 1/2-inch overhang. Trim off any excess, and crimp the edges of the dough – just as you would a regular pie dough.
- Spoon equal amounts of vanilla cream into each pie cup. Then pile the prepared peach slices on top of the cream. Optional – brush some of the peach juice over the top of the peaches.
- If using, sprinkle the coarse sugar on the edges of the pie crust. Note – You can also brush the edges of the pie crust with the leftover egg white for a shiny, golden crust.
- Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until the crust is a golden brown and the cream is bubbly. Cool on a wire rack in the pan for 10 minutes. Then carefully lift each pie out of the muffin cups to cool completely on the cooling rack. Top with your favorite whipped cream, ice cream or reserved peach juice, and Enjoy!
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Can you freeze well. I have a lot of peaches to use so would like to bake them all, eat a bit, and freeze the rest til another time. How well do they freeze?
Hi! I have not tried freezing these pies. My concern would be the cream filling may not freeze and thaw well – I think it may separate and not be as creamy after freezing. You could bake the pies with just the peaches – no cream – and freeze. Then add the cream to the thawed pies when you’re ready to eat.