These Peaches and Cream Mini Pies are a delicious dessert to welcome summer! Bright and sweet peaches sit on a pillow of vanilla cream, and tender and buttery pie crust brings these mini pies together.
Peaches and Cream Mini Pies
It doesn’t get much better than peaches and cream. Well, maybe it does when you put it in a flaky, buttery pie crust. Is it just me or do peaches and cream go together like peanut butter and jelly? I love peach pie and it is even more appealing when the fresh peach juices are absorbed by a creamy vanilla sauce.
And it goes without saying that fresh peaches are the best. You will get the ultimate in peach taste and they will stay firm when baked. The vanilla cream is a nice contrast to the subtle tart of the peach. The smooth cream is reminiscent of melted ice cream – so think of these little cuties like a slice of pie a la mode!
Rounding out the little pies is the flaky crust. Can I just talk about this crust for a moment? It is the same crust we use in our Cherry Almond Galette, and it is the only pie crust I will use going forward. The crust is super flaky and has such a rich butter flavor, that it is one pie crust I could eat all on its own. Come to think of it, I may do that next – the cookies that are made out of pie dough – or Piekies. Ok – I will add these to my to-bake list.
Making the Individual Peaches and Cream Pies
Making these cute little individual peaches and cream pies are easy. My mantra for all of my recipes. They are not overly fussy and are full of layers of flavor.
- For the peaches – I did try a version of the recipe cooking the peaches. I do not recommend it. The peaches break down too much and can just turn to mush. My thought is if you are making a fruit pie, you still want some bite of the fruit. Otherwise, I would just make a cream pie. 🙂 So, stick with fresh peaches and you will get the best flavor and texture.
- For the vanilla cream – When I make fruit pies, I will almost always defer to a cream base rather than creating a syrup with the fruit. think the syrup bases get too sweet and you lose the fruit flavor amongst the syrup. This vanilla cream, it is pretty straightforward in that you cook all of the ingredients until they become thick. And since there is no egg, you don’t have to worry about tempering the egg.
- For the pie crust – I have tried pie crust without butter (don’t do it), and with wheat flour. You could make the crust with shortening, but I don’t think it imparts the same flavor as butter. You could also make the crust with wheat flour and while it will taste ok, I think the wheat flour competed too much with the flavor of the fruit. Just like the other components of this dish, everything for the pie crust gets mixed at once and there are no tricky kneading steps required. The dough does need to chill for 30 minutes, but this will give you time to make the other parts of the pie.
Single-Serving Peach Pies
Not only is pretty cute to serve a pie as a single serving, but I also think it is practical. They are easier to transport; easier to store, and easier to serve. Think of a backyard barbecue and it comes to dessert time. Instead of having to plan for small dessert plates and forks, you can just plop one of these little pies on a napkin and your guests can eat by hand.
Baking the pie in a muffin pan also gives you some flexibility if you want to have different pie flavors. How about making one cherry, another apple, and another blueberry. Now you have 4 different pie flavors without actually having to bake 4 different full-size pies.
Whichever pie flavor you choose, you now have a go-to recipe to make fun summer dessert pies!
More Peach Dessert Recipes
- Peach Monkey Bread Muffins
- Mini Peach and Cream Cheese Tarts
- Peach Mousse Trifles
- Mini Peach Caramel Cake
Peaches and Cream Mini Pies
Equipment
- 1 – Muffin/Cupcake Pan
Ingredients
Pie Crust
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon white distilled vinegar
- 3 and 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cold and cut into cubes
- 2-3 tablespoons cold water
- Coarse Sugar (optional – for topping pie crust)
Peach Filling
- 3 fresh peaches, peeled and sliced
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup
- 2 teaspoons all-purpose flour
Vanilla Cream
- 1 tablespoon pure maple syrup (or sweetener of choice)
- 3/4 cup heavy cream
- 2 teaspoons corn starch
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
Instructions
Pie Crust
- In a medium mixing bowl, add the flour, sugar, salt, and butter. Begin to 'cut' in the butter with a pastry cutter or your fingers until the butter is about the size of peas.
- In a liquid measuring cup, add 2 tablespoons of the cold water and vinegar. Add to the dough and stir with your fingers or a fork until you have a rough dough. If the dough still seems too dry, add more cold water – 1 teaspoon at a time.
- 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 30 minutes.
Peach Filling
- In a small bowl, mix the peeled and sliced peaches, lemon juice, maple syrup and flour until the peaches are covered. Set aside.
Vanilla Cream
- In a small saucepan set over medium heat, add the cream, maple syrup and cornstarch. Whisk thoroughly until the cornstarch is incorporated and dissolved.
- 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.
- Transfer to a small bowl and cover with plastic wrap with the plastic set directly on top of the cream. This keeps a skin from forming. Set aside to cool until ready to use.
- The cream can also be made ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to use.
Baking
- Once the pie dough has chilled – Preheat the oven to 375F degrees and adjust the oven rack to the middle position. Lightly grease 4 muffin cups in the muffing baking pan.
- Remove the cooled crust from the refrigerator and lightly flour your work surface. Roll the dough into a rough 8×8-inch rectangle. Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Press each square in the prepared muffin cups. Fold any excess dough over and crimp the edges of the dough – just as you would a regular pie dough.
- Spoon 2 tablespoons of the vanilla cream into each pie cup. Next, pile the prepared peaches on top of the cream. If using, sprinkle the coarse sugar on the edges of the pie crust.
- Bake 30 minutes, or until the crust is a golden brown. Cool on a wire rack in the pan for 10 minutes. Then carefully lift each pie out of the muffin cups on cool completely on the rack. Top with Whipped Coconut Cream and enjoy!
