Strawberry Mini Pies, plus Rose Glaze

Have you ever wanted to eat an entire pie all by yourself? Well, now you can with these adorable Strawberry Mini Pies, plus Rose Glaze. Individual pockets of flaky homemade pie crust stuffed with a sweet strawberry jam and then drizzled with a delicate rose-flavored icing. Suited to parties, picnics, and of course, brunch!

Spring is coming, and we've been on a floral kick lately. We love experimenting with new flavors such as this lavender tea latte. Floral notes add a hint of elegance and can elevate any dish. Bonus- no pollen to make you sneeze!

Rose is an acquired taste. You want the flavor to be subtle, or else it can end up tasting like perfume. Assuming this is not your thing, these bite-sized strawberry pies have the solid ratio of strawberry to rose.

So if you're looking for a Valentine's or Mother's Day treat, give these little pies a try. They're kid-friendly, easy to make, and totally portable!

Key ingredients

You are only a few ingredients away from making these good mini pies!

• All-purpose flour
• Butter Unsalted.
• Salt Kosher or fine sea salt.
• Sugar You'll need both white granulated sugar and confectioner's (powdered) sugar.
• Strawberry jam Store-bought or homemade.
• Egg Mixed with water for an egg wash.
• Rose water or extract we use this one.
• Rose petals Optional for decorating. You can purchase them online. Make sure they are food-grade.

See recipe card for quantities.

First things first, let's talk about the crust. It's flaky, buttery, and melts in your mouth. Start by combining the flour, sugar, salt, butter, and 3 tbsps of cold water in a food processor. Pulse, adding more water as needed until the dough resembles fine crumbs and starts to come together.

Turn out your dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead a few times until a smooth dough is formed. Flatten into a disk. Lightly flour a work surface.

Step 1. Roll the pie dough into a 10-12 inch circle, about ⅛ inch thick. Using your cookie cutter, cut out circles from the dough. Re-roll the scraps and cut them again until you have no more dough remaining. You should have about 12 circles.

Step 2. Lay out the circles. Place ½ tablespoon strawberry jam in the center of each circle. Don't overstuff them because the jam will leak out during baking.

Step 3. Fold the circles in half onto each other. Using a fork, crimp the edges together so that the edges stick to each other. Place in the fridge for about 15 minutes. Brush with egg wash.

Step 4. Cook for about 15-22 minutes until golden brown on top. Let the pies cool on a wire rack. When cooled, drizzle with the rose glaze and sprinkle with rose petals if using.

*These are abbreviated instructions. The full list of directions can be found in the recipe card below.

Expert tip

When making the pie crust, make sure that the butter is cold, and the water is ice cold. This will help create those irresistible flaky layers. Don't skip chilling the dough; you want everything cold before baking.

Make it your own

Feel free to use the recipe as a base for your own flavor combinations. Below is a list of ideas to get your creative juices flowing.

• Use a different jam such as raspberry blueberry or rhubarb. You can mix up the flavors and make a batch with a variety of different jam fillings.
• Add a little jam to the icing for color if you want a pink glaze.
• Want more rose flavor? Add a drop of rosewater to the jam mixture in addition to the icing.
• Want to skip the glaze? top with turbinado sugar for a crunchysweet top.
• Add a pinch of spice such as cinnamon or cardamom to the jam filling.

Storage and make-ahead

These mini pies store well. Place them in a lidded container, separated by wax paper, and store them on the counter for up to 3 days. To preserve the glaze from melting, you can also store it in the refrigerator.

The pie dough can be made in advance and stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it well in plastic wrap, and store it in a freezer-proof plastic bag. If using soon, you can make ahead and store the dough in the fridge for up to 3 days.

Kitchen questions

Can we use store-bought pie crust?

That's totally up to you! Homemade pie crust is easy to make and will yield the flakiest crust, but to save time, feel free to use store-bought pie crust.

Ingredients

Makes 6

Pie Crust

• 1¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tbsp white granulated sugar
• ¼ tsp Kosher or fine sea salt
• ½ cup (8 ounces or 1 stick) cold unsalted butter, cut into cubes
• 3-5 tbsp ice water

Strawberry Filling

• 6 tbsp strawberry jam

Egg Wash

• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp water

Rose Glaze

• ⅓ cup confectioner's (powdered sugar)
• 2 tsp milk
• ⅛ tsp rose water or rose extract
• culinary rose petals for decorating (optional)

Equipment

• 3½ or 4-inch cookie or biscuit cutter
• large baking sheet
• food processor
• rolling pin

Method

Make the pie crust

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.

2. In a food processor, pulse the flour, sugar, and salt to blend. Add the cold butter and pulse 5-6 more times until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. (If you don't have a food processor, place the ingredients in a large bowl and use a pastry cutter or 2 forks to mix in the butter and form the dough).

3. Add 3 tbsp ice water and pulse after each addition. Add up to 2 more tbsp of ice water, just enough to make fine crumbs that start to pull away from the sides and form a crumbly dough. The dough should stick together when pinched.

4. On a lightly floured surface, turn out the dough and knead a few times, until the dough comes together. Flatten to a disk, and roll the dough roughly 12 inches in diameter and ⅛ inches thick.

Assemble the pies

1. Place the dough disk on a lightly floured surface. Using a 3.5 or 4-inch cookie cutter, cut circles from the dough and set aside, dipping the cutter in flour after each pass. Re-roll the scraps of pie dough and continue cutting circles until you have about 12 circles.

2. Lay out your circles and place ½ tbsp strawberry jam in the center of each. Fold them over in half, and using the ends of a fork, crimp the edges together.

3. Place the pies on the prepared baking sheet and place in the refrigerator for 15 minutes. After 15 minutes, remove from the fridge and brush the tops with the egg wash (just beat the egg and water together).

Bake the pies

1. Bake for 15-22 minutes until golden brown on top. Let cool completely before icing. While the pies are baking, make the rose glaze (see below).

2. When completely cooled, drizzle each of the mini pies with rose icing. Decorate with rose petals (if using). Serve immediately or store for later.

Rose Glaze

1. In a small bowl, add the confectioner's sugar, milk, and rose. Whisk until thick, but still runny enough to be drizzled.

Kitchen notes

• To store, place them in a lidded container, separated by wax paper, and store them on the counter for up to 3 days. To preserve the glaze from melting, you can also store them in the refrigerator.
• The pie dough can be made in advance and stored in the freezer for up to 3 months. Flatten the dough into a disk, wrap it well in plastic wrap, and store it in a freezer-proof plastic bag. If using soon, you can make ahead and store the dough in the fridge for up to 3 days.