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Air Fryer Apple Pies

These air fryer apple pies recipe are full of fresh, sweet apples, and delicious spices wrapped in flakey puff pastry. Quick and easy this is such a fun recipe to make with the whole family.

Each air fryer apple pie is full of childhood nostalgia. Whenever i went on road trips with my grandparents they would stop for coffee at McDonalds and get me one of their apple pies. These Air Fryer Apple Pies have all the key components of a classic McDonalds apple pie, flaky crust, crunchy sugar crust, and delicious cooked apple filling but these are so much better!

air fryer apple pie

Cooking the apples with a little sugar and lots of fall spices gives you a delicious soft apple filling. The spices toast bringing out their aroma and full complexity while the sugars caramelize creating a delicious syrup.

Last weekend after hiking at our local park we came home and enjoyed some leftover tomato bisque on the deck before making a batch of these air fryer apple pies. They are the perfect simple quick treat taking advantage of store bought puff pastry to keep things quick and easy.

My kids love helping with anything apple related. They compete to see who can peel the apples in one long string and of course taste test lots of apple filling. Any leftover filling gets saved for topping their yogurt.

making air fryer apple pies

Ingredients for Air Fryer Apple Hand Pies

  • Puff Pastry – store bought puff pastry gives you all those decedent flaky layers without having to spend an hour laminating your own.
  • Apples – we recommend honeycrisp or pink crisp for this recipe.
  • Cinnamon – obviously we can’t have apple pie filling without cinnamon.
  • Lemon – lemon balances the sweetness and brings out the natural flavor of the apples.
  • Pumpkin spice– a mixture of cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, allspice, and ginger that pairs beautifully with the apples.
  • Egg Wash– In a small bowl combine one egg, 1 tablespoons of water, and a pinch of salt. Whisk really well with a fork until all the proteins are well broken down. When you lift the fork back out there should not be strings of egg white anymore.
  • Cinnamon Sugar – You can swap the cinnamon sugar topping for raw sugar or sparkling sugar but the cinnamon sugar crunch on the crust of these is irresistible.
apples

How to make Air Fryer Apple Pies

We are going to start by prepping the cinnamon sugar topping and egg wash. It is important that the puff pastry not get too warm so we want to prep everything else ahead. You can also re chill the pies if the pastry does get too warm.

Next we make the apple filling by combining all the spices in a small bowl. 

in a medium bowl we are going to combine the apple chunks with lemon juice. Sprinkle the sugar mixture over the apple chunks and toss to coat. 

Over medium heat simmer the apple mixture for about 10 minutes or until the apples have softened and most of the liquid has cooked off. The liquid that is left should be a thick syrup coating the apples.

bowl of apple pie filling

Let cool. This is really important to prevent the crust from being soggy. While the filling is cooling prep the puff pastry.

Roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. You want a roughly 12” square. If your pastry stops rolling out well you can flip it over or let the gluten relax for a few minutes before trying again.

rolling out puff pastry

Cut your 12” square of puff pastry into 8 even rectangles. Spoon the cooled apple filling into the center of four of the rectangles. Leaving a 1/4 inch gap around the edges to seal the puff pastry.

Use the remaining four rectangles to top your pies stretching the dough a little to fit it over the filling. Crimp the edges all the way around with a fork to seal. 

air fryer apple pies being filled

Brush the pies with egg wash and sprinkle with a generous amount cinnamon sugar topping. This gives the pies that amazing sugar crunch on the crust.

Using kitchen shears or a sharp knife, slice 3-4 slits into the top of each pie for ventilation. This prevents the pies from leaking or bursting.

Place the apple pies in the refrigerator while the air fryer heats up. To get a good crispy crust and nice flaky layers you want everything nice and cool. 

Preheat the Air Fryer to 375. Place apple pies in the basket of your air fryer. Cook for 7-9 minutes until golden brown and crispy. 

Serve warm as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

stack of apple hand pies

Tips for making Air Fryer Apple Pies

What kind of apples should I use in Apple Pie?

Our favorite apple for these Air Fryer Apple Pies is Honeycrisp because of their crisp texture and natural sweetness. Pink Crisp is a good substitute but if you use something like Granny Smith that is not naturally sweet I recommend adding an extra tablespoon of brown sugar.

Why add lemon juice to Apple pie?

Adding lemon to apple pie filling prevents oxidation, enhances the apple flavor, and helps the filling thicken and set, preventing a soggy pie crust.

Should I cook the apple filling?

For this recipe we precook the apple filling to cook off the excess liquid (nobody likes a soggy crust!) and develop the flavors and textures of the filling before baking because puff pastry cooks so fast.

Can I make Air Fryer Apple Pies in the oven?

Yes! Bake on a lined baking sheet at 400 for 25 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.

Can I freeze Apple pie filling?

You can make the filling in advance and store in the refrigerator for 2 days or freeze for up to 2 months.

What is egg wash?

Egg wash is an egg diluted with water or milk used to help seal baked goods and give them a golden color and shine.

apple hand pie sliced
Yield: 4 hand pies

Air Fryer Apple Pies

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 8 minutes
Total Time: 28 minutes

This recipe is full of fresh, sweet apples, and delicious spices wrapped in flakey puff pastry. Quick and easy this is such a fun recipe to make with the whole family.

Ingredients

  • 2 cups of apples, peeled, cored, and diced into ¼” pieces
  • 3 tablespoons brown sugar
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 2 teaspoons cinnamon
  • ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • Juice of ½ a lemon
  • 1 sheet of puff pastry

Instructions

  1. In a small bowl combine sugars, cinnamon, pumpkin spice and salt.
  2. In a medium bowl combine apple chunks with lemon juice. Sprinkle sugar mixture over the apple chunks and toss to coat.
  3. Over medium heat simmer the apple mixture for about 10 minutes or until the apples have softened and most of the liquid has cooked off. Let cool.
  4. Once the apple filling has cooled, roll out the puff pastry on a lightly floured surface. You want a roughly 12” square.
  5. Cut your 12” square of puff pastry into 8 rectangles.
  6. Spoon the cooled apple filling into the center of four rectangles.
  7. Use the remaining four rectangles to top your pies. Crimping the edges with a fork to seal.
  8. Brush the pies with egg wash and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar.
  9. Using kitchen shears or a sharp knife, slice 3-4 slits into the top of each pie.
  10. Place the apple pies in the refrigerator while the air fryer heats up. To get a good crispy crust and nice flaky layers you want everything nice and cool.
  11. Preheat Air Fryer to 375.
  12. Place apple pies in the basket of your air fryer. Cook for 7-9 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
  13. Serve warm as is or with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

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Nutrition Information:

Yield:

4

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 153Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 0mgCarbohydrates: 33gFiber: 3gSugar: 25gProtein: 1g

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