These chocolate hand pies are like little pockets of happiness! They're made with this super easy cream cheese pastry that's flaky and yummy, and then filled with ooey-gooey Nutella – talk about a dream combo!

A stack of chocolate hand pies on a small plate.

First things first, let's talk about whipping up that cream cheese pastry. It's a breeze, especially if you've got a food processor handy. Plus, let me tell you, the tanginess from the cream cheese gives it that extra oomph! Now, here comes the fun part – filling those babies up with Nutella. It's like spreading happiness inside each pie.

These hand pies are perfect for sharing at a party or just as a tasty weekend treat. Trust me, you won't be able to resist the best chocolate hand pies! Check out my Nutella cheesecake brownies and pie crust with lard!

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Why you'll love this recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
Substitutions
Instructions
Pro tips
FAQ
Storage
Related
📖 Recipe

Why you'll love this recipe

The use of the food processor makes the process of making the pastry a breeze to whip up! Cream cheese makes the dough easier to roll and much more forgiving making these easy chocolate hand pies. If you love cream cheese, check out my cream cheese mousse cake!
Nutella packs a ton of flavor without having to making a filling, and who doesn’t love Nutella?? Chocolate with pie crust is a dream. If you love gooey chocolate goodness, my smores blondies are divine!!
Individual pies make them easier to transport and you get more flaky pastry goodness in each bite! Perfect for a party on a serving tray. Who wouldn't love mini chocolate pies?!

Equipment

Using a kitchen scale is a total game-changer for baking. It makes measuring ingredients super precise, so your chocolate mini pies come out perfect every single time. Plus, fewer measuring cups means less cleanup — and who doesn’t love that? Invest in one, and you’ll wonder how you ever baked without it!

Ingredients

Ingredients needed for this recipe:

Salted butter in pastry is the key to great flavor, it makes everything else stand out. Add ½ teaspoon of kosher salt if you do not have salted butter. Check out my sweet and salty cookies too!
Cream Cheese makes the cream cheese pastry very forgiving and easy to work with. The tanginess adds a ton of flavor.
Egg is necessary for the wash creating a golden brown color and helps the granulated sugar stick to the dough.

See recipe card below for quantities.

Substitutions

Skip the granulated sugar and drizzle with chocolate instead for more chocolate flavor and an extra pretty look!
Fruity jam instead of Nutella would be delicious as well. Cream cheese pastry goes so well with any flavor. Jam sandwich cookies are amazing!
I've made these with cookie butter and they were beyond amazing!
Cutting hearts out instead of circles for your loved ones would be such a sweet gift.

This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions. These are just suggestions.

Instructions

How to make Nutella Hand Pies:

Butter and cream cheese cut into smaller pieces for the cream cheese pastry.

Step 1. Cut the butter and cream cheese into half inch pieces, set aside.

Cut up butter and cream cheese on top of the flour and sugar in a food processor.

Step 2. Place the flour, salt, and sugar in the food processor, pulse until combined.
Add the butter and cream cheese on top of the flour mixture.

A food processor with flour, sugar, butter, and cream cheese the size of peas.

Step 3. Pulse until it resembles the size of peas.

Cream cheese pastry dough coming together in a food processor.

Step 4. Keep pulsing until a ball of dough forms, if it doesn't come together, add one tablespoon of cold water.

Cream cheese pastry wrapped up in plastic wrap to be chilled in the refrigerator.

Step 5. Shape into a disc, wrap in plastic wrap, place in the refrigerator until cold, about 1 hour.

A heaping tablespoon of Nutella on top of a round cutout of cream cheese pastry.

Step 6. Roll out the dough using a bit a flour and rolling pin about ⅛-¼ inch thick. Cut out 3 inch circles, place the bottom circle on parchment lined baking sheets. Egg wash around the edges, place a heaping tablespoon of Nutella (22 grams) in the middle.

A hand pie on a piece of parchment paper before it gets egg wash.

Step 7. Place another circle on top. Crimp the edges with a fork, making sure it's sealed. Make 3 tiny slits in the top for steam.

Cream cheese pastry hand pies in the raw state showing how the egg wash should look.

Step 8. Whisk the egg until broken and frothy. Using a pastry brush, brush the tops with the egg. Sprinkle with sugar, about a teaspoon per each. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brow. Let cool before eating.

Hint: The fork might stick when crimping the dough, dip it in flour to prevent it from sticking!

Pro tips

A lot of people don't have a food processor. If you do not have access to one, you can cut the butter and cream cheese into the flour with your fingertips: Using your fingertips, gently work the butter and cream cheese into the flour mixture. Press the cubes between your fingers and thumbs, rubbing them into the flour until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Do this quickly to prevent the butter from melting too much. Form Dough: Once the butter and cream cheese are evenly distributed and the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, start pressing the dough together to form a ball. Be careful not to overwork the dough; you want to keep the butter and cream cheese cold to achieve a flaky pastry.
Egg wash the the bottom pastry circle edges, this will adhere the top pastry and prevent it from leaking the filling and will make it really stick.
Use a fork to crimp the edges of the pastry, it ensures it’s completely sealed and won’t pop open when baking.
Use cold butter and cream cheese when making the pastry, cold fat makes flaky pastry that won’t shrink while baking.

FAQ

I don’t like Nutella, can I use chocolate instead?

Chocolate ganache would be the best option for the filling. Ganache is equal parts heavy cream and chocolate, Sally's Baking Addiction has a great tutorial on chocolate ganache.

What if my pastry gets too warm while working with it?

Pop it back in the refrigerator until cold. If the circles are cut out, those can go in the fridge as well.

Can I make a different shape hand pie?

Of course! Any shape will work as long as there’s enough room for the Nutella in the center and enough dough to crimp the edges around it.

How do I make the hand pies looks golden brown and glossy?

Egg wash sprinkled with granulated sugar is the key to finishing hand pies, the egg wash makes them golden brown and the sugar adds amazing texture and flavor.

A finished hand pie showing the golden brown color they should be when done baking.

Storage

Room Temperature

Hand pies are best the day they were made. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days.

Refrigeration

I don't recommend storing these chocolate hand pies in the refrigerator, they will dry out and get soggy. The unbaked dough can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days before rolling.

Freezer

Freeze the baked hand pies in an airtight container for up to 2 months. Defrost on the counter at room temperature for a few hours before eating.

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