These miniature cherry pie tarts are delicious, homemade, and bursting with the bright flavor of cherries. Also, bonus feature: they’re beautiful, making them an attractive addition to a dessert spread for any occasion.

Cherry pies make me think of summertime and Christmas simultaneously: they’re packed with summer’s flavor while their bright red berry filling makes them a pretty Christmas dessert.

A personal memory: cherry pies for Christmas

I remember one time in particular, my mom had made a large dessert spread sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and we had a group of people come over to visit for a few hours. There, in the centre of the table, stood a glorious cherry pie. (It may as well have had a light shining down on it, with a angelic choir singing in the background.) I remember being awed… and staring at it, long and hard, hoping that if I kept my eye on it, I’d get a piece before it was all gone.

Well hopefully I’ve matured *a little* since then; I no longer stare the pie down in order to make sure I get a piece. But I do still love a good cherry pie; especially when you’ve made the filling yourself with some good home-grown sour cherries. There’s nothing like it!

The best cherry pie filling

The best part of cherry pie is the filling; am I right? Well, this recipe for mini cherry pie tarts is one that I made years ago, and the original recipe was made with canned cherry pie filling (for ease and convenience). That said, if you’re up for the extra steps, my preference is to make my own homemade cherry pie filling. Homemade is always better, I say!

If you opt to make your own cherry pie filling with fresh cherries (or frozen cherries), just use enough cherry pie filling for 1 pie to make a batch of these mini cherry tarts (about 2 cups).

Making great pastry

I have created this recipe using my recipe for Easy Pie Pastry, my favorite homemade pie crust recipe. This recipe makes a delicious flaky crust which can be made with either shortening, rendered lard or butter. (Honestly I prefer to make this recipe with shortening or lard, since those softer fats are a little bit easier to work with and—surprisingly—tend to turn out a little better for me).

Great pastry is the product of several factors, however: a good recipe, not overworking the dough, and making sure those little pockets of fat are still present throughout the dough. You can read more tips on making great pastry by checking out my post for easy pie pastry Here.

How long do mini cherry pies last?

Like most pastries, these mini pies are best served the day they are made or one day after. My preference is honestly to make them either first thing in the morning on the day I want to serve them (they can be prepped the day before).

Occasionally I like to make them the day before, to give myself less to do on the day I need them and also to allow the filling to fully set.

Storage

Mini cherry pies should be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator, where they will keep for about a week. You can serve your cherry pies cold or at room temperature.

Filling variations or additions

The best thing about this recipe is that it can be made so many different ways, so easily. You can use this easy recipe with simple ingredients to make just about any kind of pie tarts!

Note: Some of these recipes are called “sauces” when you click the links, but there is a note for how to make them into pie filling at the base of the recipe. Check these out!

Use these recipes to make your own…

You can also use my *cream cheese filling underneath a fruit pie filling for a cheesecake pie tart, or add a little bit of lemon zest or orange zest to give a sweet pie filling some extra flavor.

The best way to serve this recipe

Personally, nothing beats a scoop of good vanilla ice cream on top of these little tarts, or maybe a dollop of real whipped cream. If you want them to have a similar flavor to a no-bake cherry cheesecake, you can also pipe some of my cream cheese filling on top of each pie to give them that cheesecake twist.

How to make miniature cherry pie tarts

Making these little cherry tarts is pretty simple, especially if you’re working with pre-made cherry filling. There isn’t a whole lot of prep require, making these pretty pie tarts a nice, easy dessert!

To make sure any recipe turns out right, it’s always a good idea to read the recipe before you get started. Here’s the breakdown on this simpler recipe.

You will need:

Ingredients (see recipe card below)
Mixing bowls
Measuring cups and spoons
Pastry cutter
Rolling pin
4” biscuit cutter
Sharp knife
Cake crimper (or a fork)
Teaspoon or tablespoon
Can opener (if using canned cherry pie filling)
Muffin tin (as your tart pan)
Baking sheet (to prevent spilling and burning), optional

Make the pastry

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. Cut in the shortening until it resembles pea-sized chunks.
Using a fork, make a little well in the side of the pastry and pour in the water. Use the fork to blend the flour mixture and water together, until it comes together in a soft, shaggy dough (DO NOT OVER MIX).
Cover with plastic and set the pastry in the fridge for about 20 minutes.

Roll and cut the crusts

Once the pastry has been able to rest, take about 1/2 of refrigerated pie crust and press it into a 6″ circle on a lightly floured surface.
Dust your rolling pin with a bit of flour, and roll the pastry out till it’s about 1/8″ thick (turning the dough as you work with it to make sure it’s not sticking to the table; if you find it sticking, dust with a bit more flour and continue rolling.)
Using a 4″ biscuit cutter, cut out circles of pastry and lightly press each one into an ungreased muffin tin.

Fill the pies

Fill each of the tart shells with cherry pie filling, taking care not to over fill them (too much filling will make them overflow in the oven and make a mess on your oven and pans). You’ll probably want to get about 4-5 cherries into each pie.

Top with lattice crust

Roll out another piece of dough and cut into 1/4″ strips. Using your fingertips, moisten the edges of each of the pastry shells with a bit of water, and press the strips onto the dough (as picture below) into an “X” shape, alternating which direction you lay the dough strips. Trim the excess and set aside.
Using a cake crimper dusted with flour (or the back of a fork), crimp the edges of the pies to seal the loose lattice pieces of pastry to the edges of the crust.

Sprinkle with sugar

Again, use your fingertips to brush a little bit of water across the top of each pie; sprinkle with coarse sugar. (You can also brush the pies with beaten egg before sprinkling with sugar if you want them a little more brown.)

Bake

Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Tips:
1. Pastry likes a good burst of heat; heat your oven to 425 degrees F, and then reduce the temperature to 375 once the pies are in there and the door is shut.
2. If you are concerned that you may have over-filled your pie tart shells, set the muffin tin on a baking sheet to prevent any spills from burning in the bottom of your oven.

Miniature Cherry Pie Tarts

A sweet, memorable recipe for miniature cherry pie tarts.

Course Dessert

Servings 12 people

Author Naomi

Ingredients

2-1/2 c. all purpose flour
1 c. shortening rendered lard or butter
1 pinch of salt
3/4-1 c. cold water
1 can cherry pie filling or about 1-1/2 to 2 cups homemade pie filling
water or beaten egg, for brushing
coarse sugar for sprinkling

Instructions

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt. Cut in the shortening until it resembles pea-sized chunks.
Using a fork, make a little well in the side of the pastry and pour in the water. Use the fork to blend the flour mixture and water together, until it comes together in a soft, shaggy dough (DO NOT OVER MIX).
Cover with plastic and set the pastry in the fridge for about 20 minutes.
Once the pastry has been able to rest, take about 1/2 of the pastry and press it into a 6″ circle on a lightly floured work surface.
Dust your rolling pin with a bit of flour, and roll the pastry out till it’s about 1/8″ thick (turning the dough as you work with it to make sure it’s not sticking to the table; if you find it sticking, dust with a bit more flour and continue rolling.)
Using a 4″ biscuit cutter, cut out circles of pastry and lightly press each one into an ungreased muffin tin.
Fill each pie shell with cherry pie filling, taking care not to over fill them (too much filling will make them overflow in the oven and make a mess on your oven and pans). You’ll probably want to get about 4-5 cherries into each pie.
Roll out another piece of dough and cut into 1/4″ strips. Using your fingertips, moisten the edges of each pie crust with a bit of water, and press the strips onto the dough (as picture below) into an “X” shape, alternating which direction you lay the dough strips. Trim the excess and set aside.
Using a cake crimper dusted with flour (or the back of a fork), crimp the edges of the pies to seal the loose lattice pieces of pastry to the edges of the crust.
Again, use your fingertips to brush a little bit of water across the top of each pie; sprinkle with coarse sugar. (You can also brush the pies with beaten egg before sprinkling with sugar if you want them a little more brown.)
Bake at 375 degrees F for 20-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool on wire racks.

Recipe Notes

Pastry likes a good burst of heat; heat your oven to 425 degrees F, and then reduce the temperature to 375 once the pies are in there and the door is shut.
If you are concerned that you may have over-filled your pie tart shells, set the muffin tin on a baking sheet to prevent any spills from burning in the bottom of your oven.

If you like this recipe, you may also like:

There you have it! That’s all for today. If you make this tart recipe, let me know what you thought in the comments! Or, of course, you can always tag me in your beautiful pie pictures on Instagram so that I can see your gorgeous work!

Thanks for being here and bye for now,

Naomi

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