This is a Thanksgiving version of this mosaic pie featuring mini apple, pecan and pumpkin hand pies that get baked together in one dish and can be pulled apart for serving. Perfect for a party or holiday gathering, no blind baking of the crust required!
After making a berry and salty honey mosaic pie this past spring, I had to make a Thanksgiving version with the classic fillings–pumpkin, pecan and apple. Although this pie is a bit of extra work to make three different types of filling, each of fillings are easy to make. And I love that you don’t have to blind bake the crust for this style of pull-apart pie!
Thank you to @sibster for the original recipe inspiration!
How did you develop the pie fillings?
For the pumpkin pie filling, we’re using a scaled down version of the winning pumpkin pie from my pumpkin pie bake off which uses cream cheese and powdered sugar. This makes for a very forgiving and flavorful pumpkin filling that’s not *as* runny as it could be. This recipe is designed to use half an egg in the pumpkin pie filling and the other half in the pecan pie filling.
For the pecan filling, we’re turning to the pecan pie bake off for a scaled down version of the winner. I love this recipe because it doesn’t call for any corn syrup–just butter and brown sugar makes for a deliciously classic filling.
Lastly, the apple pie filling is really just a matter of cooking down apples with some cinnamon, sugar and a cornstarch slurry until softened and gooey. I recommend making this filling first so it has time to cool before you assemble the pie!
What pie dough should I use?
You can use any pie dough recipe for the base of this pie. My go-to (and the one I used for this pie) is the pie crust from 50 Pies, 50 States cookbook. I recommend making a double batch recipe for this pie just in case you run short.
Feel free to use your favorite pie dough recipe instead, or use a store-bought crust for ease! If using store-bought, I would buy 2 crusts to be safe as the volume of pie crust can vary from homemade recipes.
Tips on making three pies in one
After testing this pie several different ways, here are my tips and tricks for maximum success!
- Let the fillings cool completely before filling: Make the fillings first and let them cool completely (around 30 minutes at room temperature, or you can put them in the fridge for 15-20 minutes) before using. Warm fillings will lead to softening your pie dough more quickly, which will make it harder to keep its shape.
- Keep the dough rounds cold: Again, to help the pie dough keep its shape, I recommend stamping out all the dough rounds and then refrigerating them for 5-10 minutes before assembling the pie.
- Work quickly: Once you start assembling the mini pies, work quickly (best to have someone else help!) to make sure the pie dough doesn’t get too warm and start to sag.
- Start with apple, then fill in the gaps with pumpkin and pecan: Because the apple filling is the sturdiest, it’s best to start assembling your pie with a few of the apple hand pies. As you start to build out your pie, you can start to fill in the gaps with the others–I find it easiest to place the pinched crust down first, then fill it up with a spoonful of pumpkin or pecan pie filling.
- Bake the leftover filling: If you have leftover pie filling, I spooned it all into a greased ramekin and baked it for about 30 minutes. Eating it with a spoon = delicious. Any extra pie dough can be baked off on a baking sheet–brush strips of pie dough with a little egg wash, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar and bake for delicious pie crust bites.
Alternatively, any extra pie dough and filling can be assembled in a small baking dish (like ramekins or a cupcake tin) and baked alongside the pie.
How to make a mosaic pie
Below you can find step by step instructions on how to make this mosaic pie. It is a bit time-consuming to make your own pie dough, fillings and then assemble the pie, but the end result is totally worth it!
You can always use a storebought pie dough or canned fillings instead for a faster process.
Step 1: Start by making all three fillings. Make sure all fillings (mainly apple) have cooled to room temperature before beginning to assemble.
Step 2: Roll out your prepared pie dough to around 1/4″ thick. Use a 2″ cookie cutter or glass to stamp out at least 24 rounds of pie dough, re-rolling dough as needed to get every last scrap! Put the rounds of dough on a parchment-lined pan and refrigerate for 5-10 minutes.
Step 3: Pinch a round of dough at the edges to form a small well and place a small spoonful of filling in the middle (it’s easiest to start with the apple filling).
Step 4: Place a few filled pie rounds into a greased pie plate to start. I find it easiest to start with apple because this filling is the least runny.
Step 5: Build out the pie using the initial few pies for structure (you can tuck/lean more hand pies against the first few). I find it easiest to place an empty well of pie dough down before filling it with the pumpkin and/or pecan pie fillings.
Step 6: Once the pie plate is filled, bake at 375 for 45-55 minutes or until the crust looks flaky and slightly golden. The fillings should should look set (the pumpkin might puff and crack slightly, but will shrink down as it cools).
Make ahead and storage
You can prepare your pie dough and fillings up to a week in advance, covered well and stored in the fridge. If you make the fillings ahead of time, I would set them out at room temperature for at least 30-60 minutes while you prep the pie crust to help remove the chill before baking.
This pie will keep well covered in the fridge for at least 4 days (but likely longer). I recommend re-warming in a toaster oven or microwave before eating.
Thanksgiving Tri Pie
Equipment
- 1 9-inch pie plate
Ingredients
- 1 double batch your favorite pie dough or storebought pie dough, prepared and chilled for at least 2 hours
For the apple pie filling
- 1 large apple, diced
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 tbsp light brown sugar
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1-2 tbsp water
- 2 tsp cornstarch + 1 tbsp water
For the pecan pie filling
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 large egg
- 1.5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 2 tsp all-purpose flour
- 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- Pinch kosher salt
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans, preferably toasted
For the pumpkin pie filling
- 1/3 cup pumpkin puree
- 2.5 tbsp cream cheese, softened to room temperature
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 1/2 large egg
- 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1/4 tsp vanilla
- pinch kosher salt
Instructions
For the apple pie filling
- Melt 1 tbsp unsalted butter in a small pan over medium heat. Add 1 large apple, diced, 3 tbsp light brown sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and cook until the apple starts to soften and release juices, about 3 minutes. Once the mixture starts to look dry, add 1-2 tbsp of water and cook until apples are softened, around 2-3 more minutes.
- In a small bowl, combine 1 tbsp unsalted butter until smooth. Pour into the pan and cook for another minute until bubbling. Set the apple filling aside to cool while you make the other fillings.
For the pecan pie filling
- In a medium bowl, combine 1/3 cup brown sugar, 1/2 large egg, 1.5 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, 2 tsp all-purpose flour, Pinch kosher salt, 1/2 tsp apple cider vinegar or lemon juice and 1/2 tsp vanilla extract until smooth.
- Fold in 1/4 cup chopped pecans and set aside.
For the pumpkin pie filling
- In a medium bowl, stir together 1/3 cup pumpkin puree and 2.5 tbsp cream cheese, softened to room temperature until smooth. Add the rest of the ingredients (1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, 1/2 large egg, 1 tbsp unsalted butter, melted, 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/4 tsp nutmeg, 1/4 tsp vanilla and pinch kosher salt) and stir until smooth.
To assemble the pie
- Roll out your chilled, prepared pie dough into a large circle about 1/4" thick. Use a 2-inch cookie cutter or glass to stamp out as many circles as possible, at least 24-26 rounds. Re-roll the dough scraps as needed (more rounds are nice to have in case a few get messed up, or if you're using a larger than 9-inch pie plate).
- Place the dough rounds on a parchment-lined plate or baking tray and refrigerate for 5-10 minutes.
- While the rounds are chilling, preheat the oven to 375 degrees and lightly grease a 9-inch pie pan.
- Working with one dough round at a time, place a small spoonful of apple filling in the center of each round and pinch the edges to seal. Place a few of these pinched hand pies against one edge of the pie plate to start (apple is the easiest to work with because it's not as runny).
- Working quickly, continue to fill the mini hand pies using alternating fillings. Because the pumpkin and pecan fillings are more runny, I recommend pinching empty rounds of dough and placing them between other pie rounds before filling them.
- Bake at 375 for 45-55 minutes, or until the pie crust is lightly golden and flaky and the fillings look set. Let cool, then pull apart your mini hand pies and enjoy!
Rachel
Such a fun, unique recipe! Had a lot of fun putting this together and it has a lot of wow factor to it. Really appreciate the way this recipe simplified all the fillings to reduce the amount of work of 3 pies into 1. Used homemade pie dough and it was a hit!
erika
YAY! Thanks Rachel <333