Mini pumpkin pies! You know that feeling you get at the end of a big meal, when everyone has eaten way too much? And then someone suggests dessert, but you don’t even want to get up to make coffee, let alone put together everyone’s dessert plate. (Or is that just me?)
When you finally do get the energy to serve the 3 beautiful desserts that someone went to tons of effort to make, everyone is so full that they don’t eat more than a few bites.
The solution? Mini pumpkin pies! Rather than overwhelming yourself and your guests with too much of a good thing, let them enjoy a bite sized treat. There’s always room for something mini!
This is the combination of spices that my family has always used for pumpkin pie, and it has always been delicious!
It’s so simple so make your own pumpkin spice – and you probably already have the spices in your cupboard!
Tip: Add some pumpkin pie spice to strong coffee with some cream and sugar to make your own pumpkin spice latte. You can add canned pumpkin if you want, but it’s not necessary.
These mini pumpkin pies are unique enough that they don’t have to be limited to Thanksgiving. I love that they could just as well be served at a brunch or dinner party, or even Christmas. I definitely recommend giving them a try!
Check out our video for how to make mini pumpkin pies:
If you’re looking for more delicious pumpkin desserts, here’s a few of our favourites:
How to Make Mini Pumpkin Pies:
Mini Pumpkin Pies
Ingredients
- 2 small eggs
- 1-1/3 cups canned pumpkin puree (I accidentally used canned pumpkin pie filling and it still turned out, so I guess either one is fine)
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 1/4 tsp Salt (slightly heaping)
- 3/4 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp ginger (slightly heaping)
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1/4 tsp nutmeg
- 1-1/8 cups evaporated milk
- 30 mini tart shells defrosted
Instructions
- Beat the eggs with a whisk.
- Blend in the remaining ingredients.
- Spread the tart shells out onto a cookie sheet.
- Pour 2 Tablespoons of pumpkin filling into each tart shell.
- Bake at 375F for approximately 30 minutes or until crust is golden.
Notes
Adapted from the recipe on my mom’s old pie plate.
I know this is cheating, but using pre-made tart shells is so much easier than rolling out your own dough. And they end up looking so perfect in the end! This momma does not have time to be rolling out 30 tart shells.
Pour 2 Tablespoons of pumpkin pie mixture into each tart shell:
Here they are before they went into the oven:
I baked them at 375F for 30 minutes. They puffed up a little bit, but they collapsed really quickly after they cooled off.
Do you remember those pie plates that had the recipe written right on the plate? My mom had one for pumpkin pie, and it was truly the most delicious pumpkin pie I’ve ever had. I’ll be honest though – the past few years (…or ten years…) life has been too busy to make a pumpkin pie from scratch, so we have been buying them from Costco. *gasp* I know…
One of the reasons I stopped making homemade pumpkin pie (besides being lazy busy of course), is that it makes such a huge amount and such a thick pumpkin pie, that it’s hard to get through the whole thing. I love pumpkin pie, but I find it a very strong flavour and enjoy having it in smaller amounts, rather than a giant piece that makes you so full that you swear you won’t eat anything else for days.
Which is why I love the idea of mini pumpkin pies. These were seriously delicious! Way faster to make than rolling out your own dough, but they still have the homemade taste that you just can’t buy in any store bought pumpkin pie.
These were way easier than I was expecting. I have convinced myself for years that pumpkin pie from scratch was too time consuming to make but these were done in less than an hour, and most of that was baking time!
Ruth Cataldo says
I am doing a Thanksgiving Round-Up Series next week on my blog and I would love to share this recipe. Please email me if you are happy for me to include this recipe (and any other Thanksgiving delights you may have to share!) Ruth x
Debbie @ One Little Project says
Hi Ruth – As long as you link back to this page, then no problem! I’d be happy to share!
Trina says
How cute! I was thinking they would be great portion control, but I would just keep popping them into my mouth! So I would probably eat way more than I should! Ha!
Thanks for sharing at the Twirl and Take a Bow Party. Hope to see you again next Tuesday!
Chelsea says
I love this! My husband and are having our first Thanksgiving on our own this year, and he has told me that he still wants a bunch of different kinds of pie. I think mini pies may be in my future!
Melinda Cruz says
Hi Debbie, Where can i find the tart shells.
Debbie @ One Little Project says
Hi Melinda – They were in my grocery store in the freezer section next to the regular pie shells. But I’ve heard from some other people that they don’t have them at their regular grocery store, so you might have to check a few places.
Sara D says
Making these up for our youth group tonight! Thanks for sharing the recipe!!
Elaine says
can these be made up ahead of time and frozen?
Linda says
I would love to know the answer to that question as well – hoping to make them tomorrow.
Tiffany Brcic says
I would love to know the answer to this! Any word if they can be frozen?
Sara says
If using pumpkin pie spice how much should I use instead?
kat says
add the spices together…so 1 1/2teaspoons…I add an extra 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
dolcejan says
Does anyone know of a grocery store where the mini tart shells can be found in Arizona?
Briana Keehmer says
HI Debbie, Can you please tell me the exact brand of the tart shells? I cannot find anything like these in San Diego. I have searched every place that sells any kind of grocery good!
Debbie @ One Little Project says
I live in Canada, so it’s probably not going to help you much, but my brand was called “no name brand”. I did a Google search and Tenderflake appears to make mini tart shells too. Mine were just from the grocery store in the freezer section with the frozen pie shells. Good luck!
Kate says
Hi Debbie, I was able to find ready-to-fill shortbread pastry shells, do you think I can still put them in the oven once I filled them with the mix and get the same result? not sure how to go about this… Thanks!