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Pumpkin pasties are a classic Harry Potter recipe; with sweet spiced pumpkin filling in a flaky butter crust, these portable hand-held pies taste like classic pumpkin pie!
I don’t know why it took me so long to share my pumpkin pasties recipe; I’ve been making them for years. My niece and I used to make them just about a decade ago, which makes me feel really old, lol!
Pumpkin pasties are another Harry Potter food! But you don’t need to be a fan to enjoy them. If you like pumpkin pie, you’ll love them.
These sweet handheld pastries have a warmly spiced pumpkin filling and flaky butter crust. Think pumpkin pie but with a higher crust to filling ratio, which I love. Because if I’m being honest, the crust is the main reason I eat pie, lol!
What Are Pumpkin Pasties?
For Harry Potter fans, there’s no need to explain. But for muggle folk, let’s tackle the elephant in the room and answer the question what is a pumpkin pasty?!
To start, a pasty is a type of British pastry. (Check out my beef pasties recipe, which was inspired by classic Cornish pasties.) These pastries are baked, hand-held pies with a sweet or savory filling and a flaky short crust.
Pumpkin pasties, on the other hand, are a Harry Potter thing! They were sold off the food trolley (aka the Honeydukes Express) on the Hogwarts Express (the train that ran between Platform 9 3/4 at London King’s Cross Station and Hogsmeade Station).
Pumpkin pasties are individually-sized sweet pastries that taste like miniature pumpkin pies with a sweet spiced pumpkin filling and crisp buttery crust.
Harry Potter Pumpkin Pasties
In these sections I explain the ingredients and give substitution ideas. For the full recipe (including ingredient amounts), see the recipe card below.
Homemade Pie Dough Ingredients
- Flour – all-purpose flour is the base of our pie dough
- Salt – so the crust isn’t bland
- Unsalted butter – you want this chilled and diced small
- Ice water – the water needs to be icy cold so the butter doesn’t melt; the small pieces of unmelted butter are what make our crust light and flaky when it bakes
Sweet Pumpkin Pasty Filling Ingredients
- Pumpkin puree – you can make your own pumpkin puree or use canned pumpkin
- Egg yolks – adds rich, creamy texture and flavor
- Light brown sugar – we use light brown sugar as the sweetener for our pumpkin pasties because it adds complex flavor notes of molasses along with sweet flavor
- Vanilla extract – for depth of flavor and aroma
- Salt – a natural flavor enhancer
- Cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, ginger, and cloves – this is the blend of warm spices we use to season our sweet pumpkin filling; if you prefer, you can omit them and use 1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice mix instead
Other Ingredients
- Egg – lightly beaten with water to make the egg wash (so the tops of our pasties are gorgeously golden and shiny)
- Cinnamon sugar – this is an optional topping
Step-by-Step Instructions
How to Make Pie Dough From Scratch
Don’t be intimidated, it’s a lot easier than you might think to make homemade pie dough!
- Dice the chilled butter.
- Whisk together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a fork, a pastry cutter, 2 butter knives, or your fingertips. It should look crumbly, with some pieces of butter the size of small peas.
- Drizzle the water in a little at a time, mixing as you go (you can use a fork to mix, but it works best mixing with your fingertips).
- Add just enough water so it comes together to form a ball of dough (you may need more or less water). Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Roll each into a ball, flatten each ball slightly into a disk, wrap them in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.
How to Make Pumpkin Pasty Filling
- Add all ingredients to a large bowl.
- Whisk until well-combined.
How to Make Pumpkin Pasties
- Place 1 disk of dough onto a floured work surface. Working from the center out, roll the dough out to a rectangle about 14 by 10 inches.
- Use a 4-inch cookie or biscuit cutter (or a 4-inch bowl and a sharp paring knife) to stamp out as many circles as you can. Gather the dough scraps, re-roll the dough, and continue stamping out 4-inch circles until you run out of dough (you should get 16 to 18 pasties).
- Put 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling in the center of each dough circle.
- Lightly brush egg wash on the outer half of dough on each, and fold the pasty over onto itself with the egg wash side facing the side with no egg wash (this will help the pastries stick together).
Prep and Bake Pumpkin Pasties
- Transfer the pasties to a large baking tray lined with parchment paper or a silpat liner. Transfer the whole tray to the fridge to chill for 15 minutes (to yield the flakiest crust!). Use a fork to crimp the outside of each pasty (to help it stay sealed and stick together). Lightly brush the top of each pasty with egg wash. Use a sharp paring knife to cut 3 small slits in the top of each pasty (so steam can escape). If you want cinnamon sugar on top, now is the time to add it!
- Bake until the pasties are puffed, golden, and flaky, about 15 to 20 minutes at 400F.
Storage
You can store leftover pumpkin pasties in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week.
Harry Potter Pumpkin Pasties FAQs
Can I Make Pumpkin Pasties with Frozen Puff Pastry?
Yes! Frozen puff pastry dough works great for making pumpkin pasties.
If crust intimidates you, if you’re pressed for time, or if you just don’t feel like making homemade pie dough for any reason, puff pastry is the perfect substitute here. You’ll need 2 sheets of puff pastry for this recipe, which is a 17.3-ounce box (look for puff pastry in the freezer section).
Can I Make Pumpkin Pasties with Canned Pumpkin Pie Filling?
Yes! And you are a clever thing, aren’t you? Hermione would be proud.
The easiest way to make pumpkin pasties is to use frozen puff pastry and canned pumpkin pie filling. These two convenience items will save you a ton of time! But of course these semi-homemade pastries are not quite as good as homemade, but if you’re in a serious time crunch they’re good enough, lol!
For this recipe, you can use canned pumpkin pie filling as it is without adding anything to it. This is because it already has sweetener and spices. This item is typically right next to the cans of pumpkin puree at the grocery store, and it’s often labeled “pumpkin pie mix”.
Does Honeydukes Have Pumpkin Pasties?
Yes! If you’re at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Hogsmeade in Universal Islands of Adventure in Orlando, Florida, head over to Honeydukes to get pumpkin pasties!
In Honeydukes, you’ll find pumpkin pasties in the pastry case along with a ton of other Harry Potter treats, including Cauldron Cakes.
And note that if you want to try to replicate the pumpkin pasties you get at Universal, when you make this recipe skip the cinnamon sugar topping and just use egg wash!
Where Can I Buy Pumpkin Pasties in Universal?
You can find pumpkin pasties at two places in Universal:
- Honeydukes in Hogsmeade (Universal Islands of Adventure)
- Sugarplum’s Sweet Shop in Diagon Alley (Universal Studios)
Do People Have Pumpkin Pie for Christmas?
Yes! Pumpkin pie is a popular dessert in the United States and Canada during the fall months and holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Maybe this year, whip up these portable pumpkin hand pies for your holiday dessert table instead of one big pie?
More Pumpkin Dessert Recipes to Try
- Baked Pumpkin Doughnuts
- Pumpkin Coffee Cake Recipe with New York Crumb Topping
- Easy Chocolate Pumpkin Truffles
Copycat Harry Potter Pumpkin Pasties Recipe
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Ingredients
Pie Dough for the Crust:
- 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup unsalted butter chilled and diced
- 3/4 cup ice water plus more as needed
Sweet Spiced Pumpkin Filling:
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 2 large egg yolks
- 5 tablespoons light brown sugar lightly packed
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
- 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
Other:
- 1 large egg lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon water (for egg wash)
- Cinnamon sugar for topping (see Notes)
Instructions
Make the Pie Dough:
- Whisk together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter with a fork, a pastry cutter, 2 butter knives, or your fingertips. It should look crumbly, with some pieces of butter the size of small peas.
- Drizzle the water in a little at a time, mixing as you go (you can use a fork to mix, but it works best mixing with your fingertips). Add just enough water so it comes together to form a ball of dough (you may need more or less water).
- Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. Roll each into a ball, flatten each ball slightly into a disk, wrap them in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes.
Make the Pumpkin Filling:
- Add all ingredients to a large bowl and whisk until well-combined.
Assemble the Pasties:
- Place 1 disk of dough onto a floured work surface. Working from the center out, roll the dough out to a rectangle about 14 by 10 inches. Use a 4-inch cookie or biscuit cutter (or a 4-inch bowl and a sharp paring knife) to stamp out as many circles as you can. Gather the dough scraps, re-roll the dough, and continue stamping out 4-inch circles until you run out of dough (you should get 16 to 18 pasties).
- Put 1 1/2 tablespoons of filling in the center of each dough circle. Lightly brush egg wash on the outer half of dough on each, and fold the pasty over onto itself with the egg wash side facing the side with no egg wash (this will help the pastries stick together).
- Transfer the pasties to a large baking tray lined with parchment paper or a silpat liner. Transfer the whole tray to the fridge to chill for 15 minutes (to yield the flakiest crust!).
Bake:
- Preheat the oven to 400F.
- Use a fork to crimp the outside of each pasty (to help it stay sealed and stick together). Lightly brush the top of each pasty with egg wash. Use a sharp paring knife to cut 3 small slits in the top of each pasty (so steam can escape).
- If desired, sprinkle cinnamon sugar on top.
- Bake until the pasties are puffed, golden, and flaky, about 15 to 20 minutes.
Notes
- Cinnamon Sugar Topping: Adding cinnamon sugar on top is optional (skip it if you want to replicate the pumpkin pasties at Universal). If you want to add it, sprinkle it on top of the egg wash. To make cinnamon sugar, I use a mixture of 1 1/2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon. For this batch, I used raw sugar but regular granulated white sugar will also work well.
- The Quick and Easy Shortcut Version: You can use 1 (17.3-ounce) box of frozen puff pastry and 1 (15-ounce) can pumpkin pie filling (which is usually right next to the regular pumpkin puree at the grocery store, and is often called “pumpkin pie mix”).
- Storage: You can store leftover pumpkin pasties in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or in the fridge for up to 1 week.
- Recipe Yield and Serving Size: This recipe makes about 18 pasties; each serving is 1 pasty.
- Nutrition Information: The nutritional information for this recipe was calculated without the optional cinnamon sugar topping.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is automatically calculated and should be used as an approximate.
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I’m the writer, recipe developer, photographer, and food stylist behind this blog. I love finding the human connection through something we all do every day: eat! Food is a common ground that we can all relate to, and our tables tell a story. It’s my goal to inspire you to get in the kitchen, try something new, and find a favorite you didn’t know you had.
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