There’s something magical about those first crisp October evenings when you can finally justify turning on the oven again. I’ve been making savory hand pies for years, but these little jack-o-lanterns might be my favorite Halloween creation yet—flaky puff pastry shatters under your fork to reveal seasoned vegan ground meat and melty dairy-free cheese, with just enough pickle tang to remind you of your favorite burger. My family devoured an entire batch in one sitting, which tells you everything you need to know about how these turn out.
Key Takeaways
- Halloween cheeseburger hand pies are a fun, kid-friendly dinner option, featuring cheeseburger filling in flaky pastry.
- You need basic ingredients like puff pastry, vegan ground meat, and cheese to make these festive hand pies.
- Follow detailed instructions to sauté the filling, cut pumpkin shapes, assemble, and bake for 20-22 minutes.
- Variations include bacon cheeseburger, spicy jack-o-lanterns, and a breakfast version with eggs and sausage.
- These hand pies freeze well; assemble unbaked and freeze for up to 3 months, then bake from frozen.
Estimated reading time: 8 minutes
Table of contents
Jack-O-Lantern Cheeseburger Hand Pies
Flaky puff pastry pockets filled with seasoned vegan ground meat, dairy-free cheese, and tangy pickles—these adorable jack-o-lantern hand pies bring Halloween fun to your dinner table in under an hour.
Ingredients
- 2 sheets (17 oz) frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 8 oz vegan ground meat
- 8 slices Follow Your Heart Dairy-Free American Cheese
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ½ tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 dill pickle, sliced
- 1 tbsp plant milk
- 1 tbsp vegan butter, melted
- 1-2 tbsp flour for rolling puff pastry
- mustard and ketchup for serving
Instructions
- Sauté chopped onion over medium-low heat until translucent, about 3-5 minutes. You want them soft and sweet, not browned.
- Add vegan ground meat, breaking it apart as it cooks. Stir in garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Cook until browned, 6-8 minutes, then set aside to cool completely.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll one sheet of thawed puff pastry to about 1/8 inch thick. Cut 6 pumpkin shapes per sheet using a cookie cutter. Save scraps to patch together 1-2 extra pumpkins.
- Using a sharp knife, carefully cut eyes and a nose on half of the pumpkin cutouts to create jack-o-lantern faces. Get creative with your designs.
- Cut pumpkin shapes from dairy-free cheese slices. Place 2 to 2 ½ tablespoons cooled meat mixture on bottom pumpkin pieces, top with cheese and a few pickle slices.
- Brush edges of bottom pumpkins lightly with water. Place carved tops over filling and press edges firmly with a fork to seal completely.
- Transfer sealed hand pies to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush tops with plant milk for that golden finish.
- Bake in preheated oven at 400°F for 20-22 minutes until deeply golden brown and beautifully puffed.
- Immediately brush hot pies with melted vegan butter for extra richness. Let cool 5 minutes before serving.
- Serve warm with mustard and ketchup on the side—these disappear fast, so make extras if feeding a crowd!
Notes
- Cool the filling completely before assembling or the heat will melt your pastry and create soggy pies instead of flaky ones.
- The water seal around edges acts like glue—press firmly with fork tines to prevent bursting during baking.
- Make ahead: Assemble completely, freeze unbaked on a baking sheet until solid, then store in freezer bags for up to 2 months. Bake straight from frozen, adding 3-5 minutes to cook time.
- For non-vegans: Regular ground beef and American cheese work beautifully with the exact same technique.
- Leftover storage: Keep in fridge for 3 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven for 8-10 minutes to restore crispy exterior—microwaving makes them disappointingly limp.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 418Total Fat: 28gSaturated Fat: 5gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 21gCholesterol: 18mgSodium: 269mgCarbohydrates: 31gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 10g
Nutrition info is meant as a rough guide. Brand choices, portion size, and swaps can shift the numbers, so double-check if exact values matter to you. See our full disclaimer at victoriarecipes.com/disclaimer for more details.
What You’ll Need
Here’s what you need to create these festive little pockets:
- 2 sheets (17 oz) frozen puff pastry, thawed
- 8 oz vegan ground meat
- 8 slices Follow Your Heart Dairy-Free American Cheese
- 1 small onion, chopped
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 ½ tsp vegan Worcestershire sauce
- 1 dill pickle, sliced
- 1 tbsp plant milk
- 1 tbsp vegan butter, melted
- 1-2 tbsp flour for rolling puff pastry
- mustard and ketchup for serving
- Sharp knife for carving faces
- Pumpkin-shaped cookie cutter (about 4 inches)
- Parchment-lined baking sheet
Detailed Cooking Instructions
Time needed: 45 minutes.
Festive Halloween hand pies with seasoned vegan meat filling and dairy-free cheese in flaky puff pastry.
- Cook the onions
Sauté chopped onion over medium-low heat until translucent, about 3-5 minutes. You want them soft and sweet, not browned.
- Brown the filling
Add vegan ground meat, breaking it apart as it cooks. Stir in garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and Worcestershire sauce. Cook until browned, 6-8 minutes, then set aside to cool completely.
- Roll and cut pastry
On a lightly floured surface, roll one sheet of thawed puff pastry to about 1/8 inch thick. Cut 6 pumpkin shapes per sheet. Save scraps to patch together 1-2 extra pumpkins.
- Carve jack-o-lantern faces
Using a sharp knife, carefully cut eyes and a nose on half of the pumpkin cutouts. Get creative with your faces—triangular eyes work beautifully, or try round ones for a friendlier look.
- Prep cheese and assemble
Cut pumpkin shapes from dairy-free cheese slices. Place 2 to 2 ½ tablespoons cooled meat mixture on bottom pumpkin pieces, top with cheese and a few pickle slices. Brush edges with water, place carved tops over filling, and seal edges firmly with a fork.
- Bake until golden
Transfer sealed hand pies to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Brush tops with plant milk. Bake at 400°F for 20-22 minutes until deeply golden brown and puffed.
- Finish with butter
Immediately brush hot pies with melted vegan butter for extra richness. Let cool 5 minutes before serving with mustard and ketchup on the side.
Tips & Tricks
- Cool that filling completely before assembling, or the heat will melt your butter and turn your puff pastry soggy instead of flaky. I learned this the hard way my first attempt.
- Don’t skip the water seal around the edges—it acts like glue to keep these hand pies from bursting open in the oven. Press firmly with fork tines for the most reliable seal.
- Make ahead tip: Assemble these completely, freeze unbaked on a baking sheet until solid, then transfer to a freezer bag. Bake straight from frozen, adding 3-5 extra minutes to the cooking time.
- For non-vegans, regular ground beef and American cheese work beautifully here. The technique stays exactly the same.
- Leftover storage: These keep in the fridge for 3 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven for 8-10 minutes to restore that crispy exterior—microwaving makes them disappointingly limp.
Pro tip on puff pastry technique: Puff pastry fillings should always be at room temperature before assembling—hot fillings can melt the pastry layers and prevent proper rising , which is exactly why I stress cooling that meat mixture completely. For more detailed guidance on working with puff pastry, check out the comprehensive techniques guide at Puff Pastry. And if you’re curious about the nutrition behind plant-based meat alternatives, plant-based meat contains comparable or higher amounts of iron compared to conventional meat, plus additional minerals like calcium and magnesium from the plant proteins —learn more in this detailed nutrition analysis from the Good Food Institute.
You Might Also Like
If you’re loving these festive hand pies, you’ll want to check out my Jack-O-Lantern Pumpkin Pancakes for a sweet Halloween breakfast to match! Looking for more crowd-pleasing comfort food? My Pulled Pork Recipe and Baked Baby Back Ribs with Dry Rub are always huge hits at gatherings. And if you want an easy side to serve alongside these hand pies, try my Savory Loaded Baked Potatoes—they’re the perfect partner for any meal.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Absolutely! Regular ground beef works perfectly here—just brown it the same way with the seasonings. The filling is essentially a deconstructed cheeseburger, so any ground meat you love will taste great.
The key is cooling your filling completely before assembling and sealing edges tightly with water and a fork. Also, work quickly once the pastry is rolled out, and don’t overfill the pies—2 to 2½ tablespoons is the sweet spot.
Yes! Assemble completely, freeze unbaked on a baking sheet until solid, then store in freezer bags for up to 2 months. Bake straight from frozen at 400°F, adding 3-5 minutes to the original baking time.
Any round cutter works—just carve a little stem indent at the top to suggest a pumpkin shape. You could also freehand cut pumpkins with a sharp knife using a template printed from online.
Not at all—the pickles add that classic burger tang, but they’re totally optional. If your family isn’t pickle-friendly, leave them out and serve pickle spears on the side for anyone who wants them.
Variations & Add-Ins
- Spicy version: Stir a teaspoon of your favorite hot sauce into the meat mixture, or add finely diced jalapeños when you cook the onions. The flaky pastry cools down the heat beautifully.
- BBQ twist: Replace Worcestershire sauce with BBQ sauce and swap American cheese for smoked cheddar. These taste exactly like a BBQ bacon burger (add crumbled veggie bacon if you want).
- Pizza style: Use marinara instead of ketchup/mustard, add Italian seasoning to the meat, and use mozzarella instead of American cheese. Basically a pizza pocket disguised as a pumpkin.
- Breakfast hand pies: Scramble eggs with the vegan meat, skip the pickles, and add dairy-free cheese. Perfect for Halloween morning before the kids hit the candy trail.
- Gluten-free option: Use gluten-free puff pastry (found at Whole Foods or Trader Joe’s). The texture won’t be quite as flaky, but they’re still delicious and hold together beautifully.
Dietary Notes
| Diet | Friendly? | Adjustments |
|---|---|---|
| Gluten-Free | With swaps | Use gluten-free puff pastry and check Worcestershire sauce label |
| Dairy-Free | Yes | Already uses dairy-free cheese and plant milk |
| Vegan | Yes | Recipe as written is fully plant-based |
| Keto | No | Puff pastry is high-carb; try fathead dough instead |
| Nut-Free | Check labels | Most ingredients are nut-free, but verify vegan cheese and meat brands |
Storage, Freezing & Reheating
- Fridge: Store baked hand pies in an airtight container for up to 3 days. They soften slightly, but the flavors actually deepen overnight.
- Freezer: Freeze unbaked assembled pies on a baking sheet until solid (about 2 hours), then transfer to freezer bags for up to 2 months. No need to thaw before baking.
- Thawing: Not necessary if frozen unbaked—just add 3-5 minutes to baking time. For baked pies, thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
- Reheat: For best results, warm in a 350°F oven for 8-10 minutes until heated through and crispy. Microwaving works in a pinch (60-90 seconds) but sacrifices that flaky texture.
- Make-ahead strategy: Prep the filling up to 2 days ahead and store in the fridge. Roll and cut pastry the morning you plan to bake, or freeze assembled pies for ultimate convenience.
Save This Recipe for Later
These little pumpkin hand pies disappear fast—trust me, you’ll want to bookmark this one for every Halloween party, fall gathering, or weeknight when you need dinner to feel special. Pin it to your Halloween recipes board so you can find it next October!
Pin it here
