Have a ready-made pie crust in your fridge or freezer? You have the makings of a lot of tasty options—and not just dessert. (Think pie crust cookies and tasty crackers!)
It's baking season again—the perfect time to indulge in a pie or two. But whether you have extra scraps of dough after creating your favorite apple pie or you just have an extra store-bought pie crust and aren't sure what to do with it, there are plenty of ways to remake a basic pastry dough recipe into something else delicious.
One tip: Think about how you want the finished product to look—if you're looking for a flatter finished baked good (like a cracker), freeze the dough once you've shaped it for about a half hour to help it stay flatter when you bake.
Make pie crust cookies
Pie crust cookies are a great option for using up scraps of crust (or making sugar cookies super fast). You can cut it into shapes and brush with butter and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar before you bake. (Or brush the dough with butter, cinnamon, and sugar, then roll up and cut into slices for a pinwheel cookie.) Bake at 350 degrees until golden, about 10 minutes.
If cinnamon and sugar isn't your thing, whip up a confectioner's sugar glaze or royal icing to apply to your cookies.
Pie crust cookies
Go for some easy samosas
These flavorful Indian comfort food classics come together quickly with pie crust and premade mashed potatoes (a great use for Thanksgiving leftovers!).
Easy Samosas
Turn pie crust into homemade breakfast pastries
Underwhelmed by store-bought toaster pastries? These almost-as-easy pie-crust pastries will definitely be a warm and welcome addition for breakfast.
Jammy Pastries
Make chicken pot pie empanadas
Don't forget savory pies when you're thinking of things to do with a pie crust. This twist on the classic pot pie comes together fast if you use leftover rotisserie chicken.
Chicken Potpie Empanadas
Try a twist on palmiers
Palmiers look like they're a lot of work, but starting with ready-made pastry and popping in a favorite filling makes them a cinch. Traditional palmiers just use sugar and puff pastry, but these orange-walnut ones are divine—and you can swap out the puff pastry for pie crust.
Orange and Walnut Palmiers
Make buttery crackers
Shape the dough into whatever shape crackers you'd like, then top with herbs, sea salt, sesame seeds, or a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. Bake until golden brown—usually about 10 minutes at 350 degrees.
Spicy Parmesan Crackers
Turn it into rugelach
Traditional rugelach has cream cheese in the dough, but these cookies still taste delicious when made with pie crust and apricot jam. (Or try other fillings like raspberry or chocolate hazelnut.)
Rugelach
Get creative with pie crust empanadas
Consider this goat cheese empanada recipe a jumping off point—you can trade in the corn for other veggies (like mushrooms or roasted tomatoes), or opt for sweet ingredients like Nutella, strawberries, or cinnamon and apples.
goat cheese empanadas
Opt for a savory tart
This easy, free-form vegetarian tart comes together in minutes using ready-made pie crust.
Rustic Spinach Tart
This article was written by Lisa Milbrand from Real Simple and was legally licensed through the Industry Dive publisher network. Please direct all licensing questions to legal@industrydive.com.
