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Stuffed with Nutella and decorated with green glaze (plus lots of sprinkles and sparkles!) these Christmas wreath-shaped Nutella hand pies will add a dose of festive cheer to any Christmas party or holiday brunch.
Why Make These Nutella Hand Pies for Christmas?
If you’re anything like me, you will find absolutely any excuse to work Nutella into a recipe. I love using this sweet chocolate-hazelnut spread in brownies, macarons, ice cream, or even just eating it by the spoonful, straight from the jar.
As you can tell from my previous posts, I also love a good hand pie. I usually make fruit-filled hand pies for breakfast or brunch, or savory versions (like these leek and walnut hand pies) for an easy weeknight dinner.
When to Serve Nutella Hand Pies
While these Nutella-stuffed christmas wreaths are technically hand pies, they’re more like dessert than dinner. The recipe begins with sheets of store-bought shortcrust pastry (or pie crusts) which are cut into wreath shapes. The rings of pastry are then piped with Nutella, egg washed, and baked. Once cool, these festive treats are topped with a bright green glaze and decorated with assorted candies and Christmas toppings.
Because these hand pies run on the sweeter side, they’re best reserved for dessert or a mid-afternoon snack. (Although I won’t lie, I definitely ate a few for breakfast, too.) They also look positively delightful on a pastry tray at a holiday party, open house, or cookie swap!
Tips and Tricks for Making Nutella Hand Pies
You have some flexibility with the size of your round cutters. I used a 3.75-inch cutter for the wreath, and a 1.25-inch cutter for the hole, but slightly smaller or larger cutters will also work. Do not go too small, though, or you won’t have enough room to pipe the Nutella.
Although it’s important for your shortcrust pastry to stay cold, allowing to sit at room temperature for 5-10 minutes prior to unrolling will help to prevent the pastry from cracking or breaking.
Choose a thin (1/2-inch or 1-inch) pastry brush. The smaller size will allow you to apply the egg wash neatly, without it mixing with the Nutella and causing a mess.
A fondant tool (usually used for cake decorating) can help with sealing the inner edges of the wreaths, and will also allow you to create a fun scalloped pattern around the outer edges. Fondant tools are inexpensive and easily purchased in a set of assorted shapes and sizes. (They seem to come in handy for any number of things, so they’re a great addition to your pastry toolkit!)
Be sure to crimp and seal your pastries first, and then apply the egg wash. Egg washing first will cause your fork or fondant tool to stick to the pastry.
Glazing and Decorating Nutella Hand Pies
Do not attempt to make the glaze in advance. It’s important to prepare it just prior to glazing the pastries, otherwise it will begin to set and crack in the bowl.
Use gel food coloring (rather than water-based) to tint your glaze; you’ll achieve a much more vibrant shade of green, without adding too much liquid.
It will take some adjustment to achieve the perfect piping consistency, so keep a little bit of extra milk and confectioner’s sugar nearby. Before piping the glaze onto your wreaths, I suggest doing a test on a sheet of parchment:
If the glaze seems runny or spreads very quickly, whisk in a bit more confectioner’s sugar.
When adjusting the consistency, use a teaspoon to add the milk and sugar in small increments. Do not pour directly from the bag or container, or you run the risk of ruining the batch.
Your glaze should be mostly (but not completely) set before you apply the decorations. If it is still too wet, the larger decorations will not stay in place. On the other hand, if you wait until the glaze has completely set, it will crack when the candies are added.
When it comes to decorating, feel free to let your imagination run wild! M&Ms, cinnamon candies, Skittles, Christmas sprinkles, silver cake decorating balls, edible glitter, or edible metallic stars will all make your wreath pastries sparkle and shine.
Christmas Wreath Pastry Shortcuts and Make-Ahead Suggestions
I find it’s best to prepare this recipe on the day you plan to serve it. If you do want to make some of the compontents in advance, baked, unglazed pies can be frozen in an airtight container, then defrosted and glazed just prior to serving.
Christmas Nutella Wreath Recipe Substitutions
I’m a big Nutella fan, but it does contain nuts. For those with nut allergies, I suggest filling the wreaths with something like cookie butter or Biscoff spread instead.
I flavored my glaze with a tiny bit of orange oil, which provides a really nice contrast to the chocolatey Nutella. If desired, you can choose another oil or extract, like lemon or peppermint.
Other Christmas recipes you might enjoy:
Traditional Pennsylvania Dutch Sand Tarts
White Chocolate Peppermint Bark
Italian Rainbow Brownies
Festive Cranberry Jelly Candies
And if you do make these, or any of my recipes, don’t forget to tag me @bastecutfold, or use the hashtag #bastecutfold on Instagram or Threads. I always love to see what you’re making!
Christmas Wreath Nutella Hand Pies
- Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes
- Yield: 10-11 3-inch round wreaths 1x
Description
Wreath-shaped Nutella hand pies decorated with green-tinted glaze, plus assorted sprinkles and sparkles!
Ingredients
Hand Pies:
2 sheets store-bought shortcrust pastry or pie crust (each roughly 10 x 14″ in size)
1 egg, lightly beaten
6 – 7 tablespoons Nutella
All-purpose flour, for dusting countertop and rolling pin
Glaze:
150 grams (1 1/4 cups) confectioner’s sugar, plus more to adjust consistency
5 teaspoons whole milk, plus more to adjust consistency
1–2 drops orange oil (or other flavoring of choice)
Green gel food coloring
To Decorate:
Cinnamon Imperials, M&Ms, or other candies
Christmas sprinkles, edible glitter, edible stars, or other decorations
Instructions
Preheat oven to 400° F / 205° C. Line two rimmed half-sheet baking trays with parchment, and set aside until ready to use.
On a rolling mat or lightly floured countertop, unroll one sheet of shortcrust pastry. With a 3 1/2 – 4-inch round cutter, cut the pastry into discs.
With a 1 – 1 1/4-inch round cutter, cut a hole in the center of each disc to form an open wreath shape.
Repeat with the second sheet of pastry, then use a rolling pin to re-roll the scraps and cut the remaining discs.
Transfer half of the wreath shapes to the prepared tray.
Add Nutella to a piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip.
Pipe a ring of Nutella in the center of each wreath shape, allowing a 1/2-inch border on both the inner and outer edge of the ring.
With a pastry brush, lightly brush beaten egg around the inner and outer borders.
Top each wreath with a second wreath shape, slightly stretching the pastry to fit over the Nutella.
Use your fingers to gently seal the edges of each wreath, sealing the inner edge first, then use a fork to crimp the edges of each disc. (If desired, you can also use a fondant tool to create a scalloped edge.)
With a pastry brush, brush the tops of the discs with beaten egg.
Bake in preheated oven for 20 – 22 minutes, or until pies are deeply golden brown.
Allow wreaths to cool on the tray for five minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, about 30 minutes.
Once wreaths are completely cool, prepare the glaze.
Glaze
Add the confectioner’s sugar to a small bowl.
Whisk in the milk and orange oil. The mixture will be extremely thick.
Whisk in the green gel coloring.
Add additional milk, 1/4 teaspoon at a time, until the glaze is just thin enough to pipe. (It should still seem very thick, and will stick to the whisk when lifted from the bowl. If glaze drips rapidly from the whisk, it is too thin. If this happens, add additional confectioner’s sugar by the teaspoonful to adjust consistency.)
Transfer glaze to a piping bag fitted with a 1/2-inch round tip.
Pipe a ring of green glaze around the top of each wreath. Use a light hand when piping, keeping in mind that the glaze will spread.
Allow the glaze to set for 1-2 minutes, then decorate with red hots, M&Ms, sprinkles, or other toppings.
Serve Nutella hand pies at room temperature. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to three days. Unglazed pies can also be frozen, then thawed and decorated prior to serving.
- Prep Time: 90 minutes
- Cooling Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Turnovers and Hand Pies
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Dessert
