Air Fryer Cherry Turnovers
These flaky air fryer turnovers are the perfect dessert or delicious snack. They are essentially little air fryer cherry pies, made with a filling placed on puff pastry and then folded over and sealed.
It means you can taste a slice of fruit pie without needing to make a whole pie. Air frying means it takes less time too.
You can use puff pastry sheets from the grocery store (or make homemade pastry). The same goes for the filling, make your own or use canned cherry pie filling.
Disclaimer, the best cherry turnovers are made with homemade cherry filling!
The flaky crust
The easiest way to make these little hand pies is to use store-bought puff pastry sheets. They work super well, and it cuts down on a lot of time. If you like homemade pie crusts, you can use the rough puff pastry recipe for these apple turnovers.
They use apple pie filling and are super delicious! Another great option is blueberry pie filling. That’s the great thing about turnovers; you can use nearly any of your favorite pie fillings.
Cherry filling
The homemade cherry filling is made from sweet dark cherries. You can use fresh or frozen cherries, which makes it super easy. The flavor is enhanced with lemon juice and almond extract.
It’s lightly sweetened, but not too much, so the taste of the tangy cherries still comes through. It’s thickened with cornstarch which makes it nice and glossy.
Ingredients
You need a handful of ingredients for these easy cherry turnovers. Find the ingredient amounts listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is a rundown of what you will need.
- Pitted cherries – fresh or frozen.
- Granulated sugar
- Lemon juice
- Almond extract
- Salt – Just a pinch to balance the sweetness.
- Corn starch – To thicken the filling.
- Two sheets of flaky puff pastry dough. For extra simple turnovers, use store-bought puff pastry.
- Egg for egg wash
Method
In a saucepan, combine cold water and cornstarch. Mix it into a slurry.
Add cherries, granulated sugar, salt, lemon juice, vanilla, and almond extract.
Place the saucepan over medium heat and stir regularly as the mixture begins to warm up.
As the mixture boils, it will thicken, become jelly-like, and lose its cloudy appearance.
Lower the heat and let it boil for around 2 minutes, stirring continuously.
Take it off the heat and let it cool to room temperature.
Once cooled, store in the fridge in an airtight container until needed.
Assembling
When the filling has cooled, lay the puff pastry sheets onto a lightly floured surface. Cut each sheet into four equal squares.
Whisk together an egg with a tablespoon of water in a small bowl for the egg wash.
Spoon a heaped tablespoon of pie filling onto one corner of each pastry dough square.
Use a pastry brush to brush around the squares with a little beaten egg.
Fold the pastry over the filling on each to make a triangle.
Crimp the edges of the pastry triangles with a fork to seal them.
Brush the top of each puff pastry turnover with more egg wash.
Use the tip of a knife to create small slits in the tops to allow steam to escape.
Spray the basket of the air fryer with a little cooking spray. Place four puff pastry turnovers in the air fryer basket in a single layer. Air fry at 375℉/190°C for around 10-12 minutes until golden brown.
The exact cook time will depend on your air fryer. Once cooked, remove them from the air fryer basket and place them on a cooling rack. Cook the remaining turnovers.
Glaze
Lastly, glaze the turnovers with a simple sugar glaze. Whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk in a small bowl to create a smooth and pourable glaze.
Drizzle this over the tops of the cooled turnovers.
Storing
Leftover pies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days, or in the fridge for up to 5 days. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe container.
They can be reheated in the air fryer.
The unbaked pies can be frozen too, and baked from frozen.
Air Fryer Cherry Turnovers
These flaky air fryer turnovers are the perfect dessert. Made with puff pastry and homemade cherry filling.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1 ½ Tablespoon water
- 1 ½ cups fresh or frozen pitted cherries
- 3 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- ½ Tablespoon lemon juice
- 1/8 teaspoon almond extract
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 2 sheets of flaky puff pastry, thawed but cold
Egg Wash
- One egg + 1 Tablespoon water
Glaze
- ½ cup powdered sugar
- 1 Tablespoons milk
- ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine the cold water and cornstarch. Mix it into a slurry. Add cherries, granulated sugar, salt, lemon juice, vanilla, and almond extract. Place the saucepan over medium-low heat and stir regularly as the mixture begins to warm up.
- As the mixture boils, it will thicken, become jelly-like, and lose its cloudy appearance. Lower the heat and let it boil for around 2 minutes, stirring continuously. Take it off the heat and let it cool to room temperature.
- Once cooled, store in the fridge in an airtight container until needed.
Assembling
- When the filling has cooled, lay the puff pastry sheets onto a lightly floured surface. Cut each sheet into four equal squares.
- Whisk together an egg with a tablespoon of water in a small bowl for the egg wash.
- Spoon around a tablespoon of pie filling onto one corner of each pastry dough square. Use a pastry brush to brush around the squares with a little beaten egg. Fold the pastry over the filling on each to make a triangle.
- Crimp the edges of the pastry triangles with a fork to seal them.
- Brush the top of each puff pastry turnover with more egg wash, then use the tip of a knife to create small slits in the tops to allow steam to escape.
- Spray the air fryer basket with a little cooking spray. Place four puff pastry turnovers in the air fryer basket in a single layer.
- Air fry at 375℉/190°C for around 10-12 minutes until golden brown. The exact cook time will depend on your air fryer.
- Once cooked, remove them from the air fryer basket and place them on a cooling rack. Cook the remaining turnovers.
Glaze
- Whisk together powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk in a small bowl to create a smooth and pourable glaze.
- Drizzle this over the tops of the cooled turnovers.
Nutrition Information
Yield
8Serving Size
1Amount Per Serving Calories 107Total Fat 2gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 24mgSodium 86mgCarbohydrates 21gFiber 0gSugar 17gProtein 1g
