The very first time I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, I remember being entranced by unusual foods the characters got to eat during their adventures at Hogwarts. Some of those foods – like treacle tart or Yorkshire pudding – were only exotic because I was an American and unfamiliar with British cuisine. But others – like pumpkin pasties or chocolate frogs – had truly fantastical origins. When I decided to start a “bookish bakes” series here on the blog, it was obvious that some of these magical recipes needed to be part of the fun.

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While pumpkin pasties are not standard fare anywhere in the world, pasties as a food are a staple in Great Britain…and in the upper peninsula of Michigan. Pasties – also known as hand pies – came about as a lunch that miners could take to work with them, which they could eat without needing a fork and knife. Pasties are made of pie dough folded over a filling. Usually the filling is savory – think steak and mushroom pasties – but sometimes, like with pumpkin pasties, the filling is sweet. If you’re familiar with the concept of turnovers, then you’ll understand pasties without any problem.

Several pumpkin pasties sit on a wooden surface next to a stack of Harry Potter books.

These pumpkin pasties are small and sweet. In the first book in the Harry Potter series, our hero samples them for the first time on his train ride to Hogwarts. I have always pictured them as bite-sized morsels — treats that you could enjoy two or three at a time without feeling full.

Full disclosure: I am now partnered with Bookshop.org! This page contains links to my affiliate page there. If you choose to make a purchase through their site, I will earn a small commission. I was planning to do a bookish bakes series long before this partnership became a possibility; this affiliation just happened to come about at an opportune time. Know that I would never link to a service or book that I didn’t enjoy myself – and that I fully support you buying from whatever bookstore you like best!

Ingredients

In order to make pumpkin pasties, you first need pastry dough. You can use store-bought unbaked pie crust for this recipe, or you can make your own. But friends, let me be honest here – it is absolutely worth making your own dough for this recipe. I tried it both ways, using the Meijer brand pie dough and using my sweet shortcrust pastry dough recipe…and the difference was like night and day.

The homemade dough was fluffy and luscious, with a nice buttery flavor and beautiful layers of flaky texture. The store-bought dough was…fine. Most of the time, I opt for the easy, risk-averse option when making a recipe, but for these pumpkin pasties, it is worth putting in the extra work to make the dough yourself.

Second – and perhaps most importantly – we will make a pumpkin filling. For this you’ll need:

Pumpkin purée
Melted butter
An egg
Brown sugar
Ground cinnamon
Nutmeg
Allspice
Heavy cream

Third and finally, you need to think about the topping. We’ll make an egg wash using 1 egg and 1 tablespoon of water. We’ll also sprinkle each pasty with a pinch of turbinado sugar (or demerara sugar, or sugar in the raw – whatever is available at your local grocery.) This will give each pasty an extra hit of sugary crunch.

How to make pumpkin pasties

Combine the pumpkin puree and melted butter in a small bowl. Beat in one egg before adding the spices and heavy cream. Once the mixture is completely combined, set it aside.

Roll out your pie dough on a lightly floured surface. Use a 3.5” round cookie cutter (or the top of a pint glass) to cut circles out of the dough. Place 1-2 teaspoons of dough at the center of each circle.

By teaspoon – I don’t mean the teaspoon you use to eat your cereal. I mean the tiny measuring spoon. If you use too much filling, the pumpkin will end up squishing out the sides of your pumpkin pasties when you fold them over, as you can see in one of the images below. This won’t ruin the pasties, but it is less “pretty”. After some trial and error, you’ll figure out the perfect filling ratio for your pumpkin pasties.

In a small dish, beat together one egg with one tablespoon of water. Brush the edges of each circle with this mixture. Fold each circle in half and press the edges together with a fork. Slice tiny vent holes into the top of each pasty.

Form the excess dough into a ball and repeat the above steps until you have used all of your pie dough. (This will vary a lot depending on what pie dough you use! When using my sweet shortcrust pastry dough recipe, you can end up with about 4 dozen pasties, depending on how thin you roll the dough. In my experience, storebought dough only yields about 2 dozen pumpkin pasties total. This recipe yields enough filling for 4-5 dozen pumkin pasties, depending on how much filling you use per pastie.)

Place the uncooked pasties on a prepared baking sheet. Brush them with more egg wash and sprinkle each pasty with a pinch of turbinado sugar. Let them rest in the refrigerator for 15-30 minutes while you preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Bake the pasties for 15-17 minutes, until they are beginning to turn golden brown. Remove the pasties from the oven and allow them to cool completely before serving.

Your pumpkin pasties are now done, and you are ready to watch or read The Sorcerer’s Stone with some authentic, Harry Potter inspired food. Perhaps you’ll make these for your next movie marathon, or you’ll use them for a Harry Potter-themed party.

If you make these pumpkin pasties at home, feel free to take some pictures and tag @WhiskAverseBaking in your social media posts. You can also leave a message in the comments below with any questions or comments you have about the recipe. If you’d like to make this recipe later, click the “Pin Recipe” button to save it to your favorite board on Pinterest.