Italian Style Hand Pies with Marinara Dipping Sauce

5 from 2 votes

Italian seasoned meat filling in a crescent roll package with marinara sauce on the side.

Cook Time 22 minutes

Total Time 27 minutes

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Italian Style Hand Pies with Marinara Dipping Sauce - hand pies made with crescent rolls, filled with meat sauce, and served with marinara for dipping.

Wow, it has been "one of those" weeks for me! Have you ever had a day or a week when it seemed that nothing went quite right? Yeah...that was this week for me. And it was all electronics.

It seemed like everything we own that plugs into an outlet either quit working, worked the wrong way, or just gave up and died. And don't even get me started on tech support. Ugh.

When I have a frustrating day like that, the last thing I want to do is make a complicated recipe for dinner. Don't get me wrong, I still love to cook. I just want it to be nice and easy. Something quick to prepare and deliciously satisfying. Something just like these Italian Style Hand Pies with Marinara Dipping Sauce.

A while back, the people at Pillsbury asked me to come up with a way to use their crescent rolls to create an easy family dinner recipe. Well, I accepted that challenge in a second!

Those crescent rolls are a permanent fixture in my refrigerator and part of our dinner many, many evenings. In creating the recipe, I thought about what a family might enjoy, especially the kids, after a long day of work and play. And knowing how kids love anything they can pick up with their hands and dip into a sauce, I just knew these little hand pies would be perfect. They're loaded with a delicious filling flavored with tomato sauce and Italian seasonings.

Place a little container of warm marinara sauce on the side, add a salad, and dinner's served! If you have a regular "pizza night" or "spaghetti night" at your house, this would be a great way to change that up a little bit.

How to Make Italian Style Hand Pies with Marinara Dipping Sauce

Start by preheating the oven to 400 degrees. Prepare a baking sheet by either lining with parchment paper or spraying lightly with cooking spray. Set the prepared baking sheet aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and onion. Cook, stirring frequently, until the beef shows no more pink color. Add the garlic and cook for 1 additional minute. Drain well and return to the pan.

Add the tomato paste, water, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.

Cook, stirring for 2-3 minutes or until the water has nearly evaporated. You want a nice filling consistency, not a sauce. A sauce would to be too wet and might leak out during baking.

Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Set the mixture aside to cool a bit while preparing the crescent rolls.

Open the crescent rolls and unroll them on a work surface. Separate each package of rolls into 4 rectangles (each rectangle will contain 2 crescent rolls). Press the perforations in each rectangle together.

Place ⅛ of the beef mixture (about 2 generous tablespoonfuls) on the end of each rectangle leaving about an inch all the way around in order to seal the packages.Fold the unfilled end over the filled end. Using a dinner fork, seal the three open edges.

Place the filled hand pies on the prepared baking sheet. It's easier to transfer them with a flat spatula.

In a small bowl, use a fork to whisk together the egg and water. Brush lightly over the hand pies. Use a small sharp knife to cut a slit in the top of each pie.

Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375 and continue cooking for an additional 5-7 minutes or until golden brown all over.

While the hand pies are cooking, warm 2 cups of purchased marinara sauce in a small pan over medium heat.

Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Serve with a side of warm marinara sauce for dipping.

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Italian Style Hand Pies with Marinara Dipping Sauce

Italian seasoned meat filling in a crescent roll package with marinara sauce on the side.

5 from 2 votes

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Course: Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 22 minutes

Total Time: 27 minutes

Servings: 8 pies

Calories: 402kcal

Author: Lana Stuart

Ingredients

• ▢ 16 ounces crescent roll dough (2 packages) recommend: Pillsbury Crescent Rolls
• ▢ 2 tablespoons olive oil
• ▢ 1 pound ground beef
• ▢ 1 medium onion finely chopped
• ▢ 2 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• ▢ ½ cup water
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ▢ 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• ▢ 4 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan cheese
• ▢ 1 egg
• ▢ 1 tablespoon water
• ▢ Purchased Marinara sauce

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Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Prepare a baking sheet by either lining with parchment paper or spraying lightly with cooking spray. Set the prepared baking sheet aside.
• Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the ground beef and onion. Cook, stirring frequently, until the beef shows no more pink color. Add the garlic and cook for 1 additional minute. Drain well and return to the pan.
• Add the tomato paste, water, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. Cook, stirring for 2-3 minutes or until the water has nearly evaporated. Remove pan from the heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Set the mixture aside to cool a bit while preparing the crescent rolls.
• Open the crescent rolls and unroll them on a work surface. Separate each package of rolls into four rectangles (each rectangle will contain 2 crescent rolls). Press the perforations in each rectangle together.
• Place ⅛ of the beef mixture (about 2 generous tablespoonfuls) on the end of each rectangle leaving about an inch all the way around in order to seal the packages. Fold the unfilled end over the filled end. Using a dinner fork, seal the three open edges.
• Place the filled hand pies on the prepared baking sheet.
• In a small bowl, use a fork to whisk together the egg and water. Brush lightly over the hand pies. Use a small sharp knife to cut a slit in the top of each pie.
• Bake in preheated oven for 5 minutes. Reduce the heat to 375 and continue cooking for an additional 5-7 minutes or until golden brown all over.
• While the hand pies are cooking, warm 2 cups of purchased marinara sauce in a small pan over medium-low heat.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Serve with a side of warm marinara sauce for dipping.

Notes

Nutrition calculation does not include marinara sauce.

Nutrition Information

Serving: 2g | Calories: 402kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 14g | Fat: 28g | Saturated Fat: 11g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 62mg | Sodium: 855mg | Potassium: 232mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 116IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is calculated by software based on the ingredients in each recipe. It is an estimate only and is provided for informational purposes. You should consult your health care provider or a registered dietitian if precise nutrition calculations are needed for health reasons.

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-- This post was originally sponsored by General Mills.

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