A pie is a terrible thing to waste. You can quote me on that. That’s why I’ve rounded up a dozen mini pie recipes that are perfect for serving your guests this holiday season. Mini pies are the ideal size, especially if you’re concerned about portion control. Plus, they’re easy to wrap up and send home with your guests so nothing ever goes to waste. There’s nothing worse than seeing a perfectly good pie squandered because there’s just too much of it left in the pie pan.

These twelve mini pie recipes feature many different kinds of crusts, any of which are easier to deal with than a traditional, full size pie crust. And there are lots of fillings to choose from, too. Maybe you’ll mix and match your favorite filling with your preferred crust. Why not?

Just in time for Thanksgiving, Mary from Home Is Where The Boat Is has a great little recipe for Mini Pumpkin Pies. She rolls out a refrigerated pie crust (my absolute favorite!) and cuts out circles that go in muffin tins. Then she uses fall-themed cookie cutters to make quick and easy decorations for on top.

Crystal from the Little Bit Funky blog also uses refrigerated pie dough, but in lieu of a cookie or biscuit cutter, she uses a wide-mouth Mason jar lid! I have lots of Northern Spy apples this year, and I can’t wait to try her Mini Apple Pies.

Do you like pecan pies? I do, but they’re often too rich for me to eat a whole piece. That’s why I like these Mini Pecan Pies from Today’s Mama. Amy makes her pie dough from scratch.

If these Individual Frozen Key Lime Pies taste as good as they look, they’ll be amazing. Dana from This Silly Girl’s Life poured the tart, fruity filling into silicon cupcake liners then sprinkled a graham cracker crust mixture on top. She then inverted the mini pies for a great presentation.

Raegun from Raegun Ramblings started with pre-made mini graham cracker crusts for her Coconut Magic Pies. These are the perfect size for snacking – if you can eat just one, that is.

Dorothy from Crazy For Crust is also crazy for Samoas. To make these Mini Samoa Pies, she started with refrigerated pie dough, then added chocolate chips, caramel, and coconut. What’s not to like?

This Almost-No-Bake Mini Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie recipe from Carlsbad Cravings calls for a toffee graham cracker crust. OMG, this sounds good . . . toffee, chocolate, peanut butter . . .what a combination!

Stephanie promises that her Mini Banana Cream Cookie Pies taste delicious, although she can’t personally vouch for them since she’s allergic to bananas. At Girl Versus Dough, you can find this delicious recipe that uses refrigerated cookie dough for the base.

Here’s another Mini Banana Cream Pie recipe, this one featuring vanilla wafers. Sommer from A Spicy Perspective says they’re the perfect bite-size dessert that can be whipped up quickly.

The Lady Behind The Curtain uses inexpensive canning jar lids to make her Mini Mason Jar Lid Cherry Pies. Sheryl says that you can use either the wide-mouth or regular size jar lids. You can also choose between serving them in the lids or popping them out. Clever, eh?

I love the lattice work on these Mini Mixed Berry Pies from the Cambria Wines blog. Although this dough is made from scratch, you could substitute refrigerated dough and make life easier on yourself. Either way, these pies served in individual ramekins make a beautiful dessert.

Here’s a wonderful recipe for Mini Peach Pies from Krissy’s Creations. I’d never considered serving mini pies at a baby shower, but that’s exactly what this wonderful baker did.

Yes, these mini pie recipes have a lot going for them. The pies are the perfect size, they’re easy to serve, they help with portion-control, and, best of all, they look as good as they taste. I am definitely going to make mini pies this Thanksgiving. Won’t they look great on my Autumn Watercolor tablecloth that I just got from Bright Settings? My guests will be so impressed!