Using a jar of mincemeat makes this Christmas classic a breeze to create. I made my own pastry to give a little extra zing with some orange zest and enhanced the flavour of the jarred mincemeat by adding a little whiskey, cinnamon and nutmeg. These additions and small visual imperfections from home baking these pies brings them a step above the store bought varieties. Pair this with small glass of port.
Ingredients
1 jar store bought mincemeat
1 cup plain Flour
1 tbsp light brown Sugar
1 tbsp dark brown Sugar
1 tsp confectioners Sugar (optional - for dusting)
1/2 cup of Butter, cubed
1 tsp Salt
3 tbsp ice-cold Water
1 shot of Whiskey or Brandy
1 orange, Zest only
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
a bit of Milk
Recipe
Start with the shortcrust pastry, which is the same from my previous recipe. Mix the flour, light brown sugar and salt and rub in the cubed butter until the texture is like that of soft bread crumbs. Add the cold water and form into a dough - no need to knead, treat the dough with care! Cover with clingfilm and and leave to chill in the fridge for at least half an hour.
When the dough is ready, pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees and grease your pan of choice. I used a regular 12 hole muffin pan. Roll the dough over a floured surface as thin as you can make them, then cut out rounds for the base. I didn't have pasty cutter that was large enough for my muffin pan so I used a pasta crimping wheel around a Bonne Maman lid which happened to be the perfect size. Slide the rounds into the muffin tin and then spoon one level tablespoon of mincemeat into each casing. This ended up using just over 2/3 of my 450g jar, so I was able to make a few more the next day.
Using the rest of your dough either cut out a round as the top layer for your mince pies, or cut shapes. I opted for heart shapes as I was feeling brave and creative. Lay them on top and snip a hole in the center if you're doing a full top layer. Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle over some dark brown sugar. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown at the edges. When they come out of the oven leave them to cool for a few minutes before transferring onto a serving plate and sprinkle over some confectioners sugar. Enjoy with brandy butter.
Ingredients
1 jar store bought mincemeat
1 cup plain Flour
1 tbsp light brown Sugar
1 tbsp dark brown Sugar
1 tsp confectioners Sugar (optional - for dusting)
1/2 cup of Butter, cubed
1 tsp Salt
3 tbsp ice-cold Water
1 shot of Whiskey or Brandy
1 orange, Zest only
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/2 tsp Nutmeg
a bit of Milk
Recipe
Start with the shortcrust pastry, which is the same from my previous recipe. Mix the flour, light brown sugar and salt and rub in the cubed butter until the texture is like that of soft bread crumbs. Add the cold water and form into a dough - no need to knead, treat the dough with care! Cover with clingfilm and and leave to chill in the fridge for at least half an hour.
When the dough is ready, pre-heat the oven to 200 degrees and grease your pan of choice. I used a regular 12 hole muffin pan. Roll the dough over a floured surface as thin as you can make them, then cut out rounds for the base. I didn't have pasty cutter that was large enough for my muffin pan so I used a pasta crimping wheel around a Bonne Maman lid which happened to be the perfect size. Slide the rounds into the muffin tin and then spoon one level tablespoon of mincemeat into each casing. This ended up using just over 2/3 of my 450g jar, so I was able to make a few more the next day.
Using the rest of your dough either cut out a round as the top layer for your mince pies, or cut shapes. I opted for heart shapes as I was feeling brave and creative. Lay them on top and snip a hole in the center if you're doing a full top layer. Brush the tops with milk and sprinkle over some dark brown sugar. Bake in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until golden brown at the edges. When they come out of the oven leave them to cool for a few minutes before transferring onto a serving plate and sprinkle over some confectioners sugar. Enjoy with brandy butter.
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