Mince pies are a quintessentially British Christmas treat. They are made from pastry and a fruity, spicy mixture that the Brits call mincemeat, even though to contains no meat at all! Despite coming from Britain, mince pies are also popular in New England, but, in the rest of the world, they are a bit of an oddity. However, don’t let that put you off – these little pies are delicious.
I remember the first time I ever had a mince pie. A British friend of mine invited me to visit her in London for Christmas, and that involved throwing myself into British culture. Pubs, flat beer, soccer – which they call football, and a whole bunch of other unusual but fun things were topped off with a traditional Christmas dinner.
A British Christmas dinner is usually turkey, stuffing made from sausage meat, and lots of different vegetables. Dessert is usually a very hearty steamed fruit pudding, but a lot of families save that for later in the day and have a much smaller mince pie instead. Both are usually served with brandy and sugar-infused butter – delicious!
Why not embrace your inner-Brit and make some mince pies for your family this Christmas? They are so easy that the kids could do it!
Preparation time – 30 minutes
Cooking time – 20 minutes
Number of servings – 18 pies
Ingredients
- 8 ounces cold butter, diced
- 12 ounces plain flour
- 3 ½ ounces castor sugar
- 10 ounces mincemeat (available in jars from your local specialty food store)
- 1 egg
- 1-ounce icing sugar for dusting
Instructions
- Using your hands, rub the butter into the flour and then add the sugar. Knead into a ball and, if necessary, store overnight
- Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C
- Break the pastry into walnut-sized balls, and press each one into the bottom of two 12-hole greased patty tins
- Divide the mincemeat evenly between the pastry cups
- Split the remaining pastry into 18 slightly smaller balls. Use your fingers to press them out to make lids for your pies
- Put the lids on the pies, crimping the edges to form a seal
- Beat the egg in a bowl and then brush the top of each pie to make a glaze
- Bake for 20 minutes until golden brown. Dust with icing sugar before serving
Recipe source: bbcgoodfood.com
Picture credit: Wikipedia.com
More Recipes for Your Christmas
Different ideas for different choices and tastes, but all recipes are very easy and using less than 8 Ingredients. Find Christmas recipes here.
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