Tasty Mince Pies
Make your own mince pies without rolling out a single piece of pastry! These mince pies are better than even the best shop bought ones. After making these, shop bought versions will only disappoint.
Equipment
- 1 (or 2) 12 hole Muffin Tin Two tins are better if you have them so they can all be done at once but one will suffice
- 1 Pastry Tamper or Sauerkraut packer
Ingredients
- 16 oz rich shortcrust pastry (click link above for recipe)
- 1-2 380g Jars of premade Mince Meat
- 6 tbsp melted butter
- 3 tbsp icing sugar (confectioners sugar) for decoration (optional)
- 3 tbsp Flaked Almonds Optional
Frangipane Topping
- 200 g Butter Melted and cooled
- 4 eggs beaten
- 6-8 drops Almond Extract
- 200 g Ground Almonds
- 200 g Semolina
- 200 g Caster Sugar
Instructions
To make the pastry cases
- Brush each muffin hole with a generous amount of butter
- Start by rolling out pieces of pastry into walnut size pieces. Press them into the tin with the pickle packer so that the pastry is forced up the sides of the wooden tool, creating a pie bottom. It will take a few attempts to get this right. You want the pastry to be about 1/2 to 3/4 cm thick. Having two muffin tins would help here so that you can get all the pastry cases formed at once, otherwise, you'll have to work in batches as the recipe makes 18-20 depending on how big you make the pastry balls.
- Add 2 generous teaspoons of mincemeat filling to each pastry case.
To make the Frangipane topping
- Add cooled, melted butter, eggs and almond extract to a mixing bowl. You can use a stand mixer if you wish, but it's easy enough to mix by hand.
- Add in ground almonds, semolina and caster sugar and mix well. Don't allow to sit for too long, as the mixture becomes thicker over time and a little more difficult to spread in the pastry cases.
To finish assembling the mince pies
- Spoon 1.5-2 teaspoons of the frangipane mixture on top of the mincemeat in each pie. I suggest adding 1 teaspoon to start with as it will depend on how many pastry cases you end up with and then distribute the remainder out equally between the cases.
- Spread out the frangipane slightly to the edges. This just helps ensure the mincemeat doesn't bubble between the pastry and fillling, though this isn't the end of the world. It just makes them look a little more rustic.
- Sprinkle a few flaked almonds (optional) over the top of the frangipane mixture and press them in slightly.
- Bake in a 180C oven for 18-20 mins. They should be a pale golden brown.
- Allow to cool for a few minutes in the tin, then remove to a wire rack. Dust with a little icing sugar for that necessary tacky Christmas look.
- These are delicious warm straight from the oven. You could also reheat for 20 seconds in the microwave when necessary and they are also delicious served with a rich homemade custard.