I know you might think that it's a bit silly to make your own when you can buy perfectly delicious ones from the shop... But believe you me, there is something so satisfying about the smell of sweet spices wafting out your oven and filling the house with Christmas spirit, then sinking your teeth into a freshly baked, still warm soft and flaky, spicy and sweet homemade mince pie, knowing that YOU made them!
When making these you need to think a few days in advance. The longer you leave your mince to "mature" the more flavour you will get out of it.
Ingredients:
2 cups of raisins
2 cups of sultanas
2 cups of dried figs- chopped
1 cup of Candied peel- diced
1 cup of slithered almonds
250g suet grated (easily available at the supermarket, just ask!)
3 large apples, grated
1 Tbs ground cinnamon
1 Tbs ground ginger
1/2 Tbs ground cloves
1/2 Tbs ground nutmeg (freshly grated is best)
500ml Brandy
( with all the ingredients, add more or less depending on what your preferences are... These quantities are just guidelines)
1) mix all the ingredients together and then pour the brandy over and leave it to soak.
2) cover and leave- the longer the better! Can leave it over night at least.(I made mine at Christmas last year and then through out the year I fed it a little brandy to help the flavours develop and mature, then when you want to use it, freshen it up with another grated apple).
Pastry: (makes 32 mini pies and 15 larger ones)
50g sugar
125g butter
1 egg
200g flour
Pinch of salt
Zest of 1/2 an orange
1 tsp cinnamon
1) Cream the butter, sugar, orange zest and cinnamon in an electric mixer for about 5 mins, scraping the edges in to make sure it's all incorporated.
2) Mix in the egg until its all smooth
3) Add the flour and on a low speed mix it until it forms a dough.
4) take out the bowl, and roll it into a ball, but Try touch it as little as possible, wrap it in cling film and flatten it. Put it in the fridge to rest for 20 mins.
5) Dust a clean surface with flour and roll the pastry out about 3mm thick. Using a pastry cutter, cut out disks of pastry and line the small muffin tin or mini cupcake tin with the pastry, pushing it in and up the sides, make sure to get the pastry into the corners. Repeat until the whole tray is lined.
6) spoon the fruit mince into the pastry then cover it with a star shaped pastry cut out! Put it into the fridge to rest for 15 mins before baking it
7) bake at 175•C for 8-13 minutes or until the pastry starts to go slightly golden.
8) Take a pie out and check the base is cooked through and slightly golden too. If so, remove all the pies and put onto a cooling rack to cool. Dust with icing sugar while they are still warm so the frosty snow effect sticks!
Enjoy!!!!
1 comment:
Lovely Ems- will be sure to try the,
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