All The Mince Pies

What is Christmas without mince pies?! I don't know if I am right in saying that having mince pies at Christmas is a British thing, but it makes me really happy when Christmas time, because it means one thing - mince pies. Whether they are shop brought, home made, warm or cold, mince pies are one of the best things about Christmas. Here is how to make your own...

What you will need

1 jar of mincemeat 

375g of plain flour

260g of unsalted butter

125g of caster sugar

1 large egg, plus 1 beaten egg to brush over the pastries before they go in the oven

What you need to do

1. Place flour and butter into a bowl and use your fingers to combine to the two together to make a crumbly consistency.

2. Add the sugar and the egg and mix together. 

3. Place the pastry on a lightly floured surface and knead until the pastry comes together. 

Or 

Buy shop brought pastry and your life will be much easier. I'd recommend the Jus-Rol Shortcrust pastry that you can get from most supermarkets.

4. Preheat the oven to 220c. Roll out the pastry to your desired thickness and using a cutter, cut out 16 bases and place them in a cake tray.

5. Roll out the remaining pastry and using another cutter, or freehand, make 16 mince pie tops. 

6. Using a spoon, fill the pastry bottoms with a teaspoon of mincemeat. 

7. Place the pastry tops on the mince pie bottoms.

8. Glaze with the beaten egg, and place in the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden brown.

9. Leave to cool and if you fancy, dust with a bit of icing sugar or caster sugar. 

I altered this recipe from the BBC website, you can find the full recipe here. 

Have you ever made mince pies before? Do you like them? 

Amber X