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Photo of Christmas mince pies with icing sugar being sprinkled over them and Christmas lioghts in the background
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Sarah's Christmas Mince Pies

A traditional Christmas treat of fruit mince enveloped in a crisp shortcrust pastry shell and sprinkled with icing sugar.
Course: baking, Dessert, Snack
Cuisine: British, English
Keyword: Christmas, Christmas baking, tradition, treat
Servings: 20 pies

Equipment

  • Patty pans/tins the size will determine how many pies this recipe will make
  • Food processor optional
  • Star-shaped cookie cutters

Ingredients

Fruit Mince Filling

  • 1½ granny smith apple
  • 80 g glacé cherries finely chopped
  • 125 g currants
  • 50 g dried figs finely chopped
  • 125 g golden sultanas
  • 125 g sultanas
  • 50 g slivered almonds finely chopped
  • 1 orange finely grated zest & juice
  • ½ lemon finely grated zest & juice
  • 100 g brown sugar ½ cup firmly packed
  • 1 TBS honey
  • 1 tsp ground cinnamon
  • ½ tsp ground nutmeg
  • 80 g butter
  • 50 ml Cointreau, dark rum or brandy

Pastry

  • 1½ cups plain flour
  • ½ cup self-raising flour
  • ¼ cup icing (superfine) sugar
  • 150 g chilled butter cubed
  • 2–3 TBS iced water

Instructions

For the Fruit Mince

  • Peel and coarsely grate the apples into a large bowl. Add all other fruit mince ingredients and mix well. Cover with clingfilm and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, stirring occasionally. Unused mixture can be spooned into sterilised jars and stored in the fridge for up to 2 months.
    Makes approx 3 cups

For the Pastry

  • Put flours, sugar and butter in a food processor. Process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add iced water gradually until the mixture just comes together. Tip dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead lightly. Shape pastry into a disc, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

To Assemble

  • Preheat oven to 180°c and lightly grease patty tins. Roll out pastry on a lightly floured surface to a thickness of 3mm. Cut out rounds using a pastry cutter or upturned glass to suit the size of your patty tins. Line patty tins with pastry and fill with 2 to 3 teaspoons of mince, depending on the size of your patty tins.
  • Roll out remainder of pastry and cut out enough stars to cover all your pies. Place stars on top of mince filling and bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until pastry is just golden. Leave to cool in tins.
  • When completely cool, dust pies with icing sugar. May be stored in an airtight container for up to 5 days.