Mince pie (traditional English Christmas cake)

Here’s an idea for your Christmas table – Mince pie. For the first time I heard about it from the best English teacher – my daughter’s teacher – Miss Maria Angelova. Ever since I was told this thing exists and how delicious it was, it has been on my recipes waiting list. But I knew I would make it for Christmas, because then it is its time.

Because of the meaning of “mince”, my first surprise was that it’s a sweet pie. Probably the stuffing of a variety of fruits and nuts is so reminiscent of minced meat that I guess that’s where the name tag comes from.

Thanks also to BBC GoodFood for the recipe, which I, as a true cook, could not resist to change a little (read “I used the spices and fruits I had at home and managed to buy from the store”)… 😉

Try to prepare something different just like these cute little muffin-shaped pies! You can do it the classic way too – a juicy, crunchy and beautiful big pie!

Be good and peace, health and love for all!

Happy Holidays! 🙂

 

AnnieAuthorAnnieCategoryDifficultyIntermediate

INGREDIENTS:

For the filling:
 200 g dates
 150 g raisins
 100 g dried cranberries
 200 g dried apricots
 2 medium sized apples
 100 g sugar
 50 ml Baileys (or another alcohol)
 1 tsp. cinnamon
 50 g crushed or coarsely ground nuts
 1 tsp. mixture of bahar, cardamom, star anise, nutmeg, ginger, cloves (optional)
For the dough:
 375 g flour
 1 big eggs
 125 g icing sugar
 250 g soft butter
For spreading:
 1 egg
 1 tbsp. sunflower oil
For sprinkle:
 icing sugar (optional)

Prep Time1 hr 10 minsCook Time30 minsTotal Time1 hr 40 mins

 

DIRECTIONS:

Приготвяне на пълнежа:
1

Pre-soak the raisins for about 1 hour in Baileys liqueur or another alcohol you like. Put the finely chopped apricots, the dried cranberries, the dates and the drained raisins in a small casserole.

Mince pie

2

Peel the apples and cut them into small cubes. Add them to the dried fruits along with the sugar.

Mince pie

3

Add cinnamon as well.

Mince pie

4

Stir well and place the casserole on medium heat.

Mince pie

5

Stir for about 10-15 minutes.

Mince pie

6

Once the mixture is ready, add the liqueur you drained from the raisins.

Mince pie

7

Add the nuts, too.

Mince pie

8

Stir the mixture well and let it cool down.

Mince pie

Dough preparation:
9

Add all the dough ingredients to the blender. Switch for about 1-2 minutes until everything get crumbly.

Mince pie

10

Do not expect the mixture to form itself as a dough in the blender. Even if you see lumps of butter somewhere (which will happen if the butter wasn't soft enough), don't worry. Put the mixture onto a slightly floured countertop. Start gently kneading. You do not need to knead for a long time, just to make a compact mass.

Mince pie

11

Gather the dough into one flat compact rectangle. Do not make it into a ball, thus it will cool faster and more evenly.

Mince pie

12

Wrap the dough in a plastic household foil and let it cool in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Mince pie

Pies preparation:
13

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Take about 1/3 of it, wrap it back in the foil and put it again in the refrigerator. Roll out the remaining 2/3 of the dough into a thin crust about 3-4 mm thick.

Mince pie

14

Cut circles of about 8-10 cm in diameter. I used molds for salt pans and ravioli (good I finally found some purpose to use it).

Mince pie

15

Cut all the remaining circles as well. Stir the remaining dough and roll again. If the dough gets too hot, wrap it again in foil and place in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to cool and also sprinkle some flour on the countertop where you roll it.

Mince pie

16

Prepare a muffin pan. Take the dough circles and press in with your fingers to fit well on the bottom and on the walls of the muffin molds.

Mince pie

17

Do this with all other molds.

Mince pie

18

Then use a fork to punch the bottom of the pies.

Mince pie

19

Put them in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. They don't need to be finally baked, but they still need to remain relatively white.
I did not use baking weights (the so-called "blind baking"), where rice, beans or stones are used, which press the bottom of the pie and thus prevent it from flowing and help maintain its good shape. For this reason, I have to admit that in addition to the walls, the bottom of the pies also rose. So after removing them from the oven, I again tapped the bottoms with a fork and pressed them slightly with a knife handle.

Mince pie

20

Fill all the pies with the filling (put 1-2 tbsp of it). The spike basket should be full to the edge of the dough.

Mince pie

21

Take out from the fridge the remaining 1/3 of the dough. With it you will decorate the pies. Since I didn't have a large variety of Christmas cookie cutters, I used these. In fact, it doesn't matter how big the shape will be. It is important that it is almost the size of the diameter of the pies so that it can be attached to the edges. You can cut any shapes (for example, 1 cm diameter circles to make circles, Christmas trees and whatever your imagination gives you), you can cut the shapes yourself, and you can also cut entire lids and glue them to the pies. In this case, however, make sure to make a few holes so that the pie can breathe.

Mince pie

22

Attach the cut forms as lids to the pies.

Mince pie

23

Brush the beaten egg with the oil.

Mince pie

24

Here are the stars.

Mince pie

25

Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for about 15 minutes until golden.

Mince pie

26

After removing the pies from the oven, let them cool for about 30 minutes. After that, it is now quite easy to remove them. I do not advise you to try to take them out with a knife, as it is a butter dough and quite fragile. So you are very likely to spoil the look of these beautiful sweets! I recommend finding a rectangular plate, dish, or tray to place on the muffin tray and then flip them together with a quick swipe. They will fall out of their nests on their own easily.

Mince pie

27

Here are our beautiful Christmas temptations! You can optionally sprinkle them with some icing sugar!
Dive yourself in the atmosphere of Christmas with this traditional English recipe! After 2-3 days they get even more delicious! Enjoy! 🙂

Mince pie

 

If I can do it, so can you!
Bon appetit!

 

 

Ingredients

For the filling:
 200 g dates
 150 g raisins
 100 g dried cranberries
 200 g dried apricots
 2 medium sized apples
 100 g sugar
 50 ml Baileys (or another alcohol)
 1 tsp. cinnamon
 50 g crushed or coarsely ground nuts
 1 tsp. mixture of bahar, cardamom, star anise, nutmeg, ginger, cloves (optional)
For the dough:
 375 g flour
 1 big eggs
 125 g icing sugar
 250 g soft butter
For spreading:
 1 egg
 1 tbsp. sunflower oil
For sprinkle:
 icing sugar (optional)

Directions

Приготвяне на пълнежа:
1

Pre-soak the raisins for about 1 hour in Baileys liqueur or another alcohol you like. Put the finely chopped apricots, the dried cranberries, the dates and the drained raisins in a small casserole.

Mince pie

2

Peel the apples and cut them into small cubes. Add them to the dried fruits along with the sugar.

Mince pie

3

Add cinnamon as well.

Mince pie

4

Stir well and place the casserole on medium heat.

Mince pie

5

Stir for about 10-15 minutes.

Mince pie

6

Once the mixture is ready, add the liqueur you drained from the raisins.

Mince pie

7

Add the nuts, too.

Mince pie

8

Stir the mixture well and let it cool down.

Mince pie

Dough preparation:
9

Add all the dough ingredients to the blender. Switch for about 1-2 minutes until everything get crumbly.

Mince pie

10

Do not expect the mixture to form itself as a dough in the blender. Even if you see lumps of butter somewhere (which will happen if the butter wasn't soft enough), don't worry. Put the mixture onto a slightly floured countertop. Start gently kneading. You do not need to knead for a long time, just to make a compact mass.

Mince pie

11

Gather the dough into one flat compact rectangle. Do not make it into a ball, thus it will cool faster and more evenly.

Mince pie

12

Wrap the dough in a plastic household foil and let it cool in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

Mince pie

Pies preparation:
13

Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Take about 1/3 of it, wrap it back in the foil and put it again in the refrigerator. Roll out the remaining 2/3 of the dough into a thin crust about 3-4 mm thick.

Mince pie

14

Cut circles of about 8-10 cm in diameter. I used molds for salt pans and ravioli (good I finally found some purpose to use it).

Mince pie

15

Cut all the remaining circles as well. Stir the remaining dough and roll again. If the dough gets too hot, wrap it again in foil and place in the fridge for 5-10 minutes to cool and also sprinkle some flour on the countertop where you roll it.

Mince pie

16

Prepare a muffin pan. Take the dough circles and press in with your fingers to fit well on the bottom and on the walls of the muffin molds.

Mince pie

17

Do this with all other molds.

Mince pie

18

Then use a fork to punch the bottom of the pies.

Mince pie

19

Put them in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for about 10-15 minutes. They don't need to be finally baked, but they still need to remain relatively white.
I did not use baking weights (the so-called "blind baking"), where rice, beans or stones are used, which press the bottom of the pie and thus prevent it from flowing and help maintain its good shape. For this reason, I have to admit that in addition to the walls, the bottom of the pies also rose. So after removing them from the oven, I again tapped the bottoms with a fork and pressed them slightly with a knife handle.

Mince pie

20

Fill all the pies with the filling (put 1-2 tbsp of it). The spike basket should be full to the edge of the dough.

Mince pie

21

Take out from the fridge the remaining 1/3 of the dough. With it you will decorate the pies. Since I didn't have a large variety of Christmas cookie cutters, I used these. In fact, it doesn't matter how big the shape will be. It is important that it is almost the size of the diameter of the pies so that it can be attached to the edges. You can cut any shapes (for example, 1 cm diameter circles to make circles, Christmas trees and whatever your imagination gives you), you can cut the shapes yourself, and you can also cut entire lids and glue them to the pies. In this case, however, make sure to make a few holes so that the pie can breathe.

Mince pie

22

Attach the cut forms as lids to the pies.

Mince pie

23

Brush the beaten egg with the oil.

Mince pie

24

Here are the stars.

Mince pie

25

Bake in a preheated oven at 180 degrees for about 15 minutes until golden.

Mince pie

26

After removing the pies from the oven, let them cool for about 30 minutes. After that, it is now quite easy to remove them. I do not advise you to try to take them out with a knife, as it is a butter dough and quite fragile. So you are very likely to spoil the look of these beautiful sweets! I recommend finding a rectangular plate, dish, or tray to place on the muffin tray and then flip them together with a quick swipe. They will fall out of their nests on their own easily.

Mince pie

27

Here are our beautiful Christmas temptations! You can optionally sprinkle them with some icing sugar!
Dive yourself in the atmosphere of Christmas with this traditional English recipe! After 2-3 days they get even more delicious! Enjoy! 🙂

Mince pie

Mince pie (traditional English Christmas cake) – recipe
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