Celebrate Christmas in July with these tangy mince pies!
Christmas in July may sound a tad funny to those living in the Northern Hemisphere. However, being in the Southern Hemisphere means that our seasons are the complete polar opposite to America and Europe. Whilst Christmas is still officially celebrated on 25 December along with the rest of the world, it is a hot and humid month for us, which takes away any “Christmassy” feel. With July being the middle of winter, jumper season gives us an extra reason to celebrate. And what better way than to bake something delicious that reminds you of Christmas and to celebrate the fact that we are halfway there! A delicious sweet pie of English origin, mince pies have long been synonymous with Christmas. Filled with a good variety of fruits and some delectable port wine, this mince pie recipe is set to envelop your home in a heavenly scent of butter, sugar and spice. We whipped out our Le Creuset TNS Mini Muffin Tray to make these delectable mince pies. The heavy-gauge steel body allows the pies to bake evenly, resulting in a nice crust whilst the high-quality non-stick coating ensures that the pies are released beautifully after baking. We hope you enjoy these Port Wine and Cranberry Mince Pies as much as we do!Port Wine and Cranberry Mince Pies Recipe
Serves: 10Ingredients:
Sweet Pastry- 350g plain flour plus a little extra for dusting
- 175g cold butter, diced
- 85g caster sugar
- 4-6 tablespoons water, to mix
- 2 x 375g blocks ready-made sweet short-crust pastry
- 2-3 tablespoons milk for the pastry tops
- Icing sugar for dusting
- 225g dessert apples
- 225g raisins
- Zest and juice 1 lemon
- Zest and juice 1 orange
- 225g sultanas
- 225g currants
- 115g semi-dried cranberries
- 55g ground almonds
- 225g soft brown sugar
- 220g shredded vegetable suet
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon mixed spice
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 200ml port wine
- 4 x 454g jam jars with screw-on lids, sterilised
Method:
Mincemeat- Peel, core and dice the apples finely.
- Place into a medium-sized mixing bowl and mix with the citrus juice and zest.
- Add all the remaining mincemeat ingredients and combine well.
- Spoon the mixture into the sterilised glass jam jars, packing down well to remove any air and put on the lids.
- Store the jars in the refrigerator, leaving for a minimum of 12 hours or overnight before using. Stored mincemeat will keep for 2-3 weeks.
- Sieve the flour into a bowl, add the diced butter and rub the mixture together using your fingertips until it resembles breadcrumbs.
- Stir in the sugar. Add the water, a little at a time, and bring the ingredients together until a dough ball is formed.
- Handle the pastry as little as possible or the butter may begin to melt making it difficult to work with. Wrap the pastry in plastic wrap and rest in a cool place for 30-45 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C.
- Dust a work surface and a rolling pin with some flour. Roll out the pastry to approximately 4mm - 5mm thick. Cut 12 larger circles with an 88mm and 12 smaller circles with a 78mm fluted edged pastry cutter, re-rolling the pastry for the last few.
- Line the bun cups with the larger pastry circle circles allowing the edges to stand proud. Add 1 tablespoon of mincemeat to each.
- Brush the edges of the smaller pastry circles with a little water, place them on top of the filing and press the pastry edges together to seal.
- Make two or three steam holes in each pie top and brush lightly with milk.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes until lightly golden.
- Allow to cool for a few minutes before removing from the tin and dusting with some icing sugar.
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