I make - mince pies 2018

I have baked two rounds of mince pies this year. Homemade mincemeat with fresh cranberries is just so much better and it's much easier than you think. If you have not made mincemeat with fresh fruit, it's worth every bite and calorie.

Hubby still says that the best mince pies are the ones I made. Smile.

Mince Pies 2018

Pastry:

- 1 1/2 cup flour
- 1/2 cup ground almond (or oat flakes)*
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 100 g melted butter
- 3 tablespoons of water
- 3 tablespoons of sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (up to 1/2 tsp if skipping orange zest)
- zest from 1 orange

Mincemeat:

- 60 ml port
- 75 g soft dark brown sugar
- 300-400 g fresh/frozen cranberries
- 1 teaspoon ground mixed spice
- 1/4 teaspoon quatre épices (for pain d'épices)
- 200 g dried fruits (currants, raisins, cranberries or apricots)
- finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange (or clementine)
- 25 ml Ameretto (such as Disaronno)
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons honey

Frangipane filling:

- 50 g butter, melted
- 50 g sugar
- 50 g ground almond
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp almond extract
- The butter, sugar and ground almond can increase to 100 g each if more frangipane is required. There is no need to increase the egg or the almond extract.

First prepare the mincemeat by cooking everything together until fresh cranberries burst. Cool the mincemeat before making the pies. This recipe of mincemeat is enough for 24 mince pies.

To prepare the dough, mix wet ingredients into a bowl of dry ones. Stir to combine with a rubber spatula and gather into dough. The dough is ready to roll out to line a 12-hole muffin tin.

Fill each lined muffin hole with 2 teaspoons of mincemeat and one teaspoon of frangipane.

Bake the mince pies in a muffin tin at 200C for 15 minutes and lower to 175C for another 10 minutes.

*After tasting this batch, I think I will revert back to ground oat next time as I prefer the oat texture.

*Next time, try to add one or half of a beaten egg to the dough.