I make - Gluten Free Mince Pies 2022

Making mince pies always gets me into the festive mood. Homemade ones are really the best.

Gluten Free Mince Pies 2022

Homemade mincemeat adapted from Nigella Lawson's mincemeat with fresh cranberries

- 60 ml Marsala wine
- 75 g soft dark brown sugar
- 300 g fresh/frozen cranberries
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- ½ teaspoon ground cloves
- 120 grams raisins
- 60 grams dried sour cherries
- finely grated zest and juice of 1 orange
- 25 ml Amaretto
- 3 drops almond extract
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons honey

Pie pastry for 12 muffin-size tins (with some scraps):

- 120 g rice flour*
- 60 g cornstarch*
- 40 g ground almond
- 3/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2-3 tablespoons caster sugar
- 110 g butter, cut into 1-cm cubes
- 1 egg

- 1 tbsp vodka (or just enough to bring the dough together)

Frangipane topping:

- 75 g butter, melted
- 75 g sugar
- 75 g ground almond
- 1 egg
- 1/2 tsp almond (or almond) extract
- almond flakes to decorate the top (optional)

Note: 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, make the mincemeat. Put everything in a pot except the last four ingredients (Amaretto, almond extract, vanilla and honey). Bring the pot to boil and reduce the heat to low. Cook with the lid on for the first 10 minutes. Stir occasionally to ensure everything well mixed. Remove the lid and cook for another 10 minutes or until all liquid has been absorbed. Crush the fresh cranberries gently with the back of the stirring spoon. Remove from the heat and allow to cool a while before adding the Amaretto, almond extract, vanilla extract and honey. Stir well with a wooden spoon to mash the mixture down into a paste.  Spoon the mincemeat into sterilised jars and, once cool, store in the fridge for up to two weeks.

To make the pie crust, mix ingredients from rice flour to sugar in a bowl. Put diced butter in the same flour bowl and rub in the butter pieces with fingertips until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Crack the egg into the mixture and mix it in with a fork or chopsticks. Drizzle in some vodka to bring the dough together. Depending on the condition of the day, you may need more or less than the liquid specified. If you can squeeze two pieces of dough together without breaking, it's ready. 

Chill the dough in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (longer the better). When it's ready to bake, preheat the oven to 200C. Remove the dough from the fridge and roll the dough out with a thickness of 0.3 cm (about a pound coin thick). Cut into 10-cm circles and press into the muffin hole to line the mould. The dough is enough to cover a 12-muffin tin. I find it helpful to lay a strip of 15-20cm baking paper on the bottom of each muffin holes and place the dough on top of it. It makes removing piping hot mince pies out a lot easier.

Mix all frangipane ingredients in a bowl. Put a scant tablespoon of mincemeat into each muffin hole and fill the pie to the brim of the crust with frangipane filling. Finally scatter some almond flakes on top.

Bake at 200C for 20-25 minutes. Rotate half way through. Enjoy.

*You can use same amount of gluten free flour in place of rice flour and cornstarch combined.

*Sadly I no longer tolerate oats. If you can, substitute 30 g of oat flour for the flour.