Mince Pies

mandragora_2

I think I'd be tempted to use the puff pastry and have a go at making something like eccles cakes - think of it as the mince-meat is the filling already made (ie ignore step 2 in the recipe below!). I bet the rolling the pastry thin would make it really light, fruity and delicious! http://allrecipes.co.uk/recipe/4715/easy-eccles-cakes.aspx

babyshoes

You could use either or both of those, but as others have said shortcrust is easy.

The rule I use is half fat to flour, e.g. 50g of butter/suet/hard marg for 100g of flour (I like all butter, traditionally it was half butter and half suet, I believe).

For a standard jar of mincemeat you will probably need 400-500g of flour.

Everything should stay as cold as possible, as melty fat or soft marg/spread makes the pastry 'tough' and unpleasant to eat.

Rub together with fingertips (if you have hot hands wash them in cold water first) or whizz together in the food processor until it looks like fine breadcrumbs. Add just enough cold water with a squeeze of lemon juice to bring it together without being too sticky. Don't handle it much, squeeze it all together into a ball and wrap in plastic. Put in the fridge for a minimum of half an hour.

Roll out on a floured surface and use as desired. If you have a lot of pastry, cut it into pieces and roll out in batches, putting the rest back in plastic in the fridge until needed.

Stephen_Leak

Filo pastry mince pies are dead easy and much lighter than the traditional ones. Just cut the pastry into small squares, put a small dollop of mincemeat in the middle, and then bring the corners up and together to make a little "sack".

Vicky496

I always make mince pies with puff pastry anyway! It's much nicer

spike7451

Thanks for all the suggestions chaps n chapesses...

zippychick

you could always make the best mince pie pastry ever?

What did you do in the end? Ive kept meaning to try these for years after seeing Jamie make them

Zip

zippychick

ive merged this with our mince pies thread

Zip

jones160312

As the title asks how long do homemade mince pies keep?

Linda32

I think they would stay nice and soft for about 4 days as long as they are kept air tight.

What I do is make a batch, then keep, say 6 out and freeze the rest. Then just take out a few to defrost as you need them.

Saves you scoffing the lot as well

zippychick

ive merged this with our homemade mince pie thread

Zip