it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

Started feeling Christmassy so it's time for some mince pies.  I find pastry on the top and bottom a bit too much (and shop bought ones soooo sweet) so I like to use Richard Bertinet's recipe that I found in a magazine a few years ago.  I prefer to use homemade flaky pastry rather than shortcrust so you get a bit of a crunch, gooey mincemeat and soft frangipane on top.

 

I tend to buy the cheapest mincemeat and add bits to my own taste.  I like to add the zest and juice of an orange, some mixed spice, extra sultanas, brandy, grated apple and some chopped nuts.  

Bertinet's recipe for 36 mince pies is as follows

750g shortcrust pastry

200g unsalted butter

200g caster sugar

200g ground almonds

50g flour

2 large eggs

2 tbsp brandy

about 400g mincemeat

flaked almonds and icing sugar to decorate

preheat oven to 180c and grease 3 12 hole bun tins

for frangipane topping

beat butter until very soft then gradually add the sugar and ground almonds

mix in the flour followed by the egg and finally the brandy

roll out the pastry until quite thin and cut out rounds to fit bun tin

half fill the pasty cases with mincemeat

put a spoonfull of the frangipane on top and smooth over.  It doesn't matter too much how smooth it is as when it goes in the oven it soon melts all over

sprinkle with flaked almons and bake for about 25 minutes until golden

leave to cool and dust with icing sugar

Thanks to Dad for the annual supply of brandy!

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