When I first moved to the UK and tried a classic mince pie, I found that the pastry was too thick and the filling too sweet. So over the years I have tried to find different variations to make the perfect mince pies, in my eyes. These ones however, are beautifully light, flavourful, and not too sweet and I’m so excited to share them with you.
Recipe makes 24 mince pies.
Ingredients
200g unsalted butter, cubed
3-4 cardamom pods, broken up
jar of mincemeat
flake almonds
pistachios, chopped
For the Dough
300g plain flour
50g caster sugar
pinch of salt
½ tsp ground cardamom
150g unsalted butter, chilled
2 egg yolks
For the Frangipane
200g caster sugar
200g ground almonds
2 pinches of salt
2 tbsp plain flour
2 eggs
Method
– Add the butter and cardamom pods to a pan. Melt it and bring it to a boil. Cook for around 4 minutes until golden brown. Pass it through a sieve into a bowl and let it cool.
– Place all the ingredients (except the egg yolks) for the dough into a large bowl. Use your hands to rub the ingredients together to form a breadcrumb texture.
– Add the egg yolks and stir through. Add 1 tbsp of water at a time and mix with your hands. Stop adding water when you form a dough. Roll it slightly to smoothen it out. Divide it into 2 portions, cover, and let it rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
– Place all of the dry ingredients for the frangipane in a large bowl. Mix well.
– Add the eggs and 200ml of the browned, melted butter. Whisk to combine and let it rest in the fridge until the pastry is ready.
– Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C with a fan. Grease 2 cupcake tins.
– Line your worktop with baking paper. Place 1 portion of the dough on top, sprinkle in a little plain flour and roll it out, with small movements, to a thin sheet.
– Use a 9cm cookie cutter to cut out the pastry rounds. Place them in the cupcake tins. Repeat this process with the rest of the dough.
– Add ½ tbsp mincemeat to each pie then top with 1 tbsp of frangipane. Smooth out the frangipane to cover the mincemeat.
– Top with a sprinkle of flaked almonds and chopped pistachios. Place them in the oven and bake for 30 minutes.
– Remove them from the oven and leave them in the tin to cool for 10 minutes before you serve.