Description
Sweet little pies are perfect for gifting. Pack a few in a tin for neighbors or a hostess, and you’ve got an instant little gift with homemade charm.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 500ml (280g) Snowflake Cake Wheat Flour
- 1ml salt
- 125g cold butter or margarine, cubed
- 1 egg, beaten
- About 30ml fresh lemon juice
- 454g jar dried fruit mincemeat
- 1 extra egg, beaten (for glazing)
- 15ml milk, for glazing
- Icing sugar, for dusting
Instructions
- In a large bowl, sift together the 500ml flour and 1ml salt.
- Add the 125g cold butter and rub it in with your fingertips until the whole thing looks like fine breadcrumbs.
- Stir in the 1 beaten egg, then add 30ml fresh lemon juice a little at a time until you get a soft dough.
- If it feels a bit sticky, just dust your hands with flour.
- Cover the dough with plastic wrap and pop it into the fridge for 20 minutes.
- Lightly flour your counter and roll out about three-quarters of the dough to roughly 3mm thick.
- Cut out 16 circles using a 6–7cm cookie cutter.
- Press each circle gently into greased muffin pans or loose-bottomed tart tins. No need for perfection.
- Place the pans in the fridge for 10 minutes so the dough holds its shape.
- Spoon 454g mincemeat evenly into the pastry bases. Don’t overfill; a heaped teaspoon or so is perfect.
- Take the remaining dough and divide it in half.
- You can grate one half over some of the pies (this gives a lovely crumbly top),
- Or roll it out and cut stars, hearts, or snowflakes from the dough.
- Place the toppings on the pies.
- Mix 1 beaten egg with 15ml milk and brush this over the tops for a golden finish.
- Preheat the oven to 200°C and bake the pies for about 12 minutes, or until light golden brown.
- Let them sit in the pans for a few minutes before lifting them onto a wire rack.
- Once they’re cool, dust with icing sugar.
Notes
Created, Prepared, Tasted, and Tested by Gail
