We all know what it's like when unexpected visitors come calling at Christmas. Save the mad dash to the supermarket by keeping a batch of our make-ahead mince pies in the freezer and you'll have warm, homemade mince pies in just 25 minutes –how's that for a prepared host?
Find all our favourite Christmas recipes, from the turkey to the trimmings, here.
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Yields:
24 serving(s)
Prep Time:
1 hr
Cook Time:
45 mins
Total Time:
1 hr 45 mins
Cal/Serv:
262
Ingredients
450 g (1lb) Bramley apples, peeled, cored and cut into 2cm (3/4in) chunks
Zest and juice of 1/2 orange and 1/2 lemon
200 ml (7fl oz) medium cider
150 g (5oz) soft brown sugar
1 tsp. mixed spice
150 g (5oz) each raisins and currants
75 g (3oz) glacé cherries, chopped
2 Tbsp. Grand Marnier (optional)
Icing sugar for dusting
For the pastry
400 g (14oz) plain flour, sifted, plus extra for dusting
250 g (9oz) cold butter, diced
100 g (3 1/2oz) caster sugar
Finely grated zest of 1 large orange
2 large egg yolks, plus 1 egg, beaten
100 ml (3 1/2fl oz) double cream
Directions
Step 1
Put the apples, citrus zest and juice, and cider in a pan. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10min. Add the brown sugar, spice, raisins and currants and stir over a low heat until the sugar dissolves. Simmer rapidly for 15min. Remove from the heat, add the cherries and liqueur, if using, and cool completely.
Step 2
To make the pastry, put the flour into a food processor with the butter and whiz until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Briefly whiz in the sugar and zest. Combine egg yolks and cream and, with the motor running, pour into the flour - stop when the mixture clumps together. Knead briefly. Wrap in clingfilm and chill for 30min.
Step 3
Dust the worktop with flour and roll out pastry to 3mm (1⁄8in) thickness. Stamp out 24 rounds with a 9cm (3½in) cutter and line 24 deep bun tin holes. Fill each with 1dsp of mincemeat.
Step 4
Preheat the oven to 190ºC (170ºC fan) mark 5. Stamp out 12 circles with an 8cm (3¼in) cutter and 12 stars with the same size star cutter. Brush base rims with water and top pies with a star or a circle (cut a slit in the circles), then brush with beaten egg. Chill for 30min. Bake for 15-20min until golden. Leave in the tins for 5min, then turn out on to wire racks to cool. Dust with icing sugar. Serve warm or cold.
Get ahead: Freeze uncooked pies in their tins for up to three months, wrapped in clingfilm. Bake from frozen as in step 4, allowing 5min extra. Or, pack cooked pies (without icing sugar) into freezerproof boxes. Freeze for up to three months. To reheat, defrost overnight in the fridge, then heat for 5-10min at 200ºC (180ºC) mark 6.
Per Serving:
Calories: 262
Total carbs: 37 g
Sugars: 25 g
Total fat: 12 g
Saturated fat: 7 g
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The GH Kitchen Team are Good Housekeeping’s resident recipe developers and all-round food obsessives. GH Kitchen Director Sarah Akhurst is our resident hosting pro and loves nothing more than putting on a foodie feast for friends. Our GH Kitchen Manager Linzi Pucino is our very own Italian food expert (originally hailing from the North East of Scotland!) and can be found working her way through midweek recipes that cover all bases, from haggis to ragu! Our Kitchen Editor Nadine Brown loves digging into the stories behind her favourite foods and enjoys applying her eclectic tastes to more modern, flavour-forward recipes - just don't give her too much chilli! Our Junior Food Content Produce Frankie Prichard combines a love of beautiful presentation and flavour-led, seasonal cooking in her recipe development, along with a passion for bringing people together through food. With a wealth of professional kitchen experience between them, they’re dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work every single time
