Mince Pies and Cheesy-Bread

One simple, and one not-so-simple recipe for your pre-holiday and holiday gatherings.

Mince Pies with Brandy Butter

Yesterday we hosted a small gathering of friends to watch a Christmas favorite -- A Child's Christmas in Wales starring Denholm Elliot. If you haven't seen it, give yourself a Christmas treat! This year I was asked to make traditional English Mince Pies. I am not a baker. But I keep trying. One of these days I may get it right.

In the 15th, 16th and 17th centuries, "mincemeat" was just that -- finely chopped meat (lamb, pork or beef), usually the lesser cuts and scraps of suet -- combined with some dried fruit and vinegar, wine or spirits. Basically ground meat with dried fruit and cheap wine for flavoring.  This would be put in a thick pastry crust to become a Pie.

Over the generations, more and more chopped dried fruit got added to the mixture until today only one company in England still makes mincemeat with meat in it.  

But the word "mince lives on.  Today, you go to a butcher's shop in England and ask for "a half kilo of mince, please" -- and get what Americans would call "a pound of hamburger".

English Mince Pies are cupcake-sized, with a thicker 'short crust' pastry so they can be free standing. Not those huge 9"-10" open-faced tarts or pies that Americans usually make. I made a double batch of the ingredients below, and came up with 26 mince pies.

12oz AP flour

Pinch of salt  

8 oz cubed Butter or an equal mix of butter and lard

1 beaten egg + cold water as needed  to bind the pastry

1 jar of mincemeat

Heat the oven to 400°F

Place the flour, butter and salt into a large bowl. Rub the butter quickly into the flour with your fingertips until the mixture resembles rough sand.

Stir  the egg into the mixture using a cold knife. Then add cold water a teaspoon at a time and stir until the mixture binds but is not sticky. Wrap the dough in clingfilm and chill for a minimum of 15 minutes, up to 30 minutes.

Spray a standard 12-cup muffin tin.

Dust a work surface lightly with a little flour and roll out two-thirds of the pastry to 1/8" thick. This is where I run into problems with this pastry -- trying to make the dough that thin and not fall apart. Could be it's just too wrm here, even on a cool winter's day.

Cut circles to line the cups of your tin. A large round cookie cutter will work if you have one. I used the tin lid from a small can we had around the house. Don't worry if the pastry doesn't quite come to the top -- but it helps.

Fill the pastry-lined cavities of the muffin tin 2/3 full with mincemeat.

Roll out the remaining pastry to the same thickness and cut smaller circles to fit as lids on the pies. Dampen the edges of the pie cups with a little cold water and pinch the lid and the edge, to seal. Make a small hole in the surface of each pie with a small sharp knife to allow the steam to escape. Bake in the preheated oven for 20 mins or until golden brown. 

 My first-ever mince pies.

 

Not my photo.  Not my pies!  These are gorgeous.

Top your mince pie with freshly whipped cream or Brandy Butter:

Brandy Butter

4 oz soft, unsalted Butter

8 oz  Confectioner's sugar

3 - 5 Tbsp Brandy or Cognac

Place the soft butter in bowl. Beat with an electric mixer until light and creamy.

Add the sugar and beat until it is incorporated.

Add the brandy or Cognac to taste and stir well.  If you add too much brandy the mixture may curdle. If it does,  just add more sugar until the mixture binds back together. Spoon the butter into a serving dish, cover and store in the fridge until required. The butter can be made up to 5 days in advance and kept in the fridge.

Rustic Mince Tart

I had a cup or so of mincemeat left, and a spare rolled-frozen pie crust in the freezer. Combine the two and you have a pretty nice 8" tart.

Bisquick tm Cheesy-Bread

Last week I told you about making a flat sort of bread  from my leftover sausage ball flour. It was so tasty I decided to try and codify the idea for you. (Besides, I forgot to take a picture!)

 Cut into wedges, this makes a great warm starter or party appetizer bread that you can schmear with butter or cheese sauce. Or slice it thin across the circle, and make a huge cheesy-bread sandwich, which you can then cut into wedges.

2 cups Bisquick

1 cup Shredded Cheddar

5-6 Tbsp Water

Stir the flour and cheese together with a fork to evenly distribute (and flour-coat) the cheese.  Add just enough water to bring the flour mixture together into a non-sticky dough. Lay out a piece of parchment paper on a baking tray, and pat the dough out into a disk about 8" in diameter and an inch thick. Bake at 400F for about 25 minutes.