Treat your friends this Christmas to these home-made mince pies with a choice of three toppings: meringue, macaroon and crumble.
Ingredients
- 260g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 130g unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
- 500g mincemeat
Meringue topping
- 2 egg whites
- 100g caster sugar
Macaroon topping
- 2 egg whites
- 75g caster sugar
- 75g ground almonds
Crumble topping
- 150g cubed chilled butter
- 150g self-raising flour
- 75g golden caster sugar
- 50g chopped nuts, such as walnuts, almonds or macadamias
Method
- 1. To make the pastry, put the flour, butter and a good pinch of salt in a food processor and whizz briefly until crumb-like. Add 2-3 tablespoons cold water and briefly whizz again until the mixture comes together. Tip out, bring into a ball and wrap in cling film. Chill for 30 minutes.
- 2. Preheat the oven to 190°C/ fan170°C/gas 5. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface and use a 7cm fluted cutter to stamp out 24 pastry bases. Use to line 2 x 12-hole patty tins. Spoon 1 tablespoon of mincemeat into each.
- FOR THE MERINGUE TOPPING
- 1. Bake the mince pies for 15 minutes. When nearly ready, whisk 2 egg whites in a large bowl to stiff peaks. Gradually whisk in 100g caster sugar until you have a stiff, glossy meringue. Spoon on top of the mince pies, peaking the surface, and bake for 5 minutes, until pale golden. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.
- FOR THE MACAROON TOPPING
- 1. Bake the mince pies for 10 minutes. When nearly ready, whisk 2 egg whites in a bowl to stiff peaks. Fold in 75g caster sugar, then 75g ground almonds. Spoon on top of the mince pies, making sure it touches the pastry all around. Bake for a further 8-10 minutes, until lightly browned. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool. Dust with icing sugar to serve.
- FOR THE CRUMBLE TOPPING
- 1. In a bowl, rub 150g cubed chilled butter into 150g self-raising flour until crumb-like. Stir in 75g golden caster sugar and form into biscuity little clumps. Stir in 50g chopped nuts, such as walnuts, almonds or macadamias, and pile on top of the uncooked mince pies. Bake for 17-20 minutes, until golden. Cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack to cool completely.
Nutritional info
Meringue mince pies
Per serving: 153kcals, 5.5g fat (2.9g saturated), 1.4g protein, 25.9g carbs, 16.6g sugar, trace salt
Macaroon mince pies
Per serving: 170kcals, 7.3g fat (3.1g saturated), 2.1g protein, 25.7g carbs, 16.3g sugar, trace salt
Crumble mince pies
Per serving: 229kcals, 12.2g fat (6.3g saturated), 2.1g protein, 29.6g carbs, 15.8g sugar, 0.2g salt
Chef's tip
Each of these 3 toppings is sufficient for 24 mince pies. So either choose 1 of the toppings, or halve the ingredients of 2 toppings, and use for 1 batch of mince pies.