Make-ahead mince pies

Make-ahead mince pies

It wouldn't be Christmas without mince pies, and you just can't beat homemade - these can be cooked from frozen for extra ease

Difficulty and servings

Easy

Makes 12

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 20 mins

Cook time

Cook 20 mins

Freezable

Method

  1. Heat oven to 220C/200C fan/gas 7. Roll the pastry out on a lightly floured surface a little thinner than a £1 coin. Stamp out 12 circles about 8cm wide, keeping all the trimmings. Use the circles to line a 12-hole, non-stick bun tin. Put a small spoonful of mincemeat in each one, but be careful not to put too much, as the suet will melt and bubble out if it has no room to spare. Re-roll the pastry trimmings and cut out another 12 circles a little smaller than the last. Brush the edges of the pastry with beaten egg, then add pastry lids, pinching the two edges together. Make a small cross with a knife in the centre of each pie. The pies can now be frozen in the trays for up to 3 months and either defrosted and cooked as stated or cooked from frozen.
  2. Brush the lids with a little more egg, sprinkle with sugar and bake for 15-20 mins until golden brown. Leave to cool slightly and serve warm.

COOKING FROM FROZEN

To cook the pies from frozen, brush them with egg, sprinkle with sugar and bake them at 200C/180C fan/ gas 6 for 30 mins until golden brown.

259 kcalories, protein 3g, carbohydrate 34g, fat 13 g, saturated fat 5g, fibre 1g, sugar 14g, salt 0.45 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, November 2009.

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Latest comments and suggestions

  • Binder photo scrummy

    14 November 2009

    scrummy commented on this recipe

    the pic looks like puff pastry???

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  • Binder photo Elena

    14 November 2009

    Elena commented on this recipe

    Hardly homemade is it??

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  • Binder photo Gemma

    19 November 2009

    Gemma commented on this recipe

    Mince pies made in this method are still far far superior to shop bought ones. Personally I think the pastry in the picture is rolled a little too thick - but that's only my opinion.. I'm sure James Martin knows what he is doing! :)

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  • Binder photo heffers

    03 December 2009

    heffers commented on this recipe

    were r the ingredents 4 recipes

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  • Binder photo heffers

    03 December 2009

    heffers commented on this recipe

    ops found them

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  • Binder photo whitechoco84

    15 December 2010

    whitechoco84 commented on this recipe

    I <3 james martin x

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  • Binder photo Suzanne D

    23 September 2011

    Suzanne D commented on this recipe

    Hardly a recipe...buy the pastry, buy the mincemeat and ta-dah! Thought a chef would've at least made his own pastry :(

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  • Binder photo liz52

    23 November 2011

    liz52 commented on this recipe

    Agree with all the above comments. Thought this was about homemade!

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  • Binder photo debs recipes

    29 November 2011

    debs recipes commented on this recipe

    I agree with the above comments. Hardly homemade. And not very practical to shove your trays in the freezer for "up to three months" is it!

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  • Binder photo debs recipes

    29 November 2011

    debs recipes commented on this recipe

    I agree with the above comments. Hardly homemade. And not very practical to shove your trays in the freezer for "up to three months" is it!

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  • Binder photo fatfootlover1

    30 November 2011

    fatfootlover1 commented on this recipe

    what is this is this cake or fat foot XD

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  • Binder photo Gail Garrison

    30 November 2011

    Gail Garrison commented on this recipe

    I like the idea of making mince pies ahead of time and then popping them in the oven the day they are needed. I normally spend all day Christmas eve making mince pies, and half of them go bad before I get to eat them all. I actually like the idea and for people that don't have the time, or know-how to make good pastry (I couldn't until I finally found a good recipe this year) store bought pastry is not a bad idea, So please don't hate on the person posting the recipe, he or she is just trying to help. Rather than hating post something that is equal to this recipe.

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  • Binder photo Katie Forrest

    03 December 2011

    Katie Forrest commented on this recipe

    I see what people mean about them not being completely homemade BUT this 'recipe' is also linked to his recipe for mincemeat http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/13377/traditional-mincemeat# so if you make the mincemeat and use shop bought pastry it's not completely cheating is it :p Also, I'm planning to do this but rather than abandoning my trays in the freezer til Christmas I think I'll freeze the pies in the trays then transfer to boxes - they should then hold their shape and I'll have my trays free for other things :)

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  • Binder photo Suzanne D

    24 February 2012

    Suzanne D commented on this recipe

    It's hardly 'hating' the person. I like James Martin, he's a fab chef. I go on this site to look for recipes to make from scratch and was disappointed that it wasn't made from scratch - that's all. Especially due to the fact that it was by James Martin. Disappointment, not hate. I must say I did find another recipe on this site that did make the pastry from scratch and it was gorgeous :)

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  • Binder photo Anne

    20 December 2012

    Anne commented on this recipe

    Sorry, but it was EXACTLY what I was looking for. Cheating but still homemade. And I also plan to freeze in trays then transfer to plastic containers once frozen. That way I can have 100 mince pies ready to go for 'mince pie and mulled wine afternoon' on Christmas eve. Have had a test run and they look and taste homemade so thanks to author x

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Difficulty and servings

Easy

Makes 12

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 20 mins

Cook time

Cook 20 mins

Freezable

Ingredients

  • 500g block shortcrust pastry
  • plain flour , for dusting
  • 250g mincemeat
  • 1 egg , beaten
  • granulated sugar , for sprinkling
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259 kcalories, protein 3g, carbohydrate 34g, fat 13 g, saturated fat 5g, fibre 1g, sugar 14g, salt 0.45 g

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