Best Mini Mincemeat Pies Recipes

MINI MINCEMEAT PIES

Steps:

• Mix flour, 6 tablespoons powdered sugar, 2 1/2 teaspoons orange peel and salt in processor. Add butter; process until mixture resembles coarse meal. Whisk egg yolk and 2 tablespoons orange juice in small bowl. Add to processor; blend until moist clumps form, adding more juice by teaspoonfuls if dry. Gather dough into ball; flatten into disk. Chill 30 minutes.
• Butter eighteen 1 3/4-inch-diameter mini muffin cups. Mix mincemeat, crystallized ginger, cinnamon, remaining 4 tablespoons powdered sugar and 3/4 teaspoon peel in small bowl. Roll out dough on floured surface to 17-inch round. Using 2 1/2-inch-diameter cookie cutter, cut out 18 dough rounds. Press 1 round into bottom and up sides of each muffin cup. Using 1 3/4- to 2-inch-diameter cookie cutter, cut out 18 more dough rounds (reroll dough if necessary). Fill crust in each muffin cup with 1 heaping teaspoon filling. Brush edges of smaller dough rounds with some of egg glaze. Place 1 round atop filling in each muffin cup, glazed side down, pressing dough edges to seal. Cut small X in center of each pie. (Can be made 4 hours ahead. Cover pies and remaining glaze separately and chill.)
• Preheat oven to 375°F. Brush pies with remaining egg glaze. Bake until crusts are golden, about 20 minutes. Using small knife, cut around pies to loosen; turn out onto rack. Serve warm or at room temperature.

MINI MINCEMEAT CRUMBLE PIES

Steps:

• Make the mincemeat by mixing all the ingredients together in a large bowl. Set aside for 30 minutes so the fruit absorbs some of the liquid. Make the pastry in a large bowl or food processor by blending the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and orange zest and then 2 tbsp water. Bring the mixture together with your hands, adding a few more drops of water if it feels a little dry. Preheat the oven to fan 160C/ conventional 180C/gas 4.
• Roll out half the pastry (keep the other half wrapped in the fridge) on a lightly floured surface. You want the pastry to be very thin, so it is crisp when cooked. Cut out 12 circles of pastry with a plain 6cm cutter (you will need to re-roll the pastry a couple of times) and use to line a 12-hole, non-stick mini muffin tin. It is quite a soft pastry, so any little gaps that form as you are lining the holes can easily be patched up. Chill while you make the topping.
• In a small bowl, make the crumble topping by rubbing the butter into the flour until the mixture looks like breadcrumbs. Stir in the sugar and almonds. With a teaspoon, fill each pastry case with mincemeat, gently pressing it down to leave room for the topping. Sprinkle the topping over each pie, place the tin on a baking tray and bake for 20 minutes.
• Leave the pies to cool in the tin before taking them out carefully. They are fragile when hot, so use a small knife to help lift them out. Unless you have two mini muffin tins, repeat the process with the second batch of pastry, filling and topping. Eat the mini mince pies warm or cold, lightly dusted with icing sugar.