Christmas Baking - Vegetarian Mince Pies

“They dined on mince, and slices of quince

Which they ate with a runcible spoon;

And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,

They danced by the light of the moon.”

Edward Lear, The Owl and the Pussycat

As a vegetarian, I like to imagine that Edward Lear was writing of mincemeat and mince pies, as opposed to ground beef. As we are now in the season of more moonlight, than daylight, I’ve been baking mince pies. This year I made mince pies that are both vegetable suet-based, and alcohol free.

This is my first attempt at making my own mincemeat, and I used a melange of recipes off the internet, including this one from Delia Smith, to come up with the recipe described below. It takes a while to make, but more in waiting for the flavours to combine, as opposed to actually cooking. As such, it’s a good recipe to prepare while you are baking other items.

In an effort to avoid too much rampant consumption over Christmas, and to tread a little more lightly on the earth, I’m a fan of edible Christmas gifts. I’ll be giving both mincemeat, and mince pies as Christmas gifts this year, as well as some other planned goodies, which I’ll be blogging about in the coming weeks.

Here’s the recipe:

Recipe

Mincemeat

110 grams shredded vegetable suet (available from health food stores)

180 grams raisins

120grams sultanas

120 grams chopped dates

30 grams lemon candied peel

100 grams orange candied peel

180 grams soft dark sugar

Zest and juice of one orange

Zest and juice of one lemon

40 grams almond slivers

One teaspoon ground cinnamon

One teaspoon grated nutmeg

Pastry

200 grams plain flour

Pinch salt

110 grams butter

2-3 tablespoons of cold water

One egg beaten

2-3 tablespoons of caster sugar

Step one:  Combine all the mincemeat ingredients in a large bowl. Mix them together thoroughly. Cover the bowl with a tea towel and leave overnight to allow the flavours to mix together.

Step two: Place the mixture in an oven tray covered with foil and bake for three hours at 120C. As it cools, stir often to ensure the suet coats all of the ingredients.

Step three: Once fully cooled, place the mincemeat in sterilised jars. As this mincemeat is made without alcohol it won’t keep in the cupboard. As such store the mincemeat in the fridge and use within a month.

Step four: To make the pastry, combine the flour, salt, and butter. Need together in a bowl until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add a little water to help the pastry knit together. Roll the pastry into a ball and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Step five: Once the pastry is prepared roll is out. Cut into squares and place the pastry squares into a muffin tray. Cut the edges neatly and re-roll, and set aside to make the pie tops.

Step six: Fill the pies cases with mincemeat, pressing it firmly into each case. Add pie tops in whatever shape you desire. Brush with a lightly beaten egg, and sprinkle a little caster sugar over the top. Cook for 20 minutes at 200C

  

A foraged Christmas Wreath

Christmas fever has over-taken our home. Kristoph has been getting around in his festive jumper, complete with snowflakes and stars, since December 1. He wore it to a production meeting a few days ago, apparently to cheer everyone up a little.

The fire is roaring, the air is crisp, and it’s really best to be inside by 5pm, at which time a blanket of dark quickly envelopes the sky. Its thin pickings for food foraging in our local woods this December, with only a few fungi specimen, here and there. The squirrels have taken to the trees, and can be seen frantically searching for the acorns they know they stashed somewhere... safely!

Despite the dearth of edible goods, over the weekend we discovered an abundance of forgeable Christmas decorations. And while traipsing through the woods, admiring the holly, and the ivy, and the drooping conifers, I was inspired to create my own Christmas wreath, from foraged finds.

We collected pieces of ivy, holly and drooping conifers, and bought a twisted grapevine wreath base from a local florist. Other than that, all that I used was some florist wire, and pinecones and other decorations from our “Christmas box.”

Here’s how I made the wreath:

1. Collect your materials: ivy, holly, pine-cones, droopy conifers, whatever pleases you, and a wreath base.

 

2. Weave the droopy conifer though the wreath base, keeping the direction consistent. Wrap the ivy around the wreath and fasten with florist wire.

3. Add the holy pieces and decorations, fastening them with florist wire.  

4. Et voila, your wreath is finished. Hang it in your desired location and admire your foraged craftiness!