Mince pies with orange pastry
Throughout the Middle East, since at least the fourth century BC, there has been a tradition of cooking meat with fruit and spices. The availability of locally grown fruits such as figs, dates and grapes (which were dried) and spices brought by merchants from the Orient no doubt led to this practice. During the Middle Ages the introduction of these ingredients to Europe was a result of both returning Crusaders and increasing trade with the Middle and Far East. Medieval cooks adopted the practice, and recipes for meat stews and pies invariably included spices and dried fruit. However, these were recipes for the rich, as the imported ingredients were prohibitively expensive. One of these recipes involving the combination of shredded meat, suet and fruit (called shred pies) developed into a pie for Christmas. Spices were added to suggest the offerings of the Magi, making the pie even more special. Originally, these Christmas pies were oblong in shape to imitate the nativity crib. The number of ingredients added up to 13 to represent Jesus and the 12 apostles. During the middle of the seventeenth century mince pie, along with Christmas celebrations themselves, were banned by Cromwell during the Interregnum as they associated such food with Catholicism. Indeed, the Quakers were particularly scathing and saw Christmas pyes as “an Invention of the Scarlet Whore of Babylon, an Hodge-Podge of Superstition, Popery, the Devil and all his Works." However, they made a return with the Restoration and have been staple Christmas fare ever since. The single large pie was referred to as a Christmas pye but later, when small individual pies became popular, they became known as mince pies. From the late eighteenth century onwards, the meat was slowly abandoned leaving only the suet to moisten the mincemeat when cooking. The practice of making mincemeat to store in jars on the last Sunday before Advent is associated with the prayer said in Catholic and Anglican churches on that day: “Stir up, we beseech thee, O Lord, the wills of thy faithful people”, which seemed an appropriate day to ‘stir up’ mincemeat and batters for Christmas puddings and cakes, giving the ingredients time to soak in any alcohol added and infuse the spices.
Preparation method
Preheat the oven to 170C/325F/gas 3.
Grease the tart tin with lard or shortening.
To make the pastry sift the flour and salt into the mixing bowl or food processor bowl.
Add the butter and lard and then rub it in (or process if using a food processor) until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the grated orange zest and stir in thoroughly (or process).
Place the egg yolk in a cup and add the orange juice and whisk together.
Add to the pastry mix and bring together to make a dough, adding more water if the dough is too dry. If using a processor add the egg and orange mixture and whizz until the mixture forms a ball of dough.
Wrap in clingfilm and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Roll out the pastry to about 2mm thick and use the 9cm pastry cutter to make the bases of the pies.
Line each tart hole and then place a dessertspoonful of mincemeat into the cases.
Bring the remaining pastry together into a ball and roll out again and cut the same number of pie lids with the 7cm pastry cutter.
Moisten the edges of the bases with milk and place the lids on top of the bases pressing down with your fingers to seal them.
Use a fork to pierce the top of the pies to allow any steam to escape and place in the oven for 25 to 30 minutes or until the pastry is cooked through and lightly browned.
Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes before carefully transferring the pies to the cooling rack. Serve warm or cold.
