This recipe for Traditional Shortcrust Pastry Mince Pies does what it says on the tin. Use homemade or store-bought shortcrust pastry and mincemeat as you please. Made in a standard muffin tin but without being overly deep-filled, this fuss-free recipe includes full step-by-step instructions with photographs so even a novice baker can make perfect but easy mince pies.
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I was never really intending on sharing a recipe for traditional mince pies. I shared my puff pastry mince pies a while back because they were a little bit different. And they’re perennially popular. So when I decided to finally shoot and share my recipe for homemade all butter shortcrust pastry to accompany my ever popular shortcrust sausage rolls recipe in December, it seemed daft to not make mince pies with it!
I haven’t got around to making my own homemade mincemeat just yet. For now I’m more than content to use a jar of good ready-prepared mincemeat. You can of course make your own or make additions to a ready made option. A good swig of booze or some freshly grated orange zest can really perk up even the cheapest of mincemeats.
But the important thing to note is that this recipe is definitely on the traditional side. Good pastry, good mincemeat, not to big, not too small and not to fancy. It’s easy to get carried away with twists and variations but lets be real, most people crave tradition at Christmas. And a simple old fashioned mince pie like this one is exactly the ticket.
How to Serve Traditional Mince Pies
To me, mince pies are like sausage rolls. They should just be there at all times throughout December and over the whole holiday period to be grabbed and eaten as a snack. Or offered to guests and taken to other people’s houses or events. So more often than not, they’re going to be consumed at room temperature and unadorned.
But then there are those times when you want to really feature them. Either eating warm straight from the oven, serving as festive dessert. Or just taking some time out with a cup of tea or coffee. These are the times to gently warm the mince pies and serve them with something creamy.
Brandy butter is an absolute classic accompaniment. Popped under the pastry lid and allowed to melt slightly, for me this is the superior choice. And my brandy butter recipe will be shared soon. Or of course there are plenty of options in the shops.
You can also cool things down with some ice cream or keep it simple with a dash of thick double cream. To really make mince pies into a full dessert, try serving with custard. I do love my classic favourite custard made with custard powder. But my from scratch ginger custard is also a scene stealer.
Shortcrust Mince Pies Ingredients
Shortcrust Pastry
There are several options to choose from here. The first is whether you are going to make your own pastry or buy it.
Ready Made Shortcrust Pastry
If buying you can choose fresh or frozen and blocks or ready-rolled. There are then different brands available as well as supermarket own brands. Some have all-butter options too. Any of these options will work just great with this recipe.
You can also buy sweet shortcrust pastry. I do prefer to make mince pies with non-sweet pastry. I wouldn’t go so far as to call it savoury shortcrust pastry” like some of the brands/supermarkets do. But I don’t personally feel like you need extra sweetness from the pastry – the mincemeat and maybe a shake of icing sugar to serve provides enough sweetness. But if this is what you have on hand, or you simply prefer it, you can absolutely use this too.
Homemade Shortcrust Pastry
Of all the pastries, shortcrust pastry is only beaten by suet pastry for ease of making. And if you use a food processor, I’d say that it’s a dead tie. So whilst I absolutely don’t judge anyone buying it ready made, it can be nearly as easy to make it from scratch.
My recipe uses only butter. But you can make it even more traditional and use half butter and half lard or vegetable fat like Trex. It also doesn’t contain any sugar.
As I said before, this is my preference to use for mince pies but if you do want to make it sweet, simply add in a couple of tablespoons of icing (powdered) sugar. If you want to make a pate sablee – a shorter, traditional sweet French pastry, you can use the pastry recipe from my Tarte au Citron.
You need to make sure that the pastry is well chilled before you start using it. I often make it the day before but you can easily cheat and throw it in the freezer for 20 minutes or so. My recipe makes enough pastry for a double batch of mince pies (24 pies). If you do only want to make 12, you can either halve the recipe or freeze the other half to use another time.
All Butter Shortcrust Pastry Recipe
Mincemeat
You really can use any mincemeat that your heart desires. I simply used a brandy laced jar of shop bought mincemeat. I do sometimes add other ingredients to pimp it up a little. Maybe a little orange zest or a drop more alcohol – I’m especially a fan of spiced rum in mincemeat.
I mention in the recipe that I like to scoop the mincemeat out of the jar and into a bowl. This just provides and opportunity to give it a little stir. And I find it easier to gauge quantities when dividing it between the pastry cases.
I’ve been careful to specify just the right amount of mincemeat so the ratio of filling to pastry is just right and so the mincemeat doesn’t bubble over and stick the pies to the tin. Although it is tempting to pile a bit more in, I would beg you to resist if at all possible!
Egg
The egg in the recipe is simply to glaze the pastry and give it a lovely shine when cooked. I like to glaze the pastry before adding the mincemeat. This stops the egg wash from getting a bit goopy. I do the same with the lids – brushing them before adding them to the pies.
If you increase the serving size in the recipe below, it will also increase the amount of eggs needed. But please ignore this – you will only need a second egg if you are making at least 6 batches or so of pies.
Be Flexible
This is such a simple recipe, there is lots of scope to add to it.
Start by adding additional flavours to the pastry. Add citrus zest or warming ground winter spices to the pastry. You can also add ground nuts in place of some of the flour.
Then you can mix up the mincemeat. Add a little marzipan to the pastry case underneath the mincemeat. Or even add marzipan stars instead of the pastry lids. You can mix in other ingredients to the mincemeat. Chopped chestnuts and dried cranberries somehow made the most christmassy ingredient even more festive.
You can double the amount of pastry and mincemeat but make the same amount of pies. These will be extra deep filled and you will need to increase the cooking time a little. Or do the exact opposite and use a mini muffin tin to make mini mince pies.
Lastly you can change the pastry entirely – try making my puff pastry mince pies for something a little more unusual. You could alternatively use American Pie Pastry which is basically a buttery rough puff pastry.
Puff Pastry Mince Pies Recipe
Vegetarian or Vegan Mince Pies
The pies that I made were vegetarian as the mincemeat I used was made with vegetable suet. I also used all-butter shortcrust pastry which is naturally vegetarian. But it isn’t entirely unusual for shortcrust pastry to be made with lard and for mincemeat to be made with animal suet – either of which would make the mince pies unsuitable for vegetarians. So you just need to pick your pastry and filling wisely.
It is also very easy to make vegan mince pies. Most store-bought options like Jus-Rol shortcrust pastry and those made by the main supermarkets are made with vegetable oil and are therefore suitable for vegans. Or you can make my homemade pasty recipe using a plant-based butter substitute.
Any mincemeat that isn’t made with animal suet also is most often vegan. But of course you should check the label thoroughly incase there are any rogue ingredients in there.
Lastly you will need to switch the egg wash for another option. A plant-based cream or egg substitute are the best options. Or you can leave the pastry entirely unglazed, they’ll just look a little bit more on the dry side.
Make Allergy Friendly Mince Pies
Gluten Free Mince Pies: Gluten free shortcrust pastry is readily available to buy, If you can’t find it in the fridge, check the freezer section. Mincemeat is unlikely to contain gluten but of course you should check the label just in case. You should also make sure to use a gluten free flour blend when rolling and cutting the pastry. You can use cornflour in a pinch but try to be sparing with it.
Nut Free Mince Pies: Some mincemeat does contain nuts so make sure to check the label carefully. Or make your own without nuts.
Dairy Free or Egg Free Mince Pies: I’d suggest scrolling up and looking at my suggestions for making vegan mince pies. One or both omissions are easy to make.
Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated. For more information regarding any dietary information provided on this website, please refer to my Nutritional Disclaimer.
Equipment Notes for Mince Pies
I really struggled to find a suitably sized baking tin to make these mince pies the exact size I wanted. I find that very traditional shallow bun tins are just to shallow for mince pies. And muffin tins are too big. But as I wanted to write a recipe that is as accessible as possible. I chose to use a regular 12 hole muffin tin but simply not fully fill the holes. This gives you the perfect size mince pies.
The other equipment needed is pretty standard baking stuff. A rolling pin can be substituted with a roll of clingfilm or even a wine bottle if needed. A glass can be used instead of a round cookie cutter. Look for something that is about 3.5in/9cm diameter. Stars or other shapes can be cut freehand with a small knife if you don’t have star cookie cutters.
If you don’t have a silicone pastry brush, you can use a very well cleaned, or ideally brand new paint brush. Or realistically, you can just use your fingers..
A comprehensive list of the equipment used to make this recipe is included in the main recipe card below. Click on any item to see an example. There are no hard and fast rules so many items can be sensibly substituted to achieve the same results.
Get Ahead
If you’re making your own pastry, you can make this a day or two in advance. Or even longer if you freeze it. You can totally make the pies the say before you want to bake them. Cover the whole baking tin with cling film and refrigerate until ready to bake. That is what I did with the batch in the photographs – which is why the light totally changes midway through the recipe!
You can also freeze the unbaked mince pies. It is best to freeze the pies in the muffin tray. Once fully frozen, you can remove them from the tin and put them into a bag or box which will take up less space.
To cook them frozen pies, just put them back into a clean muffin tin. You can allow them to defrost first or bake directly from frozen. You will just need to add a couple of minutes onto the cooking time if doing this.
Leftover Shortcrust Pastry Mince Pies
Leftover mince pies can be kept for around a week. They don’t need to be put in the fridge but you should keep them in an air-tight container.
If you want to keep them for longer, you can freeze them. Once they defrost, they’ll be ready to eat just as before.
If you’re totally done with just eating mince pies as pies, try my microwave crumble pudding. With just a couple of added ingredients, you can make a really easy dessert that utilises both the pastry and filling.
Leftover Mince Pie Apple Crumble (Microwave Recipe)
Traditional Mince Pie Tips
I’ve really included the vast majority of my main pie making tips within the recipe itself. Keep moving the pastry about you roll it. Use flour to stop things sticking but don’t go overboard. Egg-wash the pastry away from the mincemeat so it doesn’t get messy and contaminated. And use a plastic knife to release the pies from the tin if needed – never use anything metal on a baking tin.
The only other thing I have to point out is that the fruit and sugar filling will be hotter than the sun when it comes out the oven. Be careful with your fingers and you must exercise a little bit of patience before digging into them. There is nothing festive about a burnt mouth!
Don’t forget to let me know in the comments if you try making this recipe – I want to know what you think and if you made any substitutions, how did it turn out?
Still Have Questions?
Simple! Just contact me and I will do my best to help as quickly as I am able. Head over to my Contact Me page, any of my social media channels or post a comment at the bottom of this page and I’ll see what I can do.
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More Festive Recipes
The Recipe
Traditional Shortcrust Pastry Mince Pies
Equipment
- Cookie Cutters – Star optional
- Palette Knife plastic
Ingredients
- 400 g Shortcrust Pastry
- 450 g Mincemeat
- 1 Egg - approx
- 10 g Demerara Sugar (Turbinado Sugar) - approx
- Plain Flour (All Purpose) - for dusting
- Vegetable Spray Oil
- Icing Sugar (Confectioner's Sugar) - to serve
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200c fan | 180c | 390c or equivalent.
- Place 400g Shortcrust Pastry on a floured surface. Or unroll a sheet of ready rolled pastry.
- Roll the pastry to about ¼ inch thickness – around 25x35cm or 10"x13". Try to keep it a nice and even thickness. Keep turning and flipping the pastry so it doesn't stick. Sprinkle more flour as you need.
- Use your 3.5in/9cm cookie cutter to check that you have enough pastry rolled out to cut 12 circles. Or work in batches if you've increased the quantity of the recipe.
- Sprinkle over a little extra flour and gently rub it in if the surface of the pastry is at all tacky/wet to the touch. Turn the pastry over and do this on the reverse if you need to.
- Cut out the 12 rounds. Dip the cookie cutter into little flour if needed. Don't twist the cutter as you cut but do lean hard on it so it does cut all the way through the pastry.
- Slightly oil 12 holes of a muffin tin. I like to use a spray and then a pastry brush to make sure no bit is uncovered.
- Take a pastry circle and carefully rest it over one muffin tin hole. Try to make sure it is centred.
- Use your fingers to press the pastry down into the hole. It needs to touch the bottom but doesn’t need heavily pressing into the tin.
- It needs to touch the bottom but only needs pressing into the tin gently.
- Repeat with the remaining pastry until you have 12 pastry cases.
- Using a star cookie cutter, cut at least 12 stars from the remaining pastry. Dip the cutter in a little flour if needed. You can cut various sizes like I have or have fun with other shapes.
- Whisk 1 Egg in a small bowl.Note that you don't need to use more than one egg if you've increased the quantity of the other ingredients – not unless you're making at least 6 plus batches when you might need to use one more.
- Use a pastry brush to wash around the sides of the pastry cases. Make sure to get the top edge of the pastry. It is easier and less messy to do this now rather than after the mincemeat is added.
- Put around 450g Mincemeat into a bowl. I like to do this rather than spoon straight from the jar so I can give it a little mix and make it easier to spoon.
- Spoon the mincemeat between the pastry cases. Try to be vaguely neat about it. Specks of mincemeat everywhere can catch and burn.
- Keep going until all of the cases are evenly filled. I do like to put a little in each then go back and top them up.
- Turn back to the pastry stars and remove any pastry scraps from around them. Make sure each star is loose and not stuck to the board. Use more of the beaten egg to glaze the tops of the stars using a pastry brush. Again it is easier and cleaner to do this now than after they're on the pies.
- Carefully place at least one star on top of each mincemeat filled pastry case.
- Keep going until all of the stars are used and all the pies have a top.
- Sprinkle approximately 10g Demerara Sugar over the stars and the exposed mincemeat.
- Bake for 18 to 20 minutes – until they are golden brown and none of the visible pastry looks to be uncooked.
- Allow the cooked pies to sit in their tin for around one minute before using a plastic knife to make sure they are not stuck to the tin. Run the knife between the tin and the pastry until the pie is free and will spin around in its hole with no resistance.
- Give the pies at least 10 more minutes in the tin before moving to a cooling rack. Or eating them warm.
- Serve with a light dusting of icing sugar.
Amy says
I had some mincemeat left in the fridge, so I made your pastry and mince pies and they were demolished in minutes!