Serves: 2 dozen mincemeat tartlets or one 9-inch pie
Prep time: 45 minutes
For the filling:
Ingredients
- 2 tart apples, peeled and chopped into small pieces
- 4 ounces dried cherries
- 5 ounces golden raisins
- 6 ounces dried figs, finely chopped
- 2 ounces crystallized ginger, finely chopped
- ½ cup brandy
- 5 tablespoons butter
- zest and juice of a lemon
- zest and juice of an orange
- ¼ teaspoon nutmeg
- ¼ teaspoon ground allspice
- ¼ teaspoon cloves
For the crust:
I like former White House pastry chef Roland Mesnier’s pie dough the best. If you don’t want to make the dough from scratch, you can buy premade piecrust dough in your dairy case.
Ingredients
- 3 ½ cups cake flour
- 1/3 cup sugar
- a pinch of salt
- ½ cup water
- 1 ½ cups solid vegetable shortening
- 1 egg mixed with 2 tablespoons of water for egg wash
- Powdered sugar for garnish
Directions
- Combine flour, sugar, salt, water and shortening in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment.
- Mix on low speed until ingredients are well combined and dough is smooth.
- Divide the dough into 2 pieces.
- Press each piece out to form a 6-inch disk and wrap them in plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for at least one hour or for up to 1 week.
- Pie dough may be frozen, wrapped in plastic and then in aluminum foil for up to 3 months.
- Defrost in refrigerator before rolling out.
- Combine mincemeat ingredients in a food processor and pulse until ingredients are well mixed.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Roll our piecrust dough on parchment paper or floured board to 1/8 inch thick.
- Cut rounds of dough to fit your tart or pie pan.
- If making tarts, spoon the mincemeat into the center of each round, keeping it level with the top of the tart pan.
- Cover top of tart with a round of dough or a piece of dough cut into a festive shape and place on top of mincemeat.
- Brush the pastry with a light egg wash.
- Bake in oven for 12 minutes or until golden brown.
- For a 9-inch pie, bake for 30 minutes.
- Sprinkle with a very light dusting of powdered sugar as garnish.
