Spelt, orange and hazelnut mince pies

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If you fancy a little twist on the average mince pie this Christmas, these extra-crumbly and buttery pies will go down a treat. Spelt flour provides a nice nutty flavour as well as a melt-in-the-mouth short pastry.

First published in 2019

Ingredients

Metric

Imperial

Spelt and orange shortcrust pastry

Mincemeat

  • 400g of mincemeat
  • 50g of hazelnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
  • 1 orange, zested and juiced
  • 1 dash of rum, or brandy

Equipment

  • Muffin tin
  • 7cm round cutter
  • 10cm pastry cutter

Method

1
Begin by making the pastry. Place the flour, salt and butter in a blender and pulse to a wet sand consistency
2
Add the egg and pulse again, then slowly drizzle in the water until a dough forms (you may not need all of the water)
3
Tip the dough out, wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes
4
Thoroughly combine the mincemeat with the hazelnuts, rum (or brandy), half the orange zest and 15ml of orange juice
5
Once the pastry has rested, grease a muffin tray and preheat an oven to 180°C/gas mark 4. Roll out the pastry to about 4mm thick. Use a cutter to cut out 9 bases at around 10cm and 9 lids at around 7cm. (You can combine the trimmings and re-roll to prevent any waste)
6
Carefully lay the larger pastry circles in the bottom of each space in the muffin tray. The pastry is very short, so if it breaks a little don't worry – you can patch together any holes with leftover pastry trimmings
7
Fill the pastry cases with a spoonful of mincemeat each then egg wash the edges and top with the lids. Egg wash the pies and bake in the oven 20–25 minutes
8
Leave to cool in the tray before removing. Dust with icing sugar and garnish with the remaining orange zest
First published in 2019

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