Ingredients

Pastry

• 8oz plain flour
• 4 ½ oz butter
• 1 teaspoon icing sugar
• Pinch salt
• 1 egg yolk
• 2 – 5 tablespoons cold water
• Mincemeat 400g

Glaze

• 1 egg yolk beaten with a little milk
• Makes 2 dozen mince pies

Method

1. To make the pastry, sift the flour, sugar and salt into a wide mixing bowl, rub in the butter until incorporated.
2. Then mix the egg yolk with the cold water and add enough so that the dough comes together and leaves the bowl clean. You may need more cold water.
3. Divide the dough in two and wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
4. On a floured surface roll the pastry out almost as thin as possible.
5. For the bases use a round cutter 7cm in diameter.
6. For the tops, use a star cutter 6cm wide or a round cutter 6cm in diameter.
7. Using a bun tray, grease well if necessary and line with the larger rounds of pastry. Put a generous teaspoon of mincemeat in each, dampen the edges of the smaller rounds with water and place the top on, press lightly to seal.
8. Brush the tops with the egg wash and bake in the oven for 20 -25 minutes until golden brown.
9. Cool a little and sift a little icing over before serving.

Notes

I make my own mince meat but a good shop-bought version will work well too. You can freeze these uncooked or cooked.