Christmas Mince Pies

The fruit mixture is the key to a good Christmas mince pie. Here’s our recipe:

• 900 g currants
• 300 g raisins
• 300 g dark brown sugar
• 225 g mixed crystallised peel
• 2 lemons, zest and juice
• 2 t cinnamon
• 2 t ground cloves
• 2 t all spice
• 1 t nutmeg
• 1 t ginger
• ¼ c brandy

Roughly chop the currants and raisins. Grinding the spices gives better flavour than pre-ground spices. Lemon juice balances the sweetness, so check the flavour. Should be quite sharp as well as sweet. Ideally the mince should be stored in sterilised jars for a few weeks before use.

We use mini-muffin tins and frozen commercial short pastry. Assemble and cook at 180C until golden. About 20 mins.

Tarte Tatin

Some foods are greater then the sum of the parts. Tarte tatin is such a food.

You need an oven-proof heavy-bottomed frypan. For two to four people, I use a 160 mm cast iron omlette pan. Add 70g sugar, 35g unsalted butter and a generous squeeze of lemon. Cook over a medium heat, stirring constantly, until the sauce just begins to colour. If the sauce caramalises too much at this point, the final sauce will be dark and too strongly flavoured.

Peel, core and slice two apples. Arrange the slices in the pan, packing firmly. Cook over a medium heat. The apples will release juice into the sauce. Continue cooking until the sauce darkens and thickens.

Now place a circle on puff pastry on top of the apples. Cut a vent in the centre of the pastry to let steam out as it cooks.

Cook in the oven at 200C until the pastry is nicely coloured. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for a couple of minutes. Cover the pan with a plate and invert. If you don’t let it cool enough the sauce will run out on the bench when you turn it over. If you let it cool too long, the apples will stick to the pan.

Finally allow the tarte to cool some more before serving. Cream or ice cream are optional. Can be served warm or cold.