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Ho ho ho - Merry Blogmas |
| I was going to update today’s blog entry with my lemon, orange, and cinnamon shortbread recipe, however I’ve had a change of heart; don’t worry the shortbread recipe will still get blogged, but not today. Today I am going to give you my mincemeat recipe. Most people buy their mincemeat in jars, more probably just buy the ready-made mince pies, but I promise you making your own is sooo easy. And you get the added bonus of making your home smell Christmassy. This recipe uses butter instead of suet so it’s also Vegetarian friendly – sorry to those Vegans out there, but I don’t have one for you… yet. This makes about 1.5 kg of mincemeat. So, first things first… The ingredients:  175 g each of currants, raisins, sultanas, and dried cranberries 100 g of mixed peel 1 large cooking apple (like a bramley), peeled, cored and finely chopped 125 g butter, cut into cubes 200 g light muscovado sugar ½ tsp ground cinnamon 1 tsp mixed spice finely grated rind and juice of 1 lemon 175 ml of rum What you need to do: Put all the ingredients, except the rum, into a large pan and heat gently for about 10 minutes. The butter will start to melt and will simmer gently. You just need to stir occasionally to make sure it doesn’t stick. Take of the heat and let the mixture to cool Once it is completely cooled stir in the rum. The mincemeat us then ready to use or seal in sterilised jars.Try a festive twist: The great thing about mincemeat is that you can tweak it to your hearts content; add more cranberry, nuts, rum….. and it will still taste great. Here are a few of my suggestions – feel free to add your own twists in the comments section: Add 50g of whole blanched almonds (or other festive nuts), roughly chopped for added crunch – I love pistachio. Add nutmeg as well as cinnamon for added spice. Switch the lemon juice and rind for orange, or even lime, for a zesty twist. The alcohol – I love this recipe with spiced rum but you can also use brandy or sherry; FYI cherry brandy also a fav of mine.Notes: The use of butter instead of suet can make the mincemeat a cloudy, but don’t fret this disappears once the mincemeat is cooked. Also, mincemeat stores really well – up to six months if stored probably in sterilised, sealed jars – so you can make this at the beginning of December and it will see you through all your pie and tart making. To sterilise a jar: Heat oven to 140C/120C fan/gas mark 1. Wash the jars in hot, soapy water, and rinse well, but do not dry them. Place on a baking sheet and put them in the oven to dry completely. If using Kilner jars, boil the rubber seals, as dry heat damages them.You can use cellophane tops or wax paper if you want, but it’s just as easy to use old jam jars. Once you fill the jars and seal the lids, turn upside down, this will help with the seal. Store in a cool place. |
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