The viral Christmas Tree Mince Pies have landed here on my page, and boy are they worth making! They’re perfect for the festive season, and equally delicious as my more traditional mince pies.
Roll out a sheet of puff pastry and lightly dust it with flour
Spread the mincemeat over the sheet of pastry, before layering the second sheet of puff pastry over the top. Gently roll to stick the two sheets together
Slice the pastry into 12 even lengths and fold each strip over itself to form a tree. Secure in place with a wooden skewer and place on a lined baking sheet
Brush with an egg glaze and sprinkle with sugar before baking in a preheated oven set to 180°C fan/ 200°C convection for 20-25 minutes till golden and crispy
Looking for alternative ways to use up your leftovers from Christmas Day? I’ve already got a leftover pie recipe, but after making two already this year for the freezer I needed to use up my leftovers in a different way.
You can use whatever you have to hand, almost anything goes but here are a few substitutes for my recipe below:
Fancy something a little different this Christmas? Here is my Festive Mincemeat stuffed Panettone French Toast. Rich and indulgent, this is sure to put a smile on your face.
Ingredients
1 thick slice of panettone
Mincemeat – use my quick and easy recipe to get the most delicious mincemeat for this dish
1 egg
50ml milk of choice
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp vanilla essence
1 small knob of butter
To serve
Extra mincemeat
Yoghurt of choice
Berries of choice
Method
Take your thickly cut panettone and make a small pocket in the centre with a knife (like a pitta bread). Fill the pocket with 1-2 tsp mincemeat.
In a large dish crack the egg and add the milk, cinnamon and vanilla. Mix well.
Soak the panettone in the egg mixture for 5 minutes on all sides.
Heat a frying pan over a low heat and add the butter.
Cook the panettone for 2-3 minutes per side till golden brown.
Serve topped with extra mincemeat, yoghurt and berries.
For me, sausage rolls come out 2 times during the year; picnics and Christmas! While I do love a meat-based sausage roll, I wanted to create something which non-meat eaters could also enjoy without simply turning to a ready-made vegetarian sausage. This also means I’m having the benefit of plant foods, and less processed red meat which we know can be bad for our health.
You can make a bigger batch of these, partially cook them for 15 minutes and then reheat before your guests arrive for 10 minutes. Alternatively, you can freeze them down for longer-term storage. Simply cook from frozen for 15-18 minutes till crisp and piping hot.
These are also perfect for young children as they are naturally lower in salt in comparison to most shop-bought sausage rolls. Additionally, they are a softer texture inside in comparison to meat, which might be more pleasing to younger children.
To make the sausage rolls egg-free, swap the egg glaze for a milk-wash glaze.
Makes 12
Ingredients
5g dried mushrooms
50ml boiling water
1 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 onion, finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
250g mushrooms, finely chopped
200g firm tofu
10 sprigs thyme
2 sprigs sage
1 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp nutmeg
250g ricotta
50g breadcrumbs
1 sheet puff pastry
1 egg, beaten
a few pinches of seeds e.g. nigella seeds, sesame seeds
Method
Pour the boiling water over the dried mushrooms to rehydrate them.
Meanwhile, heat the oil in a saucepan and cook the onion for 5 minutes over a low heat till soft and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes.
Add the fresh and rehydrated mushrooms to the onion mixture and cook till all the liquid evaporates off.
Add the tofu, herbs and spices and cook till dry again.
Drain any excess liquid off the ricotta. Add to a large mixing bowl with the breadcrumbs and the mushroom mixture. Mix well and allow to fully cool to fridge temperature.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/ 200°C convection
Meanwhile, cut the pastry sheet into 2 pieces through the longer edge to create two smaller rectangles. Shape the mushroom mixture into the centre of the two pieces of pastry, leaving a large gap on either long edge.
Using the egg, paint across one edge to act as glue. Take the edge without the egg on it and fold it over the mushroom mixture, rolling it onto the egg-washed edge to seal.
Cut each log into 6 pieces and place on a lined baking tray. Brush the tops with the remaining egg wash and sprinkle with seeds.
Bake in the oven for 25 minutes till golden brown and crispy.
Enjoy hot, or cold
Vegetarian Sausage Rolls
Per sausage roll: 255kcal/ 16g fat/ 7.3g saturated fat/ 14g carbohydrates/ 2.1g fibre/ 12g protein
A simple wholemeal shortcrust pastry enriched with almonds and butter to give you 8 plant points in total if using my mincemeat recipe.
If you are using shop bought mincemeat you could try adding a little extra fibre diversity by adding in some grated apple, carrot or dried cranberries.
Mix the ground almonds, flour and butter in a large bowl with your fingertips till it resembles breadcrumbs.
Add the sugar, briefly mix, and then add the egg to bind. Knead the pastry till it forms a sticky ball, wrap it up and put it in the fridge to rest for a minimum of 30 minutes. The pastry can be made using a food processor or can be made the day in advance.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/ 200°C convection
Take 2/3 of the pastry and roll to 4-5mm thickness using flour to stop it from sticking. Use a circular cutter 2cm bigger than the tin hole, gently dust the underside and press into the muffin tin. Repeat to make 8 lined holes in total.
Fill each pastry case with around 45g mincemeat, leaving a 1cm gap from the top.
Take the remaining 1/2 of the pastry and roll to a thickness of 2-3mm. Take a cutter the same size as the muffin tin and cut 8 lids.
Using milk or egg, brush the pastry case and stick the lid down.
Poke a hole in the top of each pie to allow the steam to escape.
Optional: decorate the top with any remaining pastry, sticking it in place with the milk or egg.
Bake in the oven for 18-22 minutes till the pastry is golden brown and crisp.
Allow to cool for 5 minutes before taking out of the tray and allowing to cool on a wire rack.
Per mince pie: 358kcal/ 18.5g fat/ 10.3g saturated fat/ 41.2g carbohydrates/ 3.6g fibre/ 4.5g protein
My Festive Lentil, Mushroom and Chestnut Wellington is sure to be a crowd-pleaser this Christmas. Packed full of flavours you would expect to find at Christmas and wrapped up in puff pastry. What is not to like?
This recipe is easily adapted to most dietary requirements. Swap the butter pastry to a butter-free puff pastry and swap the egg glaze for a mylk wash to give the pastry a lovely golden glow.
To make the wellington gluten-free use a gluten-free pastry and gluten-free oats. If you can’t find the oats, use 100g gluten-free flour in place of the oats and rice flour.
You can also swap a few ingredients around to suit what you fancy. If your festive tipple is not port, you could swap it for red wine, cognac or even keep it alcohol-free by using a little stock. Other herbs that would work well in this wellington include thyme, parsley or marjoram. You could also use dried herbs, but watch out as these can really pack a punch, so half a teaspoon should be plenty to give flavour. You could even change the almonds for alternative nuts such as pistachios or walnuts to give different dietary nutrients; walnuts are the only tree nut to contain significant amounts of alpha-linolenic acid, a type of omega-3 fatty acid which can be converted in the body to EPA and DHA fats found in oily fish. Great for anyone following a strictly plant-based diet or for those who don’t eat fish.
Serves 6-8
Ingredient
120g green lentils
3 bay leaves
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 red onion, finely diced
200g mushrooms, finely diced
10 sage leaves, sliced
50g almonds, roughly chopped
90g cooked chestnuts, roughly chopped
50g dried cranberries
60ml port
50g rice flour
50g cut oats
400g puff pastry
1 egg, beaten
Method
Wash the lentils in cold water. Add the bay leaves and bring the lentils to the boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes till the lentils are soft.
Meanwhile cook the oil and onion together over a low heat till soft and translucent.
Add the mushrooms to the onions and cook the mushrooms till the juices start to thicken slightly. Add the sage and cook for a further minute till fragrant.
Once the lentils are cooked, drain, remove the bay leaves and lightly mash. Add the mushroom mixture to the lentils followed by the almonds, chestnuts, cranberries, port, flour and cut oats. Mix to combine and season to taste.
Allow the mixture to cool completely.
Preheat the oven to 180°C fan/ 200°C convection.
Line a baking sheet with baking parchment.
Roll the pastry into a 35cm by 25cm rectangle. Cut lengthways down to make a 10cm by 35cm smaller rectangle. Remove 2cm from this piece to create a rectangle approximately 10cm by 33cm.
Place the now cooled mixture on this smaller rectangle of pastry, leaving a 1cm gap all around the edge, into a large log shape from short end to short end.
Using the egg, paint over the pastry seam. Lift the remaining larger rectangle of pastry over the mixture and press the pastry to seal with a fork.
Trim any excess pastry and use it to decorate the top of the pie.
Cut a small hole in the top of the wellington to allow the steam to escape and glaze the whole pie with an egg wash.
Bake the wellington for 25-30 minutes till golden brown all over.
Per sixth: 629kcal/ 25.3 fat/ 13.1g saturated fat/ 60.8g carbohydrates/ 8.0g fibre/ 18.3g protein
Whether you made your own mincemeat or not, there are still ways to help increase the diversity of plant fibres in your mince pies. You could try adding in some extra dried fruit to bought mincemeat, zesting in some clementine zest, or try adding carrot like in my own mincemeat recipe. And you don’t have to stop there, you can even change the pastry!
In my recipe, I use a mixture of shortcrust pastry to stay
traditional, but use a crumble topping instead, keeping it lighter, but also so
it allows me to include more plant sources. I use both oats and ground almonds
in my crumble.
Each of my mince pies contains around double that of shop bought mince pies. I always find it harder to include fibrous foods over the festive period as there are so many treats to eat! My homemade mince pies contain 8 different source of plant-based goodness, and research shows those who eat 30 or more different sources of plant-based foods per week have an increased variety of gut microbiota in comparison those who eat 10 or fewer different sources. So feed your microbiome!
These mince pies are delicious served warm with vanilla
custard, a true Christmas time treat.
If you want to make vegan mince pies, use a pre-made
vegetable oil based shortcrust pastry and top with the crumble mixture
substituting the butter for rapeseed oil.
Makes 12 deep-filled mince pies
Recipe
750g mincemeat, shop bought
or homemade
Short crust pastry, either
bought or homemade (see below)
75g plain flour
50g fridge cold butter
25g rolled oats
50g ground almonds
25g soft light brown sugar
Method
Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C Fan
Roll the pastry out to 2mm, around the thickness of a 2p coin.
Cut disks of pastry out to 11-12cm diameter and line a muffin tray.
Fill each case with mincemeat, leaving a little gap at the top.
Make the crumble topping by mixing the flour and butter together until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
Add the oats, almonds and sugar and combine.
Top each mince pie with a spoonful of the crumble topping*.
Bake for 22-25 minutes till golden brown.
Cool on a wire rack
To make your own shortcrust pastry combine 225g plain flour
with 100g cold butter till it resemble bread crumbs. Add just enough cold water
to form a dough. Wrap and rest it in the fridge for 30 minutes before rolling.
Mince Pies
Per Mince Pie 327kcal/ 13.7g fat/ 4.5g saturated fat/ 48.1g carbohydrates/ 2.5 fibre/ 3.2g protein
Homemade mince pies are something special at Christmas. Taking it one step further and making your own mincemeat means you can decide what goes in. For me, shop bought mincemeat sometimes feels like it’s missing some of the fruit. Making your own mincemeat is so quick, and I guarantee the flavour will be so much better than the shop bought stuff, and it’s ready to use in just 24 hours so there’s no excuses for not making your own!
Mincemeat Ingredients
I use butter rather than suet in my recipe. I think this gives a much richer flavour, and is also vegetarian friendly. You’ll also see I don’t stop at just fruit. A sneaky carrot also makes it into the mix in my version. This is great for increasing the diversity of plant fibres in this recipe, which we know can be beneficial for your gut microbiota and gut health in general. Why not treat your microbes this Christmas too!
Overall this basic mincemeat recipe uses 6 different plant-based fibre sources, alongside mixed spice. You can substitute different fruit in depending on your taste, for example cherries, apricot or mixed peel.
A generous swig of cognac
Makes enough mincemeat for 24 deep filled individual mince pies
Recipe
200g sultanas
200g raisins
200g currants
100g dried cranberries
1 large carrot (or 3 small
like my allotment carrots!)
1 cooking apple
350g soft light brown sugar
175g fridge cold butter
(option to use vegetarian suet to make vegan, or to be a traditionalist and use
beef suet)
2 tsp ground mixed spice
1 organic orange
100ml cognac, brandy,
whisky or rum
Method
Coarsely grate the apple, carrot and butter.
Zest and juice the orange, taking as much of the segment flesh as possible.
Put all the ingredients in a large bowl and mix together. Set aside covered with a tea towel.
Stir occasionally for the next 24 hours.
Fill previously sterilised jars with the mincemeat, ensuring to push out all the air.
Seal and leave in a cool dark place for up to 6 months to mature.
Per 100g 304kcal/ 9.2g fat/ 5.9g saturated fat/ 49.5g carbohydrates/ 2.8g fibre/ 1.4g protein
Dr Pippa 