Everything about Mincemeat Tart totally explained
A
mince pie (or
mincemeat pie) is a traditional festive British sweet pastry, usually consumed during the
Christmas and
New Year period. Mince pies normally have a pastry top, but versions may also be found without the top in which case they're known as a
mince tart.
Description
These small non meat festive pies, usually between 2 and 3 inches in diameter (5-7.5 centimetres), can be made using either sweet
shortcrust pastry or
puff pastry. The
American version of the mince pie can be much larger (8-10 inches or 20-25 centimetres).
The name '
mincemeat' comes from the original recipe. Up to Victorian times, the mince(meat) pie would actually have been a spiced meat pie with some
dried fruit. Today the only remnant of the original meat is the inclusion of
suet. An exception is the
Amish variety, which often contains pork, beef or sausage. Typically fillings today consist entirely of fruit-based
mincemeat containing dried fruit such as
raisins,
currants, glace
cherries,
apricot,
candied peel; spices such as
cinnamon or
nutmeg; nuts such as
walnuts or chopped
almonds;
suet; and some kind of alcohol, usually either
brandy or
rum. Mince pies are suitable for
vegetarians only if the suet is replaced by
vegetable fat.
Once cooked, the pie is often finished off with a delicate dusting of either
castor sugar or
icing sugar on top.
History
The origins of the mince pie begins with the medieval pastry,
chewette which was either fried or baked. The "chewette" actually contained liver or chopped meat mixed with boiled eggs and ginger. Dried fruit and sweet ingredients would be added to the chewette's filling for variety. By the
16th century 'mince' or
shred pie was considered a
Christmas speciality, but in the 17th century,
Oliver Cromwell made the eating of mince pies on Christmas Day illegal. (This law was voted fourth "most ridiculous British law" in a 2007 poll.) In the mid-
17th century the liver and chopped meat was replaced by
suet, and meat products were no longer generally used in the 'mince' by the
19th century in both
North America and
Great Britain. Though traditional suet pies are still made, they're no longer the dominant form.
Traditions
Folklore states that mince pies are a favourite food of
Father Christmas, and that one or two should be left on a plate at the foot of the chimney (along with a small glass of brandy, sherry or milk, and a carrot for the
reindeer) as a thank-you for stockings well-filled.
Variations
Other variations include the mincemeat tart, similar in form and taste, save for the lack of a pastry top, as is the case for all kinds of
tart.
Mincemeat (a kind of sweet pastry similar to a
Cornish pasty) are often made with leftover pastry and mincemeat, and can be consumed with
custard,
clotted cream or
ice-cream.
Regional Variations
Hérault
The 'petit pâté de
Pézenas', a local speciality of the French town of Pézenas,
Hérault département, is similar in content to the original British mince pie.
Mince pie in popular culture
Further Information
Get more info on 'Mincemeat Tart'.
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