Mince Pies

When I was growing up in Canada, one of the things I really disliked at Christmas time was . . . Mincemeat. Oh, but it was horrid. That probably has something to do with the fact that it had real meat in it . . . ground beef . . . and ground beef made me want to gag. Mixed with raisins and other fruits, it made me want to gag even more . . .



Combine that with the interesting fact that my Aunt used to make her mincemeat out of venison that my Uncle shot every year, and I could never trust whether the mincemeat my mother was using had come from my Aunt or not . . . and I just could not face eating Bambi . . .

Aside from all that . . . it just didn't taste good to me . . . not at all. Never, no never . . .



Oh, how very different mincemeat is over here in the UK. I just love it and I can't get enough of it any time of the year, but MOST especially during the Christmas Season!!!

Filled with lovely bits of bramley apple . . . raisins . . . currants . . . sultanas . . . candied peel . . . not to mention lovely warm spices and oranges and lemons, chopped almonds . . . all bound together with soft dark brown sugar, brandy and suet . . . Just the thought of it gets my taste buds tingling.



I love them cold . . . all buttery and spicy sweet in my mouth.



They are a special treat when gently warmed . . . all meltingly delicious and crumbly, with lashings of brandy cream or custard . . . mmm . . .

I usually make my own, using Delia's Foolproof Recipe, but the grocery shops are full of wonderful mincemeat as well. Marks and Spencers make a really yummy luxury version.



There is nothing like spending an afternoon with a cd of Christmas Carols creating the festive mood whilst you bake lovely mince pies . . . the smell of them baking so homey and warm, the music . . . just so soul enriching . . . the cold wind outside buffeting the windows as the rain lashes against the glass . . . me all tucked up warm and cosy in the kitchen, my slippers padding across the floor and Jess stretched out and softly snoring on the carpet in front of the AGA . . .



Ahh . . . this has to be bliss. Can there be anything else on earth so wonderful??? I think not!



Well . . . eating them comes a close second, I do have to admit!




*Mince Pies*
Makes about 24
Printable Recipe

I just adore these delicious Christmas Treats! Crisp and buttery pastry encasing a delicious filling of spiced fruits, and dusted with icing sugar. Oh, so very wonderful. It just would not be Christmas without a breadbox filled with these!

560g mincemeat
(either homemade or storebought)
350g flour
pinch of salt
75g of cold butter, cut into bits
75g cold lard, cut into bits
ice water as needed
For the finish
some milk for brushing
sifted icing sugar for dusting

Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Drop in the butter and lard and rub it into the flour/salt mixture using your fingertips. Rub until the mixture resembles fine bread crumbs. Add the ice water by the tablespoon, mixing in with a fork, until you get a dough that leaves the sides of the bowl clean. Shape into a ball, wrap in cling film and place in the refrigerator to rest for half an hour.

Roll half of the dough out 1/4 inch thick on a lightly floured board. Cut it into 24 rounds with a 3 inch fluted pastry cutter. Place them into two lightly greased patty tins, lining the holes. Spoon a dessertspoon of mincemeat into each. Roll out the other half of the dough in the same manner, and cut out 24 rounds iwth a 2 1/2 inch cutter. Brush the edges of these rounds with a bit of water and then place them on top of the mincmeat filled patty tins to form lids. Press around lightly to seal. Brush the tops with a bit of milk. Prick with a fork if desired. Place on the top rack in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown and crisp.

Remove from the oven and cool completely before disting with icing sugar. Store in an airtight container.

Ball Park Pizza For Two

When I was growing up, you could tell what night of the week it was just by what we were having for supper.

Saturday night we had comfort food. It would be either stew or baked beans or something like that. On Sunday we had a big dinner . . . probably a roast of one kind or another. Mondays was leftovers from Sunday dinner . . . Tuesdays, spaghetti . . . Wednesdays, porkchops . . . Thursdays, chicken . . . and then the piece de resistance was Friday night . . .

HOT DOG night!



My mom made the best hotdogs in the world!! All the kids in the neighborhood would vie to be invited over for hotdog night. She used to buy the hotdog buns that had soft bread sides. They were buttered and toasted in the sandwich grill, until they were buttery brown all over, just like a grilled cheese sandwich. The weiners were toasted on the grill as well. Sometimes she would even split the weiners down the middle, so that they opened out flat like a book, and the insides got all tasty and crispy too. Grilled onions and all the hot dog accompaniments were on offer of course . . . relish, mustard, ketchup.

She'd wrap each one up in paper kitchen towelling to keep them warm, and we'd each be allowed to have two of them. Let me tell you . . . they were a real treat!

Can you tell that I just love hotdogs????

That was one thing I missed a lot when I first moved over here. I couldn't find them anywhere.

Well, that's not entirely true. I lie . . .



I was able to find these. Tinned hotdogs. UGH . . . there's no other word for them, and yet they sell loads. They also sell them soaked in brine . . . in jars. DOUBLE UGH.

To a hotdog connoiseur, they just didn't cut the mustard!!! (every pun intended, tee hee) They are the 'WURST' (double tee hee)



Anyways, I have since been able to find fresh ones . . . and whilst they are still not as good as the ones back home . . . they are still loads better than the tinned or brined ones.

The best hotdogs of all, of course, are the ones back home that you get at country fairs or at ball games . . . oh and from street vendors of course . . . or the 400 Flea Market just outside of Barrie, Ontario.

Ahh . . . the smell of frying onions . . . it gets you everytime . . .



This is my take on a delicious memory, my own personal tribute to my mother's hotdog nights.

It is Friday after all . . .



*Ball Park Pizza for Two*
Serves 2
Printable Recipe

If you are a fan of hotdogs, you will love this cosy little pizza. It's just the perfect size for two to share.

Dough:
110g self raising flour
25g of butter
4 TBS milk
2 ounces of grated sharp cheddar cheese
Topping:
4 smoked frankfurters, cut into 1/2 inch sliced
2 heaping dessert spoons of barbeque sauce
1/2 of a small onion, peeled and chopped
1 heaping dessertspoon of hotdog relish
1 TBS of American style yellow mustard
4 ounces shredded sharp cheddar cheese



Pre-heat the oven to 200*C/400*F. Sift the flour into a bowl. Rub in the butter until it resembles breadcrumbs. Stir in the cheese. Mix well, then stir in the milk with a fork, until you have a soft dough.

Butter a large baking tray and press the dough out onto the tray to a 9 inch round, about 1/4 inch thick. (The thinner the dough the crisper your crust will be)

Mix together the sliced frankfurters, onion, barbeque sauce, hotdog relish and mustard. Sprinkle this over top of the dough, leaving a 1 inch border all the way around. Top with the shredded cheese.

Bake in the heated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until crispy and brown on the bottom and the cheese is bubbling.

Note - instead of a scone type of dough, you can use regular pizza type dough, and make a larger pizza for the family. Just increase the amounts of the toppings.

Mincemeat Jalousie

One of the things that I really like over here in the UK, is the mincemeat. You can buy it ready-made all year long, not just at Christmas. Or you can make your own. It's really quite easy.



Back home the mincemeat is really quite different. There's actually minced meat in it. I was never all that fond of it. My Aunt and Uncle used to make Deer Mincemeat. Interesting . . . to say the least.



Over here the mincemeat is a delicious mixture of chopped fruits and spices . . . raisins, currents, sultanas,lemon and orange peel . . . cinnamon, nutmeg, mixed spice . . . soft light brown sugar . . . suet. You can get it with brandy, or port and some varieties even have cherries in it. I love it all.



Mincemeat is not just for Christmas you know.



You can make lovely loaf cakes with it and pies of course . . . any time at all.

or you can make this tasty Jalousie.



Served warm and cut into squares, it's deliciously moreish with a tangy dollop of creme fraiche on top to counteract the sweetness.

It's lovely, really lovely . . . and so very . . . very . . . easy to make.

Sweet . . . spicy . . . and flake, flake, flakey . . . I think Todd said it best of all . . . "Nice . . . very nice" . . . as he reached for a second helping . . .



*Mincemeat and Apple Jalousie*
Serves 6
Printable Recipe

Light and crisp puff pastry filled with delicious bottled mincemeat and sliced apple. Served warm with a tasty dollop of creme fraiche. Yum!

1 350g package of frozen all butter puff pastry
1 4 to 6 ounce jar of mincemeat
1 large eating apple, peeled and thinly sliced
1 TBS caster sugar
milk and demerara sugar
Icing sugar to dust
Creme fraiche to serve



Pre-heat the oven to 220*C/425*F.

Roll the pastry to a thin oblong, 6 inches wide and 18 inches long. Cut in half crosswise to give you 2 9-inch long strips. Flour one strip lightly and fold in half from both edges to the centre. Make a series of cuts through the folded edges to within one inch of the trimmed edge on both sides.

Lightly butter a sheet of parchment paper and place it on a baking tray. Lay the plain piece of puff pastry on top. Spread with the mincemeat to within 3/4 inch of the edge all around. Place the thinly sliced apple on top and then sprinkle with the caster sugar. Dampen the free edge all around with some water. Open out the slashed piece of pastry and lay on top. Seal the edges all around and crimp them together. Brush with some milk and sprinkle with some demerara sugar.



Place in the centre of the heated oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until well risen and nicely browned. If you think it is browning too quickly you may reduce the oven temperature for the last 5 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven. Dredge with icing sugar, cut into squares and serve warm with some creme fraiche.