Alternative Mince Pies...The Sequel!

Ok, so they're not exactly mince pies as there's no pastry! However, these do provide a good alternative to mince pies if you fancy a bit of a change! They're very light and not too filling...that does however mean that you might be prone to eating more than one!! They also look super cute with a dusting of icing sugar for the snow and these lovely reindeer and snowflake toppers which I ordered from the Cake Craft Shop.

•  175g self-raising flour
• 100g light muscavado sugar
• 1 tsp mixed spice
• 175g softened butter
• 3 eggs
• 2 tbsp milk
• Roughly 140g mincemeat
• Icing sugar for dusting

Heat your oven to 190c/170c/gas 5. Then put all of the ingredients in to a bowl, except the mincemeat, and mix with an electric hand mixer for around 2-3 minutes. The mixture should be nice and fluffy. Place the cake cases in to the bun tin and spoon a little of the mixture in to each one, followed by a teaspoon of mincemeat. Finally, cover the mincemeat with the remainder of the cake mix and smooth over.

Bake for 15-18 minutes. The cakes should be golden brown and when cool dust with icing sugar. These can be served cold or warm.

* Adapted from http://www.bbcgoodfood.com/

Mince Pie Rings

Pastry purists look away now! For this recipe I used ready made, ready rolled puff pastry *gasp*. If you want delicious mince pies with a bit of a twist, then give these simple mince pie rings a go. They're quick and easy so you can whip some up in no time, and they provide a bit of alternative to the standard mince pie. The puff pastry also gives you a lovely satisfying crunch as you bite into it...

• 500g all-butter puff pastry
• Zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon, finely grated
• 30g ground almonds
• 12 tbsp mincemeat
• Milk to brush
• 3 tbsp icing sugar
• 1/2 gold lustre dust or Dr.Oetker's Gold Shimmer Spray

Heat the oven to 200c/180c fan/gas 6. Roll out the puff pastry in to a rectangle and then slice in to 12 7cm x 23cm strips. Zest the orange and lemon and then sprinkle both over the pastry along with the ground almonds. Leaving a 1cm border, spread a tablespoon of mincemeat down each strip of pastry. Using a pastry brush, brush milk down one of the long sides of each mince pie ring before folding the other side over to meet it. Thoroughly seal the edge by pressing down firmly.

Brush the end of each tube with milk and then pinch one end before inserting it in to the other open end to form a ring. Gently, move the rings on to a baking sheet with baking parchment. Finally, brush again with milk and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden brown. When cool, mix the icing with a small amount of water to make a drizzling consistency. Then use either a teaspoon or a piping bag to drizzle over the mince pie rings. The finishing touch is a dusting of gold lustre or alternatively use Dr. Oetker's Gold Shimmer Spray... and you end up with festive gold rings!

* Recipe adapted from Delicious Magazine