Nothing tastes like Christmas more than a mince pie! And after trying one with chocolate we're pretty sure you'll never go back to the original recipe again! They're so easy to make, rich, fruity AND chocolatey – we adore this new twist on one of our favourite Christmas treats.
Ingredients
- 125g unsalted butter, chilled and cubed
- 50g icing sugar
- 2 medium eggs, 1 beaten
- 250g plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 410g mincemeat
- 110g Lily O’Brien’s 70% Dark Belgian Chocolate (1 Share Bag) roughly chopped into small pieces
- caster sugar for scattering
Method
- Place the butter and icing sugar in a food processor and pulse until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. Add one egg and pulse again until combined. Add in the flour and pulse again until the pastry comes together into a ball. Shape into a flattish circle, wrap in clingfilm and chill for 30 minutes.
- Remove from the fridge and roll the pastry on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut out circles with an 8cm fluted pastry cutter and lightly press into a muffin tin. Prick the base of each pastry case with a fork. Mix the mincemeat with the chopped chocolate and fill each case with a tablespoon of the chocolate mincemeat filling.
- Cut out small pastry shapes and place these on top of the mincemeat or cut out smaller circles to create more traditional tops for the pies. Brush the edges of the pies with beaten egg and press the smaller circles on top to seal tightly. When sealing the pies completely, make a small hole in the centre of each pie to let the steam out – this is not needed for the smaller cut out shape tops. Chill for around 10 minutes before baking.
- Preheat the oven to gas 6, 200°C/fan 180°C. Brush the mince pies with the remaining beaten egg and a scattering of caster sugar. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until the pastry is nice and golden and crisp. Allow to cool for a few minutes in the tin, then transfer carefully to a wire rack. Sprinkle on a little more caster sugar and serve with brandy butter or whipped cream.
