Wholemeal Mince Pies

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.

Makes 8 mince pies

Ingredients

• 40g ground almonds
• 175g wholemeal flour
• 120g fridge cold butter, cut into small cubes
• 55g caster sugar
• 1 medium egg
• Plain flour for dusting
• 1/3 portion of mincemeat (approximately 500g)
• Egg or milk to join the pastry

Method

• 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