Buttery, flaky pastry and juicy mincemeat topped with a melt-in-the mouth biscuit spiral – thee deep-filled pies are a fantastic luxury twist on a classic.
Step 1For the pastry, in a food processor pulse the flour, icing sugar, butter and a pinch of fine salt until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Alternatively rub the butter into the flour mixture using your fingertips. Add the egg yolk and 1/2tbsp ice-cold water and pulse or mix with a cutlery knife until the pastry starts to clumps together.
Step 2Tip out on to a work surface, bring together into a disc, wrap and chill for 1hr (up to 24hr).
Step 3Dust a work surface with flour and roll out pastry to 3mm thick. Using a 9cm round cutter, stamp out 12 rounds, rerolling trimmings as needed. Press the rounds into the holes of a muffin tin, then spoon the mincemeat into the pastry cases.
Step 4For the Viennese whirl, In a medium bowl using a handheld electric whisk, beat the butter until pale and moussey (it needs to be very soft). Sift in the icing sugar, flour and cornflour and beat to make a soft paste (it will take a while to come together). Scrape into a piping bag fitted with a 1cm star nozzle.
Step 5Pipe the Viennese whirl mixture on to the mince pies in a spiral, starting from the outside and working in. Chill for 30min to firm up.
Step 6Preheat oven to 190°C (170°C) mark 5. Bake the mince pies for 25min, or until the biscuit top is pale golden. Allow to cool in tin for 10min. With the help of a small spatula or cutlery knife, carefully transfer to a wire rack to continue cooling.
Step 7Lightly dust with icing sugar and serve just warm or at room temperature.
TO STORE:
Once cool, keep in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 5 days. To serve warm, reheat on a baking tray in an oven preheated to 180°C (160°C fan) mark 4 for 5-7min.
FREEZE AHEAD:
Prepare to end of step 5 (no need to chill). Freeze until solid. Transfer the mince pies to an airtight container, with baking parchment in between layers. Alternatively wrap in the tin in a few layers of clingfilm. To serve, return to a muffin in (if needed) and bake from frozen in an oven preheated to 180°C (160°C) mark 4 for 30min.
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
