Just finished* putting together the annual Big Vat o’Mincemeat chez Pipers. Meat, and apples, oranges and lemons, molasses and apple juice, oh my!
When I first made mincemeat for Mrs. Piper, she was a bit dubious about mixing meat and fruit, but to paraphrase the Monkees, “Now she’s a believer.”
Next up: shortbread. Real shortbread, not that whipped English white kind with poncy little maraschino cherry fragments on top. Nothing but butter, golden sugar and flour in Grammie Piper’s recipe.
Plus, I’m finally going to make a Christmas pudding from scratch, complete with brown sauce, and will flame it when we take it to Mrs Piper’s family gathering on Christmas. Would welcome any pudding tips, as I’m a complete tyro - Piper Mum never taught me how to make it.
So, what’s cooking (or soon will be) at your house that says “Christmas!” to you and yours?
*And as in previous years, I again missed Stir-up Sunday" this year - work has been crazy…
I’m one of those strange people who actually likes fruitcake. My Grandmother used to make a wonderful fruitcake every Christmas, and I’d enjoy every bite. Sadly, Grandmother died years ago, so I make do with store-bought. Not as good, but it still brings back a lot of memories.
Nothing is really doing at my place for Christmas, but I like the thought of mincemeat and shortbreads and Christmas pudding!
I don’t normally like fruitcake but I have a really good fruitcake recipe from one of Mrs Piper’s sisters, which I actually like - I’ll hunt it out for you.
I just used pulled them out of the “Special Characters” function that’s built into the Mac, entered the characters into a Word doc, then copied and pasted them into the title field.
There’s an ambiguity about sugar titles. When I hear Demerara sugar, I think of dark brown molasses sugar. Here in Canada, the manufacturers use “golden” and “brown” to mean these two different types. I know that in other places, brown sugar might mean what is labelled “golden” here.
I accidentally used the brown (molasses) sugar in my short bread one year and they did not taste right at all.
My grandma’s shortbread (the Scottish grandma, not the one who I’ve posted frequently was not a great cook) recipe has granulated white and light brown sugars. I will be making some tomorrow since it improves with some storage time. Most other baking I like to do closer to when the items will be eaten/given.
What do you make with your mincemeat? I will admit to using the Nonesuch box, but I make what my family has always called mincemeat tarts, but aren’t like other tarts. Prepare the mincemeat according to the directions and make pie pastry. Roll it very thin and cut out as many 3" circles as you can. Deal rounds onto a baking sheet. Put about 1/2 T mincemeat in the center of each disc. Place another dough round on top of each one. crimp with a fork. Poke the middle just one time with a fork (for full nostalgia a three tined granny-fork would make me happy, but this once ubiquitous kitchen tool seems to have vanished). Bake. Share. Our family usually has these at Thanksgiving and Christmas, except we haven’t all gotten together in a few years.
Since Silenus posted this recipe for The ultimate Ginger Snap in 2007 I’ve been making them. After the first year they’ve been requested by several relatives.
Once the mincemeat’s cooked, I put them into those little mini-tart pastry shells and cook them in the oven for about 25 minutes. I also make hard sauce for them, as described at post # 5 of this thread: Best way to serve Glenfiddich mincemeat tarts?
I (apparently mistakenly) thought Christmas pudding was the one that’s made a year in advance. Saw Brooke Shields eat one…?
I love shortbread. It’s one of the basic Food Groups.
What’s “cooking” here for Christmas is my cold caulifower Xmas salad.
2 heads cauliflower, cut into florets
2 small cans sliced black olives
pimentos
several sliced scallions
sprinkle Parmasean
Mix with Kraft Creamy Italian dressing, salt & pepper, the day before use.
Sadly, I’m the only one in the family who likes mock mincemeat pie. I fix one every year…and get to eat it ALL.
1 lb lean ground beef
¼ lb suet*
4-5 large apples, peeled, cored and cut up into little slices
½ cup white vinegar
1½ cups white sugar
½ cup molasses
1 lemon, juice and rind, grated**
2 orange, juice and rind, grated**
½ tbsp. allspice
½ tbsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. cloves
1½ lbs raisins
½ lbs currants
2¼ cup apple juice
jigger of rum or whisky (optional)
available in the meat section at Safeway this time of year, amongst the frozen turkeys and such.
** I use one of those little zester things first on the rind, then cut the lemon and oranges in half and squeeze them in, with as much of the pulp as I can get out of the rinds.
cook the ground beef and suet in a stock pot/Dutch oven until beef loses its pinkness.
add apples to the meat and stir for a bit.
add all the other ingredients.
bring to boil, stirring constantly.
turn heat down and let simmer for 1½ hours, stirring regularly to prevent it from sticking. (This stage guaranteed to trigger Christmas memories!)
You can then put it into sterilized jars, but I normally just keep the mincemeat in the stock pot and put it out into the unheated garage; keeps for the entire Christmas season.
When I want to use it, I spoon the mincemeat into those 2 inch tartlet shells (I use Tenderflake ones) and cook in a 350° oven for 20 - 25 minutes, until the pastry is cooked. You could also use it to make mincemeat pies, but it will be awfully rich.
Hard Sauce
Cream half cup butter ( I usually leave it out of the fridge for a couple of hours so it’s room temperature, and then use a pastry blender on it.)
Blend in 1 cup sifted icing sugar.
Beat in 1 egg white.
Stir in 1/2 tsp vanilla, and 1 tsp dark rum (or whatever other whisky type substance you want to try).
Place in small serving dish; sprinkle with nutmeg; refrigerate until needed.
All mixings should be done by hand. End product looks like fluffy cake-icing; use a small spoon or knife to spread it on your mincemeat. Since it’s got raw egg in it, once it’s been taken out of the fridge, it needs to be used up.
