Friday, December 10, 2010

ENGLISH MINCEMEAT

Mincemeat Picnik collage 3 bis 
Christmas (or Yule-tide) is getting closer everyday and although this year it falls on a Saturday meaning that some of us might not have a longer weekend, most people will want to celebrate this day in a very festive way. No matter if you are not Christian or if the commercial misuse of this event disgust you or puts you off, I guess that like me, you'll nonetheless want to cook or bake something fine for the occasion and will want to do some extreme cocooning...

As I miss England and feel awfully nostalgic when thinking about my second country (I am lucky and proud to have dual nationality and beserker ancestors - Swiss and English) I thought that it would be a great idea to make it a british Xmas this year and eat foods that would remind me of my beloved roots. So in 2010, I will be serving turkey with stuffing (sage & onion) and it's accompaniment (Brussel sprouts with chestnuts & bacon, buttery mashed tatties and gravy). To make it even the more British than it is already, we'll have "Mince Pies" for dessert - an exquisite treat that I have alaways loved as a kid and have been craving since a while.

After having received my Christmas issues of Delicious, Good Food and Jamie Magazine there was no reason I was not going to make my own "Mincemeat". All three magazines offer wonderful recipes for this amazing speciality which originates from Great Britain and can be traced back to the end of Middle Ages (circa the 15th century).

During this epoch finding a method of storing food was of the highest importance and many ways had been developped (pickling, jarring, curing, spicing, etc...). So, initially "Mincemeat" began as a way to preserve food therefore that paste-like mixture can be kept for quite a while (1 month and depending on the kind of fat used, for up to a year).


This brown colored, fruity (apple, rai
sins, currants, sultanas, candied peel, oranges & lemons), richly spiced ( mixed spice, cinnamon, ginger & nutmeg), boozy (rum) filling enriched with fat (lard, suet or butter) is used in the confection of "Mince Pies" that are traditionally baked for Christmas or Easter (eaten all year long too).

It is very interesting to note that our modern era "Mincemeat" is quite different from the one which was prepared until the 19th century. The original preparation was made with beef, lamb, venison or heart which was finely minced and mixed to suet, dried fruits, citrus peel, alcohol and spices, hence the name it carries. Although this version is now unusual and quite rare to find, some families still perpetuate the tradition.

Although I've eaten my share of "Mince Pies" in the past, this is my first homemade "Mincemeat" and I must say that the result surpasses my expectations by far. Without trying to boast too much, I must recognize that mine is exactly the way it should be and tastes perfect. It has a fresh, tangy, frangrant, fruity, heady, delicately nutty, divinely spicy, well-balanced flavor and isn't too sweet nor sickly. Very Xmassy and so festive.

Mincemeat 2 bis
~Mincemeat ~
Recipe adapted from "Delicious" magazine, December 2010.

Enough to fill 4 jam jars.

Ingredients:
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 large organic lemons
Finely grated zest and juice of 2 large organic oranges
1 Large (about 300g) Boskoop apple (or Bramley apple)
80g Unsalted butter
20g Lard
70ml Dark rum
200g Raisins
150g Sultanas
150g Currants
100g Candied Orange peel, chopped
50g Candied lemon peel, chopped
1 1/2 Tsp Ground cinnamon
1 Tsp Ground ginger
1/2 Tsp Freshly grated nutmeg
3/4 Tsp Mixed spice
175g Light muscovado sugar
60g Lightly toasted almonds, chopped

Mincemeat Picnik collage 2 bis
Method:
1. Put the orange and lemon zest and juices into a biggish pan.
2. Peel, quarter and core the apple. Grate it and add it to the pan. Stir into the juices so that it doesn’t discolour.
3. Add the butter, lard, rum, dried fruits, candied peels and spices. Cook over a low heat, stirring frequently, for 1 hour until the apple has broken down, the dried fruits are plump and all the liquid has evaporated.
4. Let cool, then add the sugar and the toasted almonds. Mix well.
5. Spoon into cool, sterilised jam jars, press a waxed disc firmly onto the surface of the mixture and seal.
6. Put in the refrigerator and use within 1 month.

Remarks:
Instead of using dark rum, you can use calvados, sherry, brandy or whisky.
You can replace the almonds by hazelnuts or any other roasted nut of your choice (not traditional but ok).
Mincemeat flavors develop over time, so make in several weeks in advance of the holidays.
If you want you mincemeat to have a longer shelf life, then omit the butter and stir in 100g shredded suet at the end (don't add 20g lard at the beginning), along with the sugar and almonds. In that way your mincemeat will keep for up to a year in a cool dark place.
It freezes well too – for up to 6 months.

Serving suggestions:
Make "Mince Pies" using your homemade "Mincemeat".

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MIncemeat Picnik collage 1 bis
~Mincemeat ~
Recette adaptée du magazine "Delicious", Décembre 2010.

Pour 4 pots à confiture.

Ingrédients:
Le zeste et jus de 2 citrons bio
Le zeste et jus de 2 oranges bio
1 Grosse (300g) Pomme boskoop (pomme goûteuse pour compote)
80g de Beurre non-salé
20g de Saindoux
70ml de Rhum foncé
200g de Raisins
150g de Sultanines
150g de Raisins blonds
100g d'Orangeat en cube
100g de Citronnat en cubes
1 1/2 CC de Cannelle en poudre
1 CC de Gingembre en poudre
1/2 CC de Noix de muscade fraîchement moulue
3/4 CC de Mixed spice (voir remarques pour recette)
175g de Sucre "muscovado"
60g d'Amandes torréfiées et hachées

Mincemeat Picnik collage 4 bis
Méthode:
1. Mettre les zestes et jus d'orange et de citron dans une assez grande casserole.
2. Peler, nettoyer et couper en quartiers la pomme, puis la râper et la mélanger au jus dans la casserole.
3. Ajouter le beurre, le saindoux, le rhum, les fruits secs, l'orangeat, le citronnat et les épices, puis cuire (avec couvercle) endant 1 heure à basse température en mélangeant régulièrement jusqu'à ce que la pomme se soit désintégrée, que les raisins soient imbibés et que le jus se soit évaporé.
4. Laisser refroidir, puis ajouter les amandes et le sucre.
5. Remplir des pots à confiture stérilisés et recouvrir le mincemeat avec un rond de papier sulfurisé. Fermer les pots.
6. Conserver le mincemeat au frigo pendant 1 mois maximum.

Remarques:
Au lieu d'utiliser du rhum, vous pouvez prendre du calvados, du whisky, du sherry ou du brandy.
Les amandes peuvent être remplacées par des noisettes ou les noix de votre choix - au préalable torréfiées (pas traditionnel mais ok).
Le mincemeat développe toute sa saveur avec le temps, alors prenez bien soin de le confectionner quelques semaines avant les fêtes.
Si vous voulez garder votre mincemeat encore plus longtemps, alors omettez le beurre et remplacez-le par du saindoux râpé que vous ajouterez à la fin avec le sucre et les amandes. De cette manière vous pourrez le conserver une année au frais et dans un lieu sombre.
Il se congèle aussi très bien – 6 mois maximum.
Pour obtenir le mélange d'épices "Mixed Spice", mélanger ensemble 1 CS de tout épice en poudre, 1 CS de cannellle en poudre 1 CS de noix de muscade moulue,
2 CC de macis en poudre, 1 CC de clous de girofles moulus, 1 CC de Coriandre en poudre et 1 CC de gingembre en poudre.

Idées de présentation:
Confectionner des "Mince Pies" avec votre "Mincemeat".

Mincemeat Picnik collage 5 bis

99 comments:

  1. The first and last picture of the snow is gorgeous.This dish has really vibrant citrus(y) flavors.Love it.

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  2. Delectable! Would you pretty please post it to Punk Domestics?

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  3. Une recette que je découvre... avec des parfums que j'adore! J'ai le rhum et le muscovado... le reste des ingrédients se trouvera facilement! Tes photos sont toujours aussi belles...

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  4. Lovely clicks Rosa. And an equally delicious treat from you.

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  5. Awesome! Mincemeat is on the agenda for this holiday season!

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  6. I'm not a mincemeat fan, Rosa, but my family is. I've never made it from scratch, which may be why I've never cared for it.
    So pleased to have this recipe!

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  7. Je ne connaissais pas du tout cette recette, tes photos sont superbes Rosa, une invitation à la gourmandise et au voyage :-)
    Bises et bon weekend !

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  8. I always believed that the main ingredient is still meat. A new perspective !

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  9. Yummy ! Much much better then the tasteless overly sweet store bought mincemeat.

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  10. my lineage is also of berserker ancestors albeit much shorter than yours... Mincemeat sounds interesting, I haven't ever had it but you make it sound so good! Winter looks so cold over there.

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  11. Fantastic recipe. Gorg pics, and totally in the spirit of Christmas. Always love. Love the brown sugar, too.

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  12. Nothing better than home-made mincemeat.
    What is coming up next?
    Looking forward to see the next post.
    Excellent recipe.
    Have a great weekend ♥

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  13. Wow! Good on you for making your own fruit mince Rosa..from the pics it looks wonderful and very authentic. I love it's aroma and tend to over indulge on these little treats around Xmas!

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  14. It's interesting how food storage issues, people developed alternatives like this mincemeat.

    Really the addition of rum, raisins, and sultanas supply a marvelous balanced sweetness - spiciness. :)

    All the best,

    Gera

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  15. The mix of these ingredients is the taste of Christmas! Your house must have smelled fantastic as it cooked.

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  16. Don't think I've ever had a mincemeat pie, but oohing and aahing over your pictures makes me want to run and make one right now!

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  17. I am in love, what a great post...I have to be honest I had no idea the ingredients list! Thanks for sharing and teaching me!

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  18. Mince pies are yum! I love eating them and it makes me feel that Christmas is near!

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  19. I have always used mincemeat over the years (thanks to my mom and grandmother), but have never made it from scratch. I see a new project ahead!

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  20. beautiful photos. You are definitely honoring your British roots with this amazing mincemeat-something traditional Americans enjoy as part of their Thanksgiving table. Awesome.

    Happy Holidays to you.
    Velva

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  21. This means this dish will taste sweetish savorish and sour. Interesting!

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  22. wow lovely post as a Brit in the US made me smile :-) beautiful pictures as well

    Rebecca

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  23. Your beautiful photos and the way you describe it has us all clamoring to make our own mincemeat - if you're English at all, anyway - which one half of me is :) The winter scenes in your last post were magnificent in their stark beauty and I love the last one in this post. Merry Yuletide!

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  24. i spent a long time (most of my life thus far, actually) being afraid of mincemeat, but i was foolish--it's amazing! glorious post. :)

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  25. it looks tempting and very lovely pics as well

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  26. yay mincemeat! finally i found it! i'll try this..and i'm making mincemeat pie :) thanks sweety..

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  27. I came across "mincemeat" just the other day. As a Brazilian, I didn't know about it and was wondering about its name... Now you have clarified it!
    Looks delicious indeed!

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  28. Oh Rosa, this is FABULOUS!!!!!! Fantastic post, I want to make my own mincemeat now!

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  29. I'm sad to say I've never tasted mincemeat. Looks divine.
    Sam

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  30. Hi Rosa:

    Every time I have mincemeat it seems to be a different recipe and a different taste. I'm thrilled for you that yours came out the way you wished it to. I too hadn't realized that mincemeat still had meat as an ingredient. Thank you for the education and let us know how you use it. In addition to pies, I've had it as a wonderful filler for crepe.

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  31. Grazie Rosa è davvero grazioso questo tuo post e la penso esattamente come te per quanto riguarda il Natale, prendo con piacere questa ricetta da provare, ciao

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  32. I would like to try such a delicious mincemeat someday :)

    hage a great weekend,
    Paula

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  33. I have never made mincemeat, what a delicious one you made. Beautiful pictures.

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  34. Been waiting for a good mincemenat recipe for long Rosa...and this looks like 'the' one! YUM!!

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  35. I've been wanting a suet free mincemeat recipe for ages and finally here it is! Just perfect as I'd expect of you and thanks too for the history of the name. Your photos are always beautiful and I love the one of the spices spilling out of the jar especially.

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  36. I have never had mincemeat before, but it's something I've always wanted to try!

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  37. Mincemeat recipe surely looks yummy!

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  38. thank you for this. I love mincemeat pie.

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  39. This must taste great! I don't think I have seen a mincemeat recipe looking this good.

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  40. what a beautiful pictures! Looks great and delicious!

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  41. Sounds like a wonderful Christmas feast. Can I come over? Almost all these ingredients (except 1 - 2) are the same I use in my Christmas cake, which of course is British. I just finished wetting it with some booze, it's almost drunk :)

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  42. I've never made my own mincemeat! This might be the year, this looks delish :) I love the ingredients!

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  43. It has been years since I made my own mincemeat. Thanks for the journey down memory lane. I love my moms mincementa tarts.

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  44. Réconfortant, coloré et parfumé... l'hiver est toujours aussi beau chez toi... Mille bises Agnès

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  45. Ooh, Rosa, you have me so curious about traditional mincemeat. I always love North African dishes with meat, dried, fruits and spices. Hence I would think that I might like the original. Yours is safer though, and looks so rich with taste and health. I might make it:)!

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  46. I have never had traditional British mincemeat though I did spend much of my youth in the UK. Do they cook it up in a pastry shell for the pie? That would be crazy good! xo

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  47. lovely photos!
    i've never had mincemeat but i've heard of it, it seems...interesting :)

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  48. How I love your snowy pictures, Rosa. :-) You always capture the countryside so beautifully. And I love your idea of a British Christmas! Your descriptions make it sound so cozy and inviting. :-)

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  49. Wow, you're the second person on the same day who publish on mincemeat. I will redo it this year. I tend to put a bit of rhum on top of the mincemeat before sealing it which would help to preserve longer. I might be wrong...

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  50. j'en avais mangé à londres à Noel et j'avais adoré !!Bizz parisienne !
    Pierre

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  51. On se laisse entrainer par cette recette

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  52. Another beautiful post with a mouth-watering recipe! I love the color of the mincemeat and will definitely try this out :)

    - the runaway

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  53. estoy de visita en tu blog, me encanta tus recetas son fabulosa, me quedo de seguidora tuya y te invito a mi blog dulce, besos

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  54. Arghhh, tu me fais envie Rosa !!! Voilà 6 mois que j'ai souscrit un abonnement à Delicious Magazine et que je ne vois rien venir... je désespère :-(((

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  55. Oui, le mincemeat des fameuses mince pies, que l'on voir fleurir un peu partout à cette période de l'année ici aussi.
    Made from scratch, ça doit être délicieux !

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  56. and now you have me missing England also! Great post.

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  57. Je ne connaissais pas et je découvre avec délice cette recette.

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  58. I can't say I'm a big fan of mincemeat. But you just might make a believer out of me yet. ;)

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  59. I enjoyed learning about mincemeat and your homemade version sounds fantastic for sure!

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  60. This recipe is the real deal! I would love to have it made for me, I think I will ask my English cousin to make me a jar ! the photos you take are exquisite!

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  61. Je n'ai jamais fait de mincemint. Tu me fais envie.

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  62. Splendide. J'adore ca, et aussi les petits mince pies avec leur etoile au milieu. Je suis persuadee que c'est bien meilleur que la version toyte prete.

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  63. this looks absolutely sensational rosa! i love mincemeat. did not make any this year though now i wish i had lol!

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  64. ilove mincemeat, and your looks absolutely sensational, lovely! cheers!

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  65. I would never have guessed this is the first time you have made mincemeat - your looks fabulous! I am still yet to give mincemeat a go and you have definitely inspired me.

    Thanks for sharing.

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  66. We live in Maryland.. my son has been wanting me to make him mincemeat for years and I just couldn't get past the suet - now...I'll try it. Thanks for the recipes... they live in Annapolis. jennsthreegraces Jennifer

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  67. perfect spices for a special day,love dish and pics!

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  68. étonnant je ne connaissais pas du tout ! merci encore pour cette promenade hivernale

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  69. I have never had mincemeat, but I see a lot of posts as of late for it. I should try it, it sounds like wonderful flavors for this cold weather. We finally got some snow, and it puts me even more in the mood for Christmas!

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  70. I never make mincemeat, but we get it from a specialty market every year. This sounds lovely!

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  71. The pictures are soo beautiful... and nothing beats homemade mincemeat, doesn't it? :)

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  72. My husband would just devour this in a matter of seconds! :D

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  73. It's look really delicious! always love your picture ;)

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  74. I have awful memories of my mom's mincement, but after reviewing your ingredients, I believe she was just a bad mincemeat maker. Looks wonderful to me now! Thanks, Rosa.

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  75. What a delicious Christmas dish! Your mincemeat looks lovely, Rosa!

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  76. I have never had homemade mincement. Yours looks amazing! Merry Christmas!

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  77. Je ne peux pas me passer de mincemeat à Noël. Merci pour la recette Rosas.

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  78. Tu receta es deliciosa.
    Pero tus fotos son magistrales.
    Que maravilla de tonalidades tiene ese paisaje.
    Gracias por ofrecer esas fotos.
    Feliz Navida.
    Besos

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  79. I would love to taste this mincemeat, It's a new thing to me. When I first read about it in GOODFOOD mag, I thought, What!!! meat in pies with something sweet.. and then I read the ingredients!!! The recipe looks quite delicious.

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  80. Il est très bien réalisé ce mincemeat!
    Il a l'air excellent!

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  81. i really love this recipe..i tried it last night and it was fantastic! i will do a post on that soon....this is my fav christmas treat..thanks rosa for sharing this recipe with us..hope you have a lovely day.

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  82. Love your X-mas menu plan. And the mince meat looks delicious

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  83. Oh Rosa, I never tried this...but I already know that I will like it since I love all the stuff in it...beautiful photos as always :-)

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  84. Very luscious looking minced meat. Perfect for Christmas, Rosa.

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  85. I had no idea that mincemeat was such a delicious treat. I had visions of the original version you mentioned. Wow! This looks delicious. Thanks for introducing me to what mincemeat actually is.

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  86. You're so lucky to have a dual nationality! The mincemeat looks great!!

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  87. J'ai le souffle coupé ma chère Rosa!! Wow!!

    Bo mercredi XX

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  88. I always wondered why it was called mincemeat if it contained no meat but now I know the original had! Good to know :) I just had my first mincemeat experience and lets just say I'm excited to try making it myself!

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  89. Froid dehors et chaud dedans... Très belles photos...

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  90. My mom absolutely LOVES Mincemeat. I can hardly wait to make this for her for our Christmas celebration. From the looks of the ingredient list, I might actually like this version. Thanks!

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  91. Oh I'm Chinese-American and have never had a taste of mincemeat but it looks and sounds great! I'd love to make little mini mince pies, too.

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  92. What a great idea to make your own mincement and have an English Christmas! Maybe I will do that next year!

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  93. Your mincemeat looks truely mouthwatering. I wish I can have some with my pasta right now. yummm... Enjoy!
    Kristy

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  94. Gorgeous recipe and photos...
    I have yet to try mincemeat, but I love your recipe so I just may :)

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  95. Hmmmm.. i have never heard of this. But it makes me think of the sweet and spicy Indian chutney/pickles :-), esp. with all those spices in it.

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  96. Rosa, I have one question about making this recipe. You say it will taste better in made a few weeks in advance, so should I freeze it until Christmas? If so, do I omit the butter...or just make as is and freeze it until the holidays? Thank you!

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    Replies
    1. Hi Tammy. No, you don't need to freeze it! Follow the recipe without omitting the butter and spoon into cool, sterilised jam jars, press a waxed disc firmly onto the surface of the mixture and seal. That's all. The mincemeat will keep for ages in a cool and dark cupboard... Cheers and Happy Holidays!

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    2. You are welcome! I hope you'll like this recipe... ;-)

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