Christmas with Faryl
Britain's Got Talent finalist Faryl Smith is supporting Music Makers this Christmas, and we've managed to convince her to share her Nana Barbara's Mince Pie recipe with us...to help make your Carol Concert extra special!
“I’m really excited to be a part of Britain’s Biggest Classical Carol Concert in aid of Classic FM’s Music Makers.
It’s a great opportunity to bring people together – which is really important especially at Christmas. It doesn’t matter what kind of singing voice you have, just get together and have fun for this great cause.
Why not make your own mince pies for your Carol Concert?
My Nana Barbara makes the best mince pies. They’re so good that she makes a huge batch and keeps them in the freezer so the whole family can enjoy them all year round.
Her recipe is a closely guarded family secret...so here’s my easy cheat version!"
Ingredients
225g cold butter, diced
350g plain flour
100g golden caster sugar
280g mincemeat
1 small egg, beaten
icing sugar, to dust
Method
- First, make the pastry. Use your fingers to rub the flour and butter into breadcrumbs.
- Now stir in the sugar, a small pinch of salt, and then squash it all into a ball - you shouldn’t need to add water as well.
- Form 18 walnut-sized pastry balls and press them into your bun tin to form pastry cases.
- Spoon mincemeat into each one.
- Roll out your pastry and using a cutter cut out 18 lids for your pies. Press these gently on to your pies. I like to use a star shape as it’s more festive! If you want you can freeze them now.
- Brush the tops of the pies with the beaten egg and bake them at 200C (gas 6) for 20 minutes until golden.
- Leave to cool in the tin for 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack.
- They’re really nice dusted with icing sugar “snow” and served with cream.
You can download this recipe here
