What is the greatest food-related British Christmas tradition of all time? For us, it’s a mince pie! Sweet and boozy mincemeat encased in a flaky buttery shortcrust warms your heart and soul, and you can almost hear the Christmas bells ringing somewhere in the distance! This year, why not try to mix things up by making these delicious Pear Mince Pies with Sourdough Pastry?
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Why You Will Love These Sourdough Mince Pies
- Sourdough shortcrust pastry is so much easier to work, a lot sturdier, but just as crisp and buttery as your regular mince pie pastry.
- The pastry encasing the mincemeat filling will have a signature sourdough tang that will help to balance the sweetness of the mincemeat.
- The filling itself has a good amount of juicy pear to make it lighter and even more fruity. It also makes the filling a little less sweet.
- This recipe is a great way to make a dent in your never-ending sourdough discard!
Sourdough Shortcrust Pastry
Whilst these Pear Mince Pies can be made with any pastry: shop-bought shortcrust, puff pastry and even filo, we highly recommend making your mince pies from scratch using sourdough discard. You will never go back to your regular shortcrust after experiencing how easy and delicious the sourdough version can be.
We provide a full recipe for the sourdough shortcrust pastry in this post, but for extra tips and tricks, visit our dedicated post for Buttery Sourdough Shortcrust Pastry.
Method
There are three main stages of making Sourdough Mince Pies with Pear Mincemeat filling: making the shortcrust, making the filling and assembly & baking.
Step 1: Make Sourdough Shortcrust Pastry
Combine flour, icing sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl (or food processor if using).
Add the cubed cold butter, and using your fingertips, rub it into the flour mixture until the mixture resembled bread crumbs. Work quickly, ideally in a cold environment and with cold hands to ensure the butter doesn’t soften too much. If you have a food processor, we highly recommend using it. Simply pulse the mixture until the butter is mixed into the flour to look like breadcrumbs.
Add the sourdough starter discard and mix it in quickly, ideally using a cold metal spoon or a fork. If the mixture is too dry, add 1-2 tablespoon of water.
Tip the pastry onto a floured work surface and knead just enough to during it together into a ball. Flatten it out, then wrap it in clingfilm and place it in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
Step 2: Make The Pear Mincemeat Filling
In the meantime, make the filling by chopping the peeled and cored pears into tiny chunks (about 3mm in diameter). You may choose to coarsely grate the pears instead, but we prefer small cubes.
Mix the pear with mincemeat and set aside.
Step 3: Assemble and Bake
Lightly grease your 12-hole muffin tins with butter. After chilling, on a floured surface roll the pastry out to 3-4mm thickness. Cut out 7.5cm circles (or whatever size you need to fill the base and sides of the tin you’re using). Reserve any offcuts for later.
Press each circle gently into each muffin tin hole to make a tartlet case.
Fill each pastry case with a pear and mincemeat mixture.
Reroll any scraps into a sheet of about 3 mm thickness. Stamp out smaller circles (that would leave edges of the filling exposed), star shapes, or thin strings to create a lattice effect and place the pastry on top of the mince pies. If you choose to cover the filling with pastry completely and seal the edges, make sure to make a slit or a small hole in the top for the steam to escape out of).
Place the assembled mince pies in the fridge for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C Fan in the meantime.
Bake the pear mince pies for 20 minutes. Leave them in the tin to cool for 10 minutes, then carefully move them onto a wire rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Storage
Make sure to cool down the mince pies to room temperature. Place them in an airtight container. You may stack them with a sheet of baking parchment in between. Store in a cool dark cupboard for up to 2 weeks.
Other Sweet Christmas Treats To Try
Recipe Card
Pear Mince Pies With Sourdough Pastry
Equipment
- 1 Food Processor optional
Ingredients
For Sourdough Shortcrust Pastry:
- 120 g plain flour
- 10 g icing sugar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 80 g butter unsalted, fridge-cold, cubed
- 70 g sourodugh discard 100% hydration, fridge-cold
- 1 tablespoon cold water may not be needed
For The Mince Pie Filling:
- 150 g mincemeat
- 2 conference pears 150g of prepared weight
Instructions
- Combine flour, icing sugar and salt in a large mixing bowl (or food processor if using).
- Add the cubed cold butter, and using your fingertips, rub it into the flour mixture until the mixture resembled bread crumbs. Work quickly, ideally in a cold environment and with cold hands to ensure the butter doesn't soften too much. If you have a food processor, we highly recommend using it. Simply pulse the mixture until the butter is mixed into the flour to look like breadcrumbs.
- Add the sourdough starter dicard and mix it in quickly, ideally using a cold metal spoon or a fork. If the mixture is too dry, add 1-2 tablespoon of water.
- Tip the pastry onto a floured work surface and knead just enough to during it together into a ball. Fletten it out, then wrap it in clingfilm and place it in the fridge for at least 4 hours.
- In the meantime, make the filling by chopping the peeled and cored pears into tiny chunks (about 3mm in diameter). You may choose to coarsely grate the pears instead, but we prefer small cubes.
- Mix the pear with mincemeat and set aside.
- Lightly grease your muffin tins with butter. After chilling, on a floured surface roll the pastry out to 3-4mm thickness. Cut out 7.5cm circles (or whatever size you need to fill the base and sides of the tin you're using). Reserve any offcuts for later.
- Press each circle gently into each muffin tin hole to make a tartlet case.
- Fill each pastry case with a pear and mincemeat mixture.
- Reroll any scraps into a sheet of about 3-4 mm thickness. Stamp out smaller circles (that would leave edges of the filling exposed), or star shapes, or thin strings to create lattice effect and place the pastry on top of the mince pies. If you choose to cover the filling with pastry completely and seal the edges, make sure to make a slit or a small hole in the top for the steam to escape out of).
- Place the assembled mince pies in the fridge for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 180°C Fan in the meantime.
- Bake the pear mince pies for 20 minutes. Leave them in the tin to cool for 10 minutes, then carefully move them onto a wire rack. Serve slightly warm or at room temperature.
Nutrition
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