Since reaching the semi-finals of the 2017 The Great British Bake-Off, Stacey Hart has moved away from the icing coated cakes she was famed for and now creates healthier, but still just as delicious, bakes. Here she shares her take on a Christmas favourite… There’s no escaping the fact that mince pies are always going to contain a fair bit of sugar, due to the dried fruit in them. With a bit of tweaking however, I’ve created a recipe that produces a deep filled mince pie with about half the sugar (per 100g) of a shop bought one, but which tastes just as luxurious.

Yields24 Servings
Prep Time20 minsCook Time20 minsTotal Time40 mins
Mince meat ingredients
 600 g apples (chopped)
 60 g xylitol (available as Total Sweet Xylitol)
 150 g raisins
 40 g dried apricots
 150 ml brandy
 60 g unsalted butter
 2 tsp cinnamon
 1 tsp all spice
 8 cloves
 0.50 tsp nutmeg
 1 slice of orange peel
 1 slice of lemon peel
Pastry ingredients
 375 g plain flour
 250 g unsalted butter
 80 g xylitol (available as Total Sweet Xylitol)
 1 large egg
 1 egg for egg wash
Mince meat method
1

Mix together all the ingredients in a large pan

2

Place on the heat and slowly bring to the boil. Boil gently for around 10 mins, stirring regularly

3

When nice and thick, take off the heat and once cooled carefully remove the cloves, orange and lemon peel

4

Using a hand blender, puree around half the mix and then stir - NB. Try to leave lots of bigger chunks do not over puree!

5

Store in the refrigerator until you want to use it

Method for pastry
6

Place flour and butter in a food processor and pulse to get bread crumb consistency (or use fingertips with a light touch)

7

Add the xylitol and pulse

8

Add the egg and pulse together

9

Work to form two balls on a floured worktop or board (don’t over work)

10

Refrigerate for 1 hour

Finished pies method
11

Preheat oven to 220OC/220 fan

12

Working with one ball at a time, roll out the pastry and make 12 circles and fit them in your muffin tin

13

Spoon a generous amount of mincemeat into each pie

14

Make your lids using either a round cookie cutter to cover the whole pie or a Christmas cookie cutter of your choice. I like to use a star or snowflake!

15

Brush egg wash on the rim of the pie and stick the edges of the lid down

16

Brush the top of the pie with egg wash

17

Bake for 15-20 mins until golden brown

18

Leave to cool slightly before removing from the tin

19

These mince pies can be stored in an airtight container and eaten within 3 days or can be frozen and popped in the oven to warm up.

Category

Ingredients

Mince meat ingredients
 600 g apples (chopped)
 60 g xylitol (available as Total Sweet Xylitol)
 150 g raisins
 40 g dried apricots
 150 ml brandy
 60 g unsalted butter
 2 tsp cinnamon
 1 tsp all spice
 8 cloves
 0.50 tsp nutmeg
 1 slice of orange peel
 1 slice of lemon peel
Pastry ingredients
 375 g plain flour
 250 g unsalted butter
 80 g xylitol (available as Total Sweet Xylitol)
 1 large egg
 1 egg for egg wash

Directions

Mince meat method
1

Mix together all the ingredients in a large pan

2

Place on the heat and slowly bring to the boil. Boil gently for around 10 mins, stirring regularly

3

When nice and thick, take off the heat and once cooled carefully remove the cloves, orange and lemon peel

4

Using a hand blender, puree around half the mix and then stir - NB. Try to leave lots of bigger chunks do not over puree!

5

Store in the refrigerator until you want to use it

Method for pastry
6

Place flour and butter in a food processor and pulse to get bread crumb consistency (or use fingertips with a light touch)

7

Add the xylitol and pulse

8

Add the egg and pulse together

9

Work to form two balls on a floured worktop or board (don’t over work)

10

Refrigerate for 1 hour

Finished pies method
11

Preheat oven to 220OC/220 fan

12

Working with one ball at a time, roll out the pastry and make 12 circles and fit them in your muffin tin

13

Spoon a generous amount of mincemeat into each pie

14

Make your lids using either a round cookie cutter to cover the whole pie or a Christmas cookie cutter of your choice. I like to use a star or snowflake!

15

Brush egg wash on the rim of the pie and stick the edges of the lid down

16

Brush the top of the pie with egg wash

17

Bake for 15-20 mins until golden brown

18

Leave to cool slightly before removing from the tin

19

These mince pies can be stored in an airtight container and eaten within 3 days or can be frozen and popped in the oven to warm up.

Reduced Sugar Mince Pies
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