Top 8: Our annual Christmas mince pie survey — a fruitful endeavour
Pic: Istock
Christmas lights around the country were switched on this month, starting the festive season buzz early.
We are also getting ahead with our most popular survey of the year.
It was a little too early for a few bakeries, so some of the usual annual participants are not here. However, welcome newcomers deserve a place in our Top 8.
We must ensure that bakers, new and well-established, will be here ‘ag an am seo arís’ by supporting them. With escalating costs and staffing problems, they need us more than ever.
Pies have a seductive mix of fats and sugars.
Add in warming spices, juicy fruit and a toothsome bite into crisp pastry that melts in the mouth, and only the strongest will be able to resist. I like to share one, and enjoy my half with a creamy cappuccino.
The more mass-produced the pies, the cheaper they are, but for real treats and gifts, it’s worth paying the difference.
To impress a food lover, place a half-dozen high-end pies in a festive box lined with grease-proof paper.
One of our tasters likes pairing mince pies with alcohol. Prosecco suits well.
Look for inexpensive, sweet, foamy spumante, and there are plenty of low- or no-alcohol options.
Sweet dessert wines, which come in half-bottles, are delicious and go well with mince pies and ice cream.
I was glad the team agreed that innovation doesn’t detract from traditions.
Here we have the shape of a pasty filled with traditional mincemeat, luscious and juicy, with a layer of crème pâtissière (light custard) wrapped in a cross between shortcrust and flaky pastry they call ‘shaky pastry’ and topped with almond slivers.
All tasters gave it their top marks.
The size is big enough to share generously. At stalls in the Black Market and English Market, Cork.
A fine, slightly crunchy, dark crumble topping won the hearts of tasters, along with the firm, nicely tart small chunks of cooking apple in the rich, juicy mincemeat.
While not fancy, tasters thought that they looked particularly appetising. Vying for the very top mark.
Though a little pale, the taste of the light, crumbly pastry won tasters over.
The generous, plump filling, which includes mixed peel, had a gentle kick, contrasting well with the pastry.
Tasters agreed these were just the right size for a treat with tea or coffee.
These six, in an attractive box, are ideal as a gift. Good value.
We like to encourage newcomers to surveys, so we looked north for this wild card.
Very good, sweet pastry encloses just the right amount of juicy, full-flavoured filling, including apples and whiskey.
They can be bought from the bakery at Market Hall, Church Street, Gort. It’s definitely worth a stop if in the area.
Tasters didn’t know these were gluten-free when they tasted them blind.
While unimpressed with the pale colour (though impressed with the star on top), they liked the light, slightly grainy pastry made with rice and maize flours.
A decent amount of filling had slightly chewy currants, good mixed peel and some nutmeg, cinnamon and clove.
Score: 8.5
One taster said she would like the delicious, solid pastry as a biscuit, which may be explained by the added spelt.
The filling is softly spiced, and tasters loved the heavy hand on the brandy.
One found the filling too dense, while others described it as rich.
I travelled to Inishannon Co Cork for this one and came away with a delicious Reuben sandwich and excellent butternut squash soup. It was worth the journey.
Crumbly, light, shortcrust pastry encloses a generous amount of fruity filling, which includes mixed peel, apricots and cherries, walnuts and almonds.
There are no noticeable spices.
While this one is not gluten-free, some are in the range.
Widely available in speciality stores, we bought in JJ O’Driscoll, Ballinlough Road, Ballintemple, Cork.
Nice amount of light, crumbly, buttery pastry with a snowflake motif.
A generous amount of unexceptional, but traditional, filling with low spicing.
Tasters liked the balance of fruit and pastry.