Mince Pies

"'Tis the season to be eating mince pies".....

And don't we just love to but...if you have any problem with wheat gluten, such eating will be hazardous.

I remember trying so hard to produce a good gluten free mince pie but, pastry without gluten is just hard and unpleasant.  So in the end I gave up trying and used a Pate Sucre or sugar paste and simply restricted my consumption; or rather made tiny cocktail sized pies which made it possible for me to eat more!  I have to admit to being rather greedy for mince pies well, I mean, they're so delicious and more-ish, how can one resist them.

In one busy working kitchen, when I was required to bake several hundred pies each year, it was my chore to watch over my newly-baked pies to make sure not too many disappeared, for freshly baked mince pies are just so tempting!  My then boss was most particular that I should bake, cool and store as quickly as possible - and I was making hundreds!!!

So last Saturday I treated myself to some gluten free mince pies,  hoping they would be delicious, and they were not.  A great pity for myself and for the very ardent and keen artisan bakers. Ah well, back to the drawing board.

My son and I had a smashing Skype and we too talked mince pies and pastry recipes, cutters and home made mincemeat and I was able to send him two of my special baking trays and some pastry cutters; and also some very tiny star cutters, a crimping tool for his Australian Cornish Pasties and a new orange  pastry brush, all of which I was able to find in my very good local kitchen equipment shop.

They also sell smashing Emma Bridgewater mugs,, which we all love!

Daisy