Homemade Mince Pies with Fresh Fruit and Spiced Gold
Take a break from the mass-produced pies – these beauties are the grown-up version, packed with sweet and spicy festive flavour. “Be warned,” says Ant, “plan ahead, the mincemeat needs a couple of days to develop.”
Makes 24
Mincemeat
- 1 Granny Smith apple, peeled and grated
- 250g raisins or sultanas, chopped
- 110g dried apricots, finely chopped
- 175g soft dark brown sugar
- zest and juice of 1 small orange
- zest and juice of 1 lemon
- 50g almonds, chopped
- 1 tsp ground allspice
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 4 tbsp spiced gold rum, dark rum or brandy
Pastry
- 350g plain flour
- 125g icing sugar
- pinch of fine salt
- 125g cold butter, diced
- 5ml vanilla extract
- 2 medium eggs, beaten
Crumble topping
- 75g plain flour
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 50g butter, diced
- 50g brown sugar
- 3 tbsp almonds, chopped
Decorate
- icing sugar for dusting
Mincemeat: Simply add all mincemeat ingredients to a bowl. Mix well, cover and refrigerate for a minimum of 48 hours, stirring every 6-8 hours.
Pastry: Add flour, icing sugar, salt and butter to a food processor or mixer, blend to fine crumbs. While blender is still running, add vanilla and egg, process until mixture is clumpy and holds together as a ball. If too wet, add flour, and if too dry, add teaspoons of iced water to bring the dough together. Knead for a minute until smooth, then wrap in cling film and refrigerate until firm, up to 48 hours. Roll out on a lightly floured surface to 3mm thick and cut into rounds. Press each pastry round gently into each hole of a sprayed or buttered muffin or cupcake tray. Spoon a generous tablespoon of mincemeat into each pastry shell, then refrigerate. While chilling, preheat oven to 180°C.
Crumble topping: Combine all ingredients into a crumbly mixture, then working with your fingers to form clumps. Top mince pies with crumble. Bake for 18-20 minutes or until pastry and crumble are crisp and golden. Cool, then transfer to a wire rack. When completely cool, dust with icing sugar.
Kids’ Easy Oatmeal Cookies with Cranberries, Apricots and Yoghurt Frosting
Get the kiddos away from the screens for an hour to bake up these rustic, delicious Christmassy treats and decorate like the little lunatics they are.
Squares:
- 2 cups cake wheat flour
- 2 cups raw oats
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
- 280ml butter, melted
- 1 cup soft brown sugar, packed
- 3 tsp vanilla extract
- 80g dry cranberries, roughly chopped
- 1 cup of fruit jam
Yoghurt frosting
- 2 tbsp plain Greek yoghurt
- 6 heaped tbsp icing sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Squares: Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a square or rectangular pan with foil or baking paper (leave a bit overhanging on two sides for easy removal). Spray well with non-stick spray. In a medium bowl, combine flour, oats, salt and bicarb of soda. In a separate large bowl, whisk melted butter, brown sugar and 3 teaspoons vanilla until well combined. Add cranberries, stir well until fully combined. Separate out about ¾ cup (just less than half) of the dough and set aside for topping. Add the bigger portion of dough to the prepared pan and press down into a flat, even layer. Bake for 10 minutes until lightly golden. Remove from oven and carefully spread jam on top of cookie base. Use the reserved dough to crumble over top of jam layer. Return to oven and bake for 14-16 more minutes, until topping is golden brown. Remove and place pan on a wire rack to cool, slice when half cool. These can be soft when they are warm – to firm up further, refrigerate.
Yoghurt frosting: Mix yoghurt, icing sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla (add a touch of milk if necessary to loosen), and decorate the cooled squares.
Pear Crisps with Blue Cheese, Onion Marmalade and Walnuts
“Slightly cheaty, very delicious. Take my advice – make double, they’ll disappear fast,” says food guru Ant Ellis.
- 2 ripe pears
- onion marmalade or jam
- your choice of ripened blue cheese
- raw walnuts, chopped
- herbs for garnishing
To make the crisps, preheat oven to 120°C. Cut off the top and bottom of the pears, thinly slice (about 1mm thick) as uniformly as possible, removing any pips. Lay pear slices on baking trays ensuring they do not overlap. Place in oven for 1 hour 15 minutes. After 1 hour 15 minutes, turn pears and return to oven for a further 1 hour 15 minutes. Turn off oven but leave them in oven for one hour more to crisp. Lay out on a serving platter and top each with about a teaspoon of onion marmalade, a crumbling of blue cheese and a sprinkle of chopped nuts. Finish with fresh herbs.
Grilled Prawn and Avocado Toastadas with Pineapple Pico De Gallo Salsa
Quick, bright, fresh and tropical. Just do it.
- 3 flour tortillas of your choice
- cooking oil
- extra ground cumin
- 12 medium prawns, cleaned and shelled
- dry rub of 1 tsp each of ground cumin, ground coriander, paprika, and a pinch each of salt and black pepper
- 1 ripe avocado
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- salt and black pepper
- fresh coriander leaves
Salsa
- 2 cups ripe plum or jam tomatoes, diced (about 6 tomatoes)
- ½ cup onion, finely diced
- ½ cup chopped fresh coriander, loosely packed
- 2 cups pineapple, finely diced
- 1 jalapeño or serenade pepper, stemmed, cored and finely diced
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
- ½ tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp ground cumin
Salsa: Premake salsa by mixing all ingredients except tomatoes, pineapple and coriander. Marinate for an hour. Add tomatoes, pineapple and coriander, refrigerate for a minimum of 2 hours before serving (will last up to 3 days in the fridge). Check seasoning and add salt to taste.
Tostadas: Preheat oven to 180°C. Using a round cookie cutter, cut 24 small rounds out of the tortillas. Brush both sides with cooking oil and a touch of cumin. Lay on a non-stick baking sheet and bake for 8-12 minutes, turning once. Cool.
To assemble: Mix prawns with dry rub and grill in a hot skillet for 2 minutes on each side until cooked, set aside. Mash avo with lemon juice, salt and pepper. Spoon a flat layer onto each tostada. Set one prawn on each, cover with salsa and fresh coriander leaves and a final squeeze of lime juice if desired.
Lamb Chop Tray Bake with Olives, Thyme and Mediterranean Vegetables
Holiday days can be just as busy as workdays. If you’ve got hungry family staying with you and you ain’t feeling a complicated dinner, get this in the oven and grab that well-deserved glass of wine.
- 6 lamb loin chops, half the fat trimmed off
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, crushed
- zest and juice of 1 lemons
- 500g baby potatoes, cut into 5mm thick slices
- 1 onion, cut into eighths
- 1 red pepper, deseeded and sliced
- 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and sliced
- 4 sprigs thyme, leaves picked from and chopped
- 1 cup rosa/cherry tomatoes, halved
- 50g black olives, pitted
- 3 tbsp capers, rinsed
- salt and black pepper
In a mixing bowl, mix lemon zest and juice with half the olive oil, garlic, thyme and a good pinch each of salt and cracked black pepper. Add lamb chops, mix well to coat and set aside to marinate for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 220°C. Toss potatoes with 1 tbsp olive oil and season. Tip into a large, shallow roasting pan or casserole tray, cook for 15 minutes. Remove dish and shake to loosen potatoes. Add peppers, onion, thyme sprigs and tomatoes. Drizzle with remaining oil, season. Return to oven for another 10 minutes. Mix, then place lamb cutlets on top of vegetables. Scatter olives and capers over. Cook for a further 10-12 minutes, turning lamb halfway through until pink inside. Serve straight from the tray with a salad.
Roasted Potatoes, Brussel Sprouts, Smoked Bacon and Hazelnuts, with Lemon Butter Dizzle
For the traditionalists among us, Brussels sprouts are mandatory at the Christmas table. Give them some new life this year by mixing it up.
- 250g Brussels sprouts
- 250g baby potatoes
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- ½ cup hazelnuts, finely chopped
- salt and pepper
- 50g butter
- juice of a lemon
- 1 tsp finely chopped garlic
- 8 slices Prosciutto, sliced and fried until crispy (streaky bacon is fine)
Remove the loose outer leaves of the Brussels, slice off the bottom, then slice in half. Blanch in boiling salted water for 3 minutes, drain and cool. Par-boil potatoes, then halve. Preheat oven to 200°C. Add oil to a roasting pan, add the Brussels and potatoes, cook for 20 minutes – tossing halfway through cooking time and adding nuts – until golden. Season to taste.
Lemon butter: Melt butter in a pan until it turns light brown. Add lemon juice and garlic, remove from heat. To serve, top the Brussels with the crispy prosciutto and a drizzle of lemon butter.
Easy Pavlova with Summer Berries and Berry Coulis
“This is my friend Nicky’s top-notch recipe. It’s a classic, simpler than you think and perfect for the festive or holiday table. A great way to end a meal,” says Ant.
Meringue base
- 6 egg whites
- 375g castor sugar
- 3 tsp cornflour
- 1½ tsp white wine vinegar
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
Topping
- 500ml double cream or Orley Whip (the latter my recommendation)
Berry coulis
- 340g frozen mixed berries
- 1⁄4 cup water
- 4 tbsp sugar
- pinch of salt
- 1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed
To serve
- large handful each of strawberries, blueberries/blackberries, raspberries
- sprigs of fresh mint
Meringue base: Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper and draw a rough 25cm diameter circle on it (trace a plate with a pencil or similar). Whisk egg whites until satiny peaks form, then whisk in castor sugar, a tablespoonful at a time, until meringue is stiff and shiny. It’s ready when you rub a bit of the mixture between your thumb and index finger and it’s not grainy. Sprinkle cornflour, vinegar and vanilla extract over meringue, fold in lightly with a metal spoon. Mound meringue on to baking paper within the circle and use a spatula to make an indentation in the centre (about the size of a side plate) with high sides in which to place your topping. Put in oven and immediately reduce heat to 120°C. Cook for 1 hour. Turn off oven and leave to cool completely with door closed, or leave in oven overnight. Once cool, the base can be stored for up to 2 days.
Berry coulis: Add berries, sugar, water and salt to a pan, cook until sugar is dissolved. Purée if desired in a blender and stir through lemon juice.
To assemble: Carefully peel off baking paper from meringue. Whip cream or Orley Whip until thick, and scoop into meringue indentation, spreading to edges in a swirly fashion and covering over any cracks in the meringue. Drizzle a generous amount of coulis onto the cream (ensuring no contact with the meringue). Decorate with fresh berries and mint.