These Gluten-Free Mince Pies will be a perfect addition to your festive celebrations. An easily made, buttery pastry, encases sweet fruit mince, richly fragrant with spices we associate with Christmas. Your family and friends will love these traditional Mince Pies, now suitable for those who follow a gluten-free diet.
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Why we love this recipe:
For many people, Fruit Mince Pies are synonymous with the festive season, but those who follow a gluten-free diet have often missed this special treat. There are several stages to this recipe, but none is difficult, and we have a video and step by step instructions to guide you along the way.
We love this recipe because:
- The Mince Pies can be made in advance, a great help over the festive season.
- Making pastry is easier than you may think.
- You would never know the pastry is gluten-free; it is buttery and flaky.
- You can make our Homemade Fruit Mince, or to save time, I’ll show you how to add flavour to shop bought.
- There’s no need to miss out on Fruit Mince Pies just because you need to eat gluten-free.
- We use a muffin tin to bake the pies – no tartlet tin is required.
Ingredients in this recipe:
Please see the recipe card further along in the post for exact quantities of ingredients and the full method.
Pastry:
Gluten-free plain/all-purpose flour – our gluten-free flour blends contain either xanthan or guar gum to stabilise and provide structure to our recipes. If your flour blend already contains either of these gums, there is no need to add more. Not all gluten-free flour blends are equal. It may take trial and error to find one which you like.
Sugar – for a touch of sweetness.
Baking powder – aids the texture of the pastry. Ensure your baking powder is gluten-free. It is not the same as bicarbonate/baking soda.
Salt – coarse kitchen salt, not table salt. A small amount brightens flavours.
Unsalted butter – adds richness and flakiness.
Sour cream – full fat, helps make the pastry richer and flakier as well as easier to work with.
Iced water – to bring the dough together.
Fruit Mince:
Mixed dried fruit – use a mixture as in the recipe or adjust fruit to suit your taste.
Granny Smith apple – adds moisture and flavour.
Light brown sugar – adds slightly caramelized sweetness.
Orange rind and juice – for a bright, citrus note.
Water – I use filtered water.
Ground mixed spice and cinnamon – for flavour and fragrance.
Butter – to enrich the fruit mince.
Brandy – optional. You can use another alcohol or replace it with orange juice.
Our recipe for Fruit Mince will show you how easy it is to make and how you can customise the fruit to suit your taste. Alternatively, to save time, you can use a commercial variety and I will show you how to boost the flavour.
For the Fruit Mince Pies:
1 quantity of Gluten-Free Shortcrust Pastry
1 quantity of Gluten-Free Fruit Mince
Egg – to glaze
Step by step instructions:
To begin, remove the Gluten-Free Shortcrust Pastry and the Homemade Fruit Mince (if using) from the refrigerator.
- Turn the Fruit Mince, homemade or shop bought, into a bowl and stir thoroughly.
- Cut the block of pastry in halves, using one half and keeping the other wrapped in the fridge.
- Place the pastry half between two large sheets of non-stick baking paper to roll. Roll the pastry evenly to about 3mm (1/8 inch) thick. Use a 7 cm (2 ¾ inches) cookie cutter and cut out 10 circles.
- Use your fingertips to gently ease the pastry circles into the muffin tin. Add 1 tablespoon of fruit mince to each pastry cup and smooth it with the back of a teaspoon. It should sit just under the level of the cup. Repeat until you have 10 cups filled in your muffin tin.
- Gently bring the pastry offcuts together and re-roll to cut the stars. Sit the stars on your fruit mince. They will just touch the edges of the pastry cups. Cover any offcuts and return to the fridge.
- Place the tin in the fridge to chill while you work with the other pastry half, repeating the procedure as above. Ensure that both tins have chilled for at least 10 minutes prior to baking.
When you are ready to bake:
Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C (400 F).
Remove the mince pies from the fridge and, using a pastry brush, brush the stars with a little beaten egg.
Place the muffin tins into the oven and bake for 15-17 minutes until the pies are a nice golden colour, swapping the trays and turning them around halfway through.
Remove the trays from the oven and set them aside for 10 minutes.
After 10 minutes, remove the pies by sliding a blunt-tipped knife or small offset spatula down the side of the pies, gently lifting and easing them out of the tin. Place them onto a cooling rack.
Enjoy the mince pies immediately, or store them in an airtight container once completely cool.
Tips for success and FAQs:
For flaky, buttery pastry, it is important that the pastry remain cold while you work. If it should become warm, the butter will melt into the flour, it will be difficult to work with and the pastry will be tough. If necessary, cover it and return it to the fridge for a short time to firm up.
As always, you will get the best result if you use good quality, fresh ingredients.
For the best flavour when making your Homemade Fruit Mince, you need to ensure that the spice mixture you use is fresh. Over time, spice mixtures lose their potency and their flavours become dull.
Yes, they can. Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
I have used non-stick muffin tins and it was not necessary to grease them due to the amount of butter and sour cream in the recipe. If you are unsure of your tins, it would be worth baking one or two mince pies first. Alternatively, lightly grease the tins – do not be heavy-handed or it will affect the texture of the pastry.
Yes, when the Mince Pies are cool, store them in an airtight container. If there is more than one layer, place a sheet of baking paper between them so they don’t stick together. They can be frozen for up to 3 months. To serve, allow them to defrost and then reheat them in your oven at 180 degrees C (355 F) for about 6 minutes.
More delicious recipes for you to try:
You can find many more recipes to try in our collection of Gluten-Free Recipes.
For many, my Gluten-Free Mince Pies will be an essential accompaniment to their festive celebrations. Keep your Christmas traditions alive with these delicious pies which are now gluten-free and have the flavour and aroma of the spices we associate with Christmas.
Serve your homemade Gluten-Free Mince Pies with a glass of Eggnog, Mulled Wine, or a cup of tea or coffee. Alternatively, they are delicious when served warm with cream or Vanilla Ice Cream. And don’t forget to leave one out for Santa!
Alex xx
Gluten-Free Fruit Mince Pies
Equipment
- 2 x 12-hole 1/3 cup muffin tins
- 1 x 7 cm (2¾ inch) cookie-cutter, with a scalloped edge if you have one
- 1 x 5.5 cm (2 ¼ inch) star-shape cookie cutter
- Pastry brush
Ingredients
For the Pastry:
- 2 1/4 cups (340 g) gluten-free all purpose/plain flour See Note 1
- 2 tbsp sugar See Note 2
- 1/2 tsp baking powder See Note 3
- 1/4 tsp coarse cooking salt
- 3/4 cup (185 g) unsalted butter – cut into 1 1/2 cm (1/2 inch) cubes
- 1/2 cup (120 g) full-fat sour cream See Note 4
- iced water – if required See Note 5
Fruit Mince:
- 2 cups fruit mince/mincemeat – homemade or store bought See Note 6
To assemble:
- 1 egg – beaten, for brushing the pastry
Instructions
For the Pastry:
- Prepare all the ingredients before you start. For accuracy, it is best to weigh your ingredients. The butter and sour cream need to be chilled so measure them out just before you begin.
- In a glass or small bowl, add some ice to a quarter cup of water and set it aside.
- Add the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt to the bowl of a large food processor. Pulse twice to combine the ingredients.
- Add the butter and pulse until the butter is about the size of a pea. Add the sour cream and pulse until combined.
- Start the processor, and with the machine running, gradually add iced water, if needed, through the feed tube until the dough starts to come together. The amount of water required is dependent on several factors; the type of flour, the humidity and the type of fat used.Be careful to not make the pastry wet and sticky. Test by squeezing some with your fingers to see if it will come together. If it crumbles, add a teaspoon at a time until it will form a dough. If it is too wet and you need to add extra flour it will negatively affect the texture.  Do not overmix.
- Turn the dough onto a piece of clingwrap and bring it together with your hands. When the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated, flatten into a block, approximately 15cm x 12cm (6 x 4 ¼ inches), and smooth with your hands, turning it over once or twice and making sure there are no cracks. Wrap in the cling wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
For the Fruit Mince:
- Turn the Fruit Mince, homemade or shop-bought, Â into a bowl and stir thoroughly. See Note 6.
To Assemble:
- Remove the pastry from the refrigerator about 10 minutes before you want to use it. Cut the block of pastry in halves, using one half and keeping the other wrapped in the fridge.
- Place the pastry half between two large sheets of non-stick baking paper to roll. This will avoid adding extra flour which would affect the texture of the pastry.
- With your rolling pin, start at the centre of the block of pastry and roll away from you. Give the pastry a quarter turn and repeat this procedure. If your pastry is cold and starts to crack, leave it for another 5 minutes.Work quickly and evenly, occasionally lifting the baking paper, then return it to the surface of the pastry and turn the pastry over. Doing this occasionally helps to roll the pastry evenly and keep it from sticking to the baking paper.
- The pastry needs to be kept cold. If it becomes warm as you are working, cover it and return to the fridge to chill.
- Roll the pastry evenly to about 3mm (1/8 inch) thick. Use a 7 cm (2 ¾ inches) cookie cutter and cut out 10 circles. See Notes 7 and 8.
- Use your fingertips to gently ease the pastry circles into the muffin tin. See Notes 9 and 10.
- Add about 1 tablespoon of fruit mince to each cup and smooth it with the back of a teaspoon. It should sit just under the level of the pastry cup. Repeat until you have 10 cups filled in your muffin tin.
- Gently bring the pastry offcuts together and re-roll to cut the stars. When re-rolling leftover pieces of pastry, don’t roughly squash them, stack the pieces on top of each other before rolling. This way, the pastry will not toughen.
- Sit the stars on your fruit mince. They will just touch the edges of the pastry cups. Cover any pastry offcuts and return to the fridge.
- Place the tin in the fridge to chill while you work with the other pastry half, repeating the procedure as above. You may find that you have sufficient pastry to make more than 20 pies.Ensure both tins have chilled for at least 10 minutes prior to baking.
Baking the Mince Pies:
- Preheat your oven to 200 degrees C (400 F).
- Remove the mince pies from the fridge and, using a pastry brush, brush the stars with a little beaten egg which will help them to develop a nice golden colour. Be careful to not get the egg on the tin as it will cause the pies to stick.
- Place the muffin tins into the oven and bake for 15-17 minutes until the pies are a nice golden colour, swapping the trays and turning them around halfway through.
- Remove the trays from the oven and set them aside for 10 minutes. Do not try to remove the pies immediately as they may break.
- After 10 minutes, remove the pies by sliding a blunt-tipped knife or small offset spatula down the side of the pies, gently lifting and easing them out of the tin. Place them onto a cooling rack.
- Enjoy the mince pies immediately, or store them in an airtight container once completely cool.
Video
Notes
- I used Orgran Gluten-Free Plain Flour. Our gluten-free flour blends contain either xanthan or guar gum to stabilise and provide structure to our recipes. If your flour blend already contains either of these gums, there is no need to add more. Not all gluten-free flour blends are equal. It may take trial and error to find one which you like.
- In Australia, the tablespoon is 20 ml or 4 teaspoons. In many other countries, the tablespoon is 15 ml or 3 teaspoons. Please adjust the measurement if necessary.
- Check that your baking powder is gluten-free.
- The sour cream that I used was very thick. If yours is quite thin, you may not need as much water.
- If you need to add water, do it gradually. To bring the pastry together, I needed to add 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons of water.Â
- We use our Homemade Fruit Mince in this recipe, however, you can certainly use storebought if you prefer. If using storebought, you may wish to brighten the flavour with a little fresh orange zest. Check that the level of spice is to your liking.Â
- Depending on the exact size of your cookie cutter, and the thickness you roll the pastry, you may get more than 20 pastries. I got 24 but I recommend that you start by cutting 10 circles from each pastry half.
- Occasionally, dust your cutter with flour so it doesn’t stick to the pastry and cuts through cleanly. I keep a small dish with a little flour on the bench.
- I have used non-stick muffin tins and it was not necessary to grease them due to the amount of butter and sour cream in the recipe. If you are unsure of your tins, it would be worth trying one or two mince pies first. Alternatively, lightly grease the tins – do not be heavy-handed or it will affect the texture of the pastry.
- If the pastry should tear, gently push it together or patch with a small amount of the offcut pastry.
- We have provided both volume and weight measurements, but when it comes to baking, weighing your ingredients is more accurate.
- Please note, the nutritional information is based on one fruit mince pie. The nutritional information is an estimate only.
Flavoursome pastry with good shortcrust texture. Took a bit of in and out of the fridge dancing to keep the pastry at an easily usable texture. I very lightly greased my tins and used a slightly bigger cutter with good results. I also did a full pastry lid on my tarts/pies. This recipe made 15 pies to 1 jar of fruit mince (I know – took the easy way out). And I’ve eaten 2 whilst the last ones are in the oven (noting that I am not the gf member of the household – yep they are that good 😋)
Thank you so much for your fantastic feedback on the GF Fruit Mince Pies. I love how much you enjoyed them – and you’re not the one who eats gluten-free. That is so good. I appreciate that you took the time to contact me. Kind regards, Alex 🙂
These mince pies were delicious and I loved the buttery pastry. Great recipe.
Hello Oscar, thank you so much for your fantastic feedback on the GF Fruit Mince Pies. I am delighted to hear that you enjoyed them. 🙂
I’m always looking for new gluten free pastry recipes and this one turned out just perfectly, not too dry, not too crumbly, just right!
Hi Freya, thank you for your lovely comments on the GF Fruit Mince Pies. I am so pleased that you enjoyed them. 🙂
I made these for my wifes book club and they loved them!
Hi Dennis, that was thoughtful of you to make the GF Mince Pies for your wife’s book club. I am delighted to hear that they enjoyed them. 🙂
These were so delicious and my family loved them! We used heart shape cut outs which my daughter loved but otherwise followed the recipe. I added about a tablespoon and a half to the pastry dough and it came out perfect!
Hello Jennifer, I am so pleased to hear that you enjoyed the GF Fruit Mince Pies. They would be so pretty with a heart shape. Thank you for taking the time to provide your feedback. 🙂
These cute little pies are just the best!! I want a dozen! Lovely photos too 🙂
Hello Katherine, I am delighted you like the GF Mince Pies; they’re perfect for the festive season. 🙂