Mince Pie Cake

If there’s one thing the festive period wouldn’t be the same without, it’s probably mince pies. Small cupcake-sized pastries filled with brandy infused fruit mincemeat, these sweet treats are one of the defining foods of December. This recipe for Mince Pie Cake takes the flavours of a classic mince pie and bundles them all into one delicious and surprisingly light fruit cake. Serve with brandy butter for a little extra indulgence.

I definitely recommend using homemade mincemeat for this particular cake. I find that the shop bought stuff is generally a little lighter on the brandy – the most important ingredient – and contains less fruit, not to mention the fact it’s more expensive. By using your own mincemeat you’ll certainly end up with a more flavoursome Mince Pie Cake. Do it right and this recipe will evoke all of the festive feeling mince pies do and perhaps more.

If you’re in the mood for a slightly boozier cake, as I’m sure many of you will be, you have two options available. Firstly, you could up increase the quantity of brandy in your mincemeat. Or secondly – and perhaps more accurately – you could pour a shot or two directly into the cake before adding a little extra flour to compensate for the wetter batter. Combine this with a little extra dried fruit and royal icing and this Mince Pie Cake would actually make a pretty fantastic alternative to Christmas Cake too!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Mince Pie Cake

Makes one 20cm cake

Ingredients:

• 175g butter

• 100g light muscovado sugar

• 3 eggs

• 225g self-raising flour

• 300g homemade mincemeat

• a healthy pinch of freshly grated nutmeg

• a pinch of ground cloves

• ½ tsp ground cinnamon

• ½ tsp ground ginger

• icing sugar to finish

Method:

1. Line a 20cm cake tin and preheat the oven to 190C/170C fan. Cream together the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Gently beat in the eggs one by one and mix through the mincemeat before folding in the flour and spices.

2. Tip the mixture into the prepared tin and bake for 40-50 minutes until golden brown and cooked through. Set aside to cool for 10 minutes before turning out. Sprinkle with icing sugar before serving. Brandy butter is optional but recommended.

Cost: If using homemade mincemeat this Mince Pie Cake will prove itself exceedingly frugal. Indeed, it only uses a little more than half of my previous mincemeat recipe (60p). As such, this wonderful cake, perfect for Christmas, should set you back no more than £2.20!