Mincemeat Tart
This beef builds seeded raisins, currants and green apples into a weeknight-friendly meal you can have ready in about 75 minutes. Below: the ingredients split into pantry staples and a quick shopping list, a built-in serving scaler, and the method in 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for oven. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention.
What you'll need
Shopping list (8)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
Diet: contains meat, based on every ingredient listed below.
Contains: Gluten Dairy Egg
Allergen labels are informational and may not cover cross-contact; verify every package and consult a qualified professional for medical dietary needs. Diet labels are derived from the ingredient list on this page — how we verify diet and allergen labels.
Food-safety and allergen information is general, not medical advice. Follow current guidance from your local food-safety authority, verify product labels, and seek qualified advice for allergies or health conditions.
How to make it
- Make the mincemeat first: peel, core and finely chop the apples, then combine in a bowl with the raisins, currants, suet, candied orange peel, candied citron, sugar, lemon zest and juice, mixed spice and brandy. Cover and leave to macerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight in the fridge for a deeper flavour.
- For the pastry, rub the cold butter into the flour and icing sugar with your fingertips until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs, then bind to a dough with the beaten egg, adding a teaspoon of cold water only if needed.
- Shape the dough into a disc, wrap it and chill for 30 minutes so it firms up and the gluten relaxes.
- Heat the oven to 190 C (375 F). Roll out two thirds of the pastry on a lightly floured surface and line a 20 cm tart tin, then spoon in the mincemeat and level it.
- Roll the remaining pastry and cut into strips, laying them over the filling in a lattice; press the edges to seal and trim away the excess.
- Brush the lattice with a little beaten egg or milk and bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the pastry is golden and crisp and the filling is bubbling.
- Let the tart cool in the tin for 15 minutes so the filling sets, then dust with icing sugar and serve warm or at room temperature.
You'll use: Oven
Ingredient substitutions
- Butter
- olive oil (¾ the amount) · coconut oil · margarine
- Lemon
- lime · 1 tbsp white wine vinegar per lemon
Tips & common questions
How long does Mincemeat Tart take to make?
About 75 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 14 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of butter?
Try olive oil (¾ the amount). See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
How should I store leftovers?
Cool leftovers quickly, refrigerate in an airtight container, and eat within 3 days. Reheat until piping hot throughout.
Related recipes
Adapted recipe — rewritten in our own wording from an open-licensed community cookbook, not yet independently kitchen-tested by Consomee. How we source, test & correct recipes.
Mincemeat Tart is adapted by Consomee from the Wikibooks Cookbook, rewritten in our own wording and used under CC BY-SA 4.0. Photo: Mincemeat tarts for the holidays.jpg by Jengod, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure — how we source recipes.