Fruit Mince Pies
This Fruit Mince Pie recipe has a crumbly crust with a boozy spiced fruit filling. Perfect for making in large batches for all those parties and lunches you have to attend, as they can be made and frozen in advance. Just leave them to defrost at room temperature.

Recipe updated 9th December 2017
If eating a fruit mince pie on each of the 12 days of Christmas brings wealth and prosperity, according to folklore, then I’m on track to be a multi-millionaire. This Fruit Mince Pie recipe has a crumbly crust with a boozy spiced fruit filling. You leave the raisins, currants and sultanas to soak for at least two days in a broth of brandy, orange juice and zest, cinnamon, nutmeg and butter to give the insides a lovely festive flavour. Perfect for making in large batches for all those parties and lunches you have to attend, as they can be made and frozen in advance. Just leave them to defrost at room temperature.
HOW TO MAKE FRUIT MINCE PIES
Click to watch how to make Fruit Mince Pies
FRUIT MINCE PIES
Makes: 24-30 fruit mince pies
Difficulty: medium, involves making shortcrust pastry
NB. Prepare the fruit mince at least 2 days before baking the pies.
EQUIPMENT:
Medium airtight container for marinating the fruit filling
Large bowl
Food processor
A round cookie cutter or glass rim, generally 80mm will do
12 hole muffin tin
Star shaped cookie cutter, no wider than the width of a muffin tin hole
Rolling pin
Pastry brush
INGREDIENTS:
Fruit Mince Filling
190g Raisins
175g Currants
250g Sultanas
50g Blanched almonds, finely chopped
1 large granny smith apple, peeled and grated
165g Brown Sugar
75g Unsalted Butter, melted
95ml Brandy or Rum
½ teaspoon ground Nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground Cloves
1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
Finely grated zest of 1 Orange and its juice (approx. 150ml)
Pastry
520g Plain Flour
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
370g Unsalted Butter, cold, grated
100g Caster Sugar
4 large Egg Yolks
2-4 tablespoons Lemon Juice (or cold water)
Assembly
Fruit mince filling prepared earlier
1 Egg White, lightly beaten
Icing Sugar Mixture, to dust
METHOD:
Fruit mince filling
Place all the sultanas, currants and raisins in a food processor and pulse them in small batches. If you don’t have a processor, then hand chop them into small mushy pieces.
Add the pulsed fruit into the airtight container, along with the grated apple, chopped almonds, melted butter, brandy or rum, orange juice, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon and orange zest.
Stir well until all ingredients are combined. Put the lid on and let it marinate in the fridge for at least 2 days. Stir every few days until you need it.
Pastry shell dough
Add the flour and baking powder to a food processor. Grate the cold butter over the top. Process until the butter is incorporated and looks like breadcrumbs. Don’t let it form a dough just yet. Tip the mixture into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar and egg yolks until a dough forms.
Tip the dough onto a floured workbench. Gently knead the dough until it comes together. If the dough is too crumbly (in cold weather), add a bit of the cold lemon juice or water to bring the dough together. If the dough is too sticky (hot weather) add a bit more flour to make it a workable dough once more.
Split the dough into two balls, flatten into discs and wrap them in clingfilm. Let them cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before use.
Fruit mince pie assembly
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (180 fan-forced; 390 F). Grease the 12-hole muffin tin with non-stick spray. Cut 12 thin strips of baking paper a little longer than the width of the cupcake hole. Place each strip in a muffin hole so the two ends hang out the sides like wings. These become handles to remove each mince pie from the tray.
Remove the dough and fruit filling from the fridge. Gently knead the dough again then roll it out between two floured sheets of baking paper. Use your rolling pin to roll it 35mm thick.
Cut rounds of dough out using your round cutter or rim of a glass. Gently press the cut dough into the hole of the muffin tin to form the casing. If the pieces aren’t coming away cleanly from the baking paper as you cut them out, knead in a little more flour to the dough.
Place a heaped tablespoon of fruit mince filling inside the pastry casing. Fill to the top of the pastry case. Don’t let the fruit touch the pan itself or it will get stuck when it bakes.
Knead together the scraps of dough. Use the star cutter or round cutter to cut tops for the pastry casings. Place the lids on each fruit mince pie. Brush the tops with beaten egg white.
Check oven has reached the correct temperature. Place the pies in the middle of the oven. Bake for 15-20 minutes approximately. They are done when the pastry has turned golden brown. If not, add another 5 minutes to the timer and check again.
Let the fruit mince pies cool completely in the pan first. Pull gently on the baking paper wings to remove each pie. Decorate with a dusting of icing sugar.
BAKING TIPS:
- Sweet shortcrust pastry is fussy depending on the room temperature where you are baking it. In colder weather, you might need to add a little water or lemon juice to the dough. In hot weather like Australia here, the butter melts too quickly and we need more flour to make the dough less sticky as a result.
- If you don’t have a food processor you can use your fingers to work the butter into the flour until a breadcrumb texture forms. But if the weather is hot, your fingers might melt the butter too quickly, so a food processor will help you out.
- Pies will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- Mince pies can be frozen once baked, and brought to room temperature naturally before baking.
Recipe adapted from Margaret Fulton

Prep Time | 1 hr |
Cook Time | 15 mins |
Passive Time | 30 mins |
Servings |
fruit mince pies at least
|
- 190 g Raisins
- 175 g Currants
- 250 g Sultanas
- 50 g blanched Almonds finely chopped
- 1 large Granny Smith Apple peeled, grated
- 165 g Brown Sugar
- 75 g Unsalted Butter melted
- 95 ml Brandy or Rum
- 1/2 teaspoon ground Nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ground Cloves
- 1 teaspoon ground Cinnamon
- 1 Orange finely grated zest and its juice
- 520 g Plain Flour
- 1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
- 370 g Unsalted Butter grated
- 100 g Caster Sugar
- 4 large Egg Yolks
- 2-4 tablespoons Lemon Juice or cold water
- 1 quantity Fruit mince filling as prepared above
- 1 Egg White lightly beaten
- Icing Sugar to dust on top
Ingredients
Fruit Mince Filling
Pastry
Fruit Mince Pie Assembly
|
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- Place all the sultanas, currants and raisins in a food processor and pulse them in small batches. If you don’t have a processor, then hand chop them into small mushy pieces.
- Add the pulsed fruit into the airtight container, along with the grated apple, chopped almonds, melted butter, brandy or rum, orange juice, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon and orange zest.
- Add the pulsed fruit into the airtight container, along with the grated apple, chopped almonds, melted butter, brandy or rum, orange juice, nutmeg, cloves, cinnamon and orange zest.
- Stir well until all ingredients are combined. Put the lid on and let it marinate in the fridge for at least 2 days. Stir every few days until you need it.
- Add the flour and baking powder to a food processor. Grate the cold butter over the top. Process until the butter is incorporated and looks like breadcrumbs. Don't let it form a dough just yet. Tip the mixture into a large bowl. Stir in the sugar and egg yolks until a dough forms. Tip the dough onto a floured workbench. Gently knead the dough until it comes together. If the dough is too crumbly (in cold weather), add a bit of the cold lemon juice or water to bring the dough together. If the dough is too sticky (hot weather) add a bit more flour to make it a workable dough once more.
- Split the dough into two balls, flatten into discs and wrap them in clingfilm. Let them cool in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before use.
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celsius (180 fan-forced; 390 F).Grease the 12-hole muffin tin with non-stick spray. Cut 12 strips of baking paper measuring 17cm x 2cm (or 7in x 1in). Place each strip in a muffin hole so the two ends hang out the sides like wings. These become handles to remove each mince pie from the tray.
- Remove the dough and fruit filling from the fridge. Knead the dough again then roll it out between two sheets of baking paper. Use your rolling pin to roll it 35mm thick.
- Cut rounds of dough out using your round cutter or rim of a glass. Gently press the cut dough into the hole of the muffin tin to form the casing. If the pieces aren’t coming away cleanly from the baking paper as you cut them out, knead in a little more flour to the dough.
- Place spoonfuls of fruit mince filling inside the pastry casing. Fill to the top of the pastry case. Don’t let the fruit touch the pan itself.
- Knead together the scraps of dough. Use the star cutter or round cutter to cut tops for the pastry casings. Place the lids on each fruit mince pie. Use a pastry brush to brush the tops with beaten egg white.
- Check oven has reached the correct temperature. Place the pies on the middle rack of the oven and bake for about 15 minutes. They are done when the pastry has turned golden brown.
- Let the fruit mince pies cool completely in the pan first. Pull gently on the baking paper wings to remove each pie. Decorate with a dusting of icing sugar.
- Sweet shortcrust pastry is fussy depending on the room temperature where you are baking it. In colder weather, you might need to add a little water or lemon juice to the dough. In hot weather like Australia here, the butter melts too quickly and we need more flour to make the dough less sticky as a result.
- If you don't have a food processor you can use your fingers to work the butter into the flour until a breadcrumb texture forms. But if the weather is hot, your fingers might melt the butter too quickly, so a food processor will help you out.
- Pies will keep at room temperature in an airtight container for up to 1 week.
- Mince pies can be frozen once baked, and brought to room temperature naturally before baking.
We have other Christmas baking recipe ideas here, like frosted Gingerbread trees, traditional Christmas Pudding, traditional Christmas Cake and mini Christmas Cake Bites.
Oh my- looks like you did a fabulous job! I am buying my fruit mince pies- what a cheater!!
That’s a great idea (baking paper wings)! I’m stealing that idea! Borrowing…. You know, I’ve never had fruit mince pies… I might buy some to try now..
These are so beautiful and I am sure taste like heaven.
I love fruit mince pies but I have only made them once before. Yours look delicious and the star on top is very cute. I think I will have vto do them again :)
I must admit, I’m not a fan of fruit mince pies. But yours look gorgeous! The pastry shells are perfect and thanks for the tip for lining the tray with baking paper strips; why didn’t I think of that?
These look absolutely scrumptious Emma – YUM! Thank you for sharing this recipe – only yesterday I was wondering where I could get my hands on a good fruit mince recipe. And what a great idea to put a strip of baking paper beneath the pastry for easy removal – genius!
Margaret Fulton sure knows her stuff. The pastry on your fruit mince pies looks really good. I might use this pastry recipe for other fillings.
Oh, this is torturous! These pies look so divinely good, with their magical dusting of icing sugar and the golden pastry against the dark, mysterious filling… and yet I can’t stomach fruit mince (I think it’s the citrus peel). How is it fair that something I can’t like in reality can look so good in pictures?!
Nah, at this time of the year it’s a miracle just to get Christmas shopping finished, let alone bake everything from scratch. Sometimes things taste better if other people have made them for you :)
aawww I love the little stars on top. So pretty.
I’ve come late to liking fruit mince pies, I used to hate them but in the past few years I’ve become quite addicted to them for some reason .. never made them though.
Cute little tarts! Love the star on top and thanks for the strips of baking paper tip. very useful!
These look gorgeous. I especially like your gift idea and packaging – how lovely. So much to do and I always have grand plans, but time runs away with me and so does work. I have managed to make a date and walnut chocolate cake today though and have also got candied orange peel on the go. Hoping to manage a few more things next week.
i love your baking paper wings idea!
Thanks for the tip about the “wings” under the pies. I made 20 fruit mince pies this year, but lost 4 of them because they stuck to the pan, and the “lids” came off when I tried to get them out. Brilliant idea!
I only discovered mince tarts a few years ago. oh and pudding… =O
Your Christmas day eats sound delicious! I’ve never loved mince pies. Yours look beautiful, though! Loved the little history tidbit here – I love food history – I can’t believe they were banned!
Heidi xo
Hey did you get that food processor after all? These look great! I’m Italian too so these never appear at our house but wow …Margaret Fulton is a LEGEND and now you are too :)
I have to admit I’ve never been a fan of fruit mince pies. Not sure why, but yours look gorgeous!
Without a doubt I will be making coconut truffles. They have to be my all time favourite Christmas recipe.
Your tarts look lovely and I bet they taste lovely too. Good on you for giving it a go
I love this post! Those pies are decor are refreshingly well done. I would certainly include this into my X’mas baking lists! Thanks for the share, looking forward for your recipes!
The hardest part about making fruit mince pies is not eating any of the mince when you check on it during the boozing up period.
Beautifully executed! That’s always how I present them as well, I think it works a treat :)
I’m yet to try making my own fruit mince pies, but these ones look really good, especially the pastry!
They look lovely Emma, I’m someone who hasn’t really ever loved the idea of mince pies – probably because all through my childhood I thought they were made with mince meat! I love the wings idea! PS Can I come to your nanna’s place for Christmas – that selection sounds divine! ;)
CANT WAIT TO MAKE THE MINCE PIES ON FRIDAY YUM YUM
Supermarket pies are generrally awful. Bought mince is too sickly. Made my own this year and they are fantastic. Cannot buy as good. Plenty of booze maceration is a must and up to a month even better. A new tradition is born for me.
how long does the mince keep for? do i have to put it in the freezer after a certain amount of time to keep it?
Hi Liliane. Good question! I’m not entirely sure how long the mince itself lasts for. With a similar composition to fruit cakes (alcohol and sugar as a preservative plus fruit), which keep for 1 year frozen, I’d say the safest way is to freeze any unused mince straightaway in an airtight container. If you have a lot of leftovers, maybe split it across several containers so that when you want to use it again, it will take less time to return to room temperature.
About citrus peel in anything – to get the effect in the mix without the strong taste after bighting on a piece of peel (YUK!!!) I always take the time to cut the peel very finely – or put it in the food processor to bash it up. This works for us and gives just the slightest citrus edge to the recipe, sort of like adding zest to a recipe.
Thanks for this recipe
Christmas Mince pie recipe