For this month\u2019s post we shall be looking at mince pies<\/strong>. These are small sweet pies made with pastry and filled with a mixture of dried fruits and spices called mincemeat<\/strong> \u2013 so no actual meat to be seen.\u00a0 They are thought to have originated in the 13th<\/sup> Century and in the original version they were filled with meat, fruit and spices but over the years only the fruit and spices have remained.<\/p>\n At Christmas time mince pies can be found in every household in the UK – this really is a tradition that everyone follows and to be honest Christmas wouldn\u2019t be Christmas without mince pies.\u00a0 I find it strange that there are people who don\u2019t even like them – unthinkable!<\/p>\n Now I can safely say that Father Christmas loves mince pies \u2013 well, he did when I was a child.\u00a0 Before we went to bed on every Christmas Eve we would leave a mince pie and a glass of whisky out for Father Christmas with our stockings; we thought it a fair exchange to leave us presents for food and drink. No wonder his waistline was so large but why didn\u2019t he get drunk with all those glasses of whisky? Well there was a simple answer to that question – my father drank it.<\/p>\n Generally we make the pies as near to Christmas Day as possible so that we can completely indulge over the Christmas period. There are a number of ways to make the whole process quicker, by using ready-made mincemeat which most people do these days or go the whole hog<\/strong> and buy the pies ready-made \u2013 but where\u2019s the fun in that?<\/p>\n Mince Pies<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n 560g Mincemeat<\/p>\n 350g Flour<\/p>\n 75g Lard<\/p>\n 75g Butter<\/p>\n Pinch of salt<\/p>\n Cold water<\/p>\n Method<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n Vocabulary <\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n Mincemeat<\/strong>: a fruit filling made with apples, mixed spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, candied peel,<\/strong> sultanas, raisins, currants, brown sugar, orange, lemon, suet<\/strong> and brandy.<\/p>\n Go the whole hog:<\/strong> a phrase that means to do something as completely as possible<\/p>\n To sift<\/strong>:\u00a0 the action of putting flour through a sieve (a wire net shaped like a bowl) to get rid of lumps etc.<\/p>\n Fats: <\/strong>a generic word to describe butter, lard etc.<\/p>\n To resemble<\/strong>: to look like something or someone<\/p>\n Expletives<\/strong>: words that can be considered as being offensive<\/p>\n Rolling pin:<\/strong> a tube shaped object that is used for making pastry flat and thin<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/virtualcampus.kingstraining.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/12\/Mince-Pies.jpg\")
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