Recipe: Meatless Mince Pie

Meatless Mince Pie

Yield: About 10 to 12 portions

Not traditional, but a light, fast version of mincemeat. For variety, substitute pears for the apples or use a combination.

Meatless Mincemeat Filling

3 golden delicious apples, about 1-1/2 pounds
3/4 cup yellow raisins, about 3 ounces
3/4 cup currants, about 3 ounces
1/2 stick butter, 2 ounces
1 teaspoon grated orange zest
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/3 cup brandy or dark rum
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar, about 4 ounces
1 cup walnut pieces, coarsely chopped, about 4 ounces
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon allspice
1/2 teaspoon ginger

Flaky Pastry Dough

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour, about 10 ounces
1/4 cup cake flour, about 1 ounce
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 sticks butter, 8 ounces, cool
5 to 6 tablespoons ice water

Egg Wash

1 egg
Pinch salt

Mixing the Flaky Pastry Dough
Combine the all-purpose flour, cake flour, salt and baking powder; cut up the butter, add and gently toss to coat. Rub in the butter until the mixture looks sandy. Sprinkle over 3 tablespoons of ice water; toss with a fork. Add another tablespoon of water if necessary. Press the dough together. Wrap and chill.

Preparing the Mincemeat Filling
Peel, halve, core, and grate the apples by hand or in a food processor. Combine with the remaining filling ingredients in a large saucepan and cook, covered, over medium heat, until the mixture is very liquid, about 15 minutes. Uncover, lower the heat and simmer, stirring frequently, until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 20 minutes. Cool.

Mixing the Egg Wash
Whisk the egg and salt in a small bowl until very liquid.

Assembling
Lightly flour the work surface and dough, then roll half the dough into a 14-inch disk, A inch thick. Fit the dough into a 9-inch pan and trim the edges of the dough even with the rim of the pan. Roll the remaining dough to a 10 X 14-inch rectangle. Cut into at least ten 1-inch strips and egg wash the strips and the edge of the bottom crust. Pour in the filling, smoothing the top. Apply the strips of dough, five in each direction, making a diagonal lattice. Trim the ends of the strips even with the edge of the bottom crust. With floured fingers, flute the edges of the crust.

Baking
Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes on the lowest rack of the oven. Lower the temperature to 350 and bake until the juices just start to bubble up and the bottom crust is baked through, about 30 minutes longer.

Holding
Store the pie at room temperature up to 1 day.

From:
Nick Malgieri's Perfect Pastry
Create Fantastic Desserts by Mastering the Basic Techniques
By Nick Malgieri
MacMillan USA
338 pages, with black & white how-to photos throughout
Paperback, $19.95
ISBN: 0-02-861257-4
Recipe Reprinted by permission.