DIY mince pies a no-no

[Suz]

Just made some mince pies with the kids in an effort to act like a good parent. Big hassle trying to find a rolling pin in a local shop. Bought the puff pastry and mincemeat like what mummy used to make. Made the bottoms, put the mince in, some different tops and popped into oven.

All well and good. Now I know why my mother used to blind bake the bottoms first. Each puff pastry bottom had launched itself up and over in that shape a slinky makes going down stairs. The children were horrified but giggling and my husband highly amused. Wiped the smirks off their faces when I made them eat them anyway.

Buying the next lot from M&S

[Tony Bryer]

Shop!!!! This is uk.d-i-y! You need a short piece of 40mm waste pipe (retrieve from skip and wash thoroughly). Stand on end, fill with fine concrete and allow to set before using.

[Colin Wilson]

?? never known anyone use puff pastry for mince pies before !!

[derek]

Non PC joke follows below, ROT13'd.

Lre jung? Jung ryfr jbhyq lbh hfr sbe *zvapr*cvrf?

DG

[Steve Firth]

Mince pies are made with shortcrust. How bloody lazy do you have to be to buy puff pastry rather than make shortcrust?

[gamemaniak]

[PoP]

Pheep! Oi, Ref! You missed a step.....

Liberally coat 40mm waste pipe with flour prior to using. This prevents stickage of stand-in rolling pin with material used for making mince pie bases/tops.

PoP

Replying to the email address given by my news reader will result in your own email address being instantly added to my anti-spam database! If you really want to contact me try changing the prefix in the given email address to my newsgroup posting name.....

[Velvet]

parent. Big hassle trying to find a rolling pin in a local

the bottoms, put the mince in, some different tops and

first. Each puff pastry bottom had launched itself up

horrified but giggling and my husband highly amused.

Ah, I made mince pies and out of puff pastry. Easy peasy. Followed a delia smith recipe. Cut a circle of puff pastry out, then half-press a smaller cutter into it (so you don't go right through, and are left with a circle surrounded by another ring of pastry). Brush edges with milk. Put teaspoon of mince meat in the middle (this'll give you some idea of the size cutters required) top with couple of whole blanched almonds or fresh cranberries, dust with icing sugar, and pop in oven for around

10 mins.

Yes they rise, but they don't do a slinky thing, cos the outer ring rises while the base stays a bit more squashed due to weight of mincemeat etc.

Yummy.

Velvet

[Suz]

Wanted puff pastry pies just like my mother made. She used frozen puff, but made absolutely everything else, bread, conserves, etc. Puff pastry is hard to make correctly and a lot of cookbooks advise buying it. But the taste is much superior to shortcrust as long as they are being eaten very fresh.

If I was bloody lazy, I'd just have bought them. And not involved the tiny people in the process. That added a lot of washing to the piles, clothes and dishes.

And I will be bloody lazy next time. 4 days off work ain't enough for this malarky.

:)~ raspberries to you Suzanne

:a flame-free environment.

[Suz]

: > All well and good. Now I know why my mother used to blind bake the bottoms first. Each puff pastry bottom had launched itself up : > and over in that shape a slinky makes going down stairs. The children were horrified but giggling and my husband highly amused. : > Wiped the smirks off their faces when I made them eat them anyway. : >

: > Buying the next lot from M&S : >

: >

: : Ah, I made mince pies and out of puff pastry. Easy peasy. Followed a : delia smith recipe. Cut a circle of puff pastry out, then half-press a : smaller cutter into it (so you don't go right through, and are left with : a circle surrounded by another ring of pastry). Brush edges with milk. : Put teaspoon of mince meat in the middle (this'll give you some idea : of the size cutters required) top with couple of whole blanched almonds : or fresh cranberries, dust with icing sugar, and pop in oven for around : 10 mins. : : Yes they rise, but they don't do a slinky thing, cos the outer ring : rises while the base stays a bit more squashed due to weight of : mincemeat etc. : : Yummy. : : Velvet

Sounds good. That's how you make vol-au-vents ain't it? Toasty almonds on the top? hmmm, yum. :

[Suz]

: >?? never known anyone use puff pastry for mince pies before !! : : : Non PC joke follows below, ROT13'd. : : Lre jung? Jung ryfr jbhyq lbh hfr sbe *zvapr*cvrf? : : DG

jung'f hacbyvgvpnyyl pbeerpg nobhg gung? Fhmnaar

[Suz]

be fubhyq V fnl 'cbyvgvpnyyl hapbeerpg'? or should I say 'politically uncorrect'?

[Andrew Gabriel]

Some years ago when I was living in a rented house, I used a milk bottle. Come to think of it, I haven't seen one of those for a long time...

[S Viemeister]

Sherry bottles work well as rolling pins.....

[Mary Fisher]

parent. Big hassle trying to find a rolling pin in a local

Made the bottoms, put the mince in, some different tops and

bottoms first. Each puff pastry bottom had launched itself up

were horrified but giggling and my husband highly amused.

No, use shortcrtust pastry instead - and make your own. It's dead easy.

Mary

[Mary Fisher]

Spouse has just read this and reminded me that the Indians we knew who made chapattis used 3/4" dowel.

A broom handle would do it - remove the broom first.

Mary

[Mary Fisher]

Trouble is, you get Co-op (or please rinse and return to your milkman) on every tart ...

Mary

[Mary Fisher]

I bow to you greater experience!

Mary

>

[Snowman]

What's all this crap about?

[Suz]

: > In article , : > Tony Bryer writes: : > > In article , Suz : > > wrote: : > >> Just made some mince pies with the kids in an effort to act : > >> like a good parent. Big hassle trying to find a rolling pin in : > >> a local shop. : > >

: > > Shop!!!! This is uk.d-i-y! You need a short piece of 40mm waste : > > pipe (retrieve from skip and wash thoroughly). : >

: > Some years ago when I was living in a rented house, I used a : > milk bottle. Come to think of it, I haven't seen one of those : > for a long time... : >

: Sherry bottles work well as rolling pins..... : I have used a wine bottle in the past - some californian ones are a good shape. Thought seeing it was the kids I could do without that story being retold in school.