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Best mince pies

A classic Christmas recipe, mince pies are easy to make at home once you know how.

We have a traditional mince pies recipe that will produce perfect results every time. Learn how to make your own pastry and the classic mincemeat filling at home to give your family a lovely treat this festive season.

Sound like a lot of work? Don’t worry! We’ve also got some great cheats if you’re short of time. Ready made pastry and shop-bought mincemeat are just some ways to cut corners when making mince pies and we have lots more ideas in our gallery.

Including tasty twists, like festive cranberries, tangy lemon icing and boozy recipes, and some fun baking ideas, like mincemeat cupcakes and croissants, our selection of mince pies even has a recipe for gluten and dairy-free bakes so no one gets left out.

And you don’t have to wait until December to start making mince pies. You can freeze them just before baking and you won’t even have to defrost them as you can bake from frozen – that will certainly save you some time on the big day!

So whether your mince pies are for a Christmas party, buffet spread, a family gathering, Christmas day or as a fun treat to leave out for Santa, our selection of easy recipes will come in very handy.

See something you like? Store all your favourite recipes in one place by starting your own recipe book.

Kale and Potato Soup with Turkey Sausage

A hearty soup made with kale, potatoes, carrots, and sausage.

I’m feeling a bit under the weather this week. It seems I caught a cold from my toddler who just entered Pre-K. Along with her projects, crafts, and books, she’s been taking home a new cold each week (lucky me!)

Right now hot tea and soup are on the menu. I thought I would make something from the archives that I haven’t made in a while, something with lots of vitamins and antioxidants to help me kick this cold.

So I made this soup, which really hit the spot. It’s a meal in a bowl and kale is one of the healthiest vegetables around, high in vitamins K, A and C with both antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits.

This soup will taste as good as the sausage you purchase, so be sure to find an Italian turkey or chicken sausage that you like, either would work. If you want this a little spicy, you can certainly use a hot sausage instead. Vegetarians could swap the sausage for soyrizo and vegetable broth.

Kale and Potato Soup with Turkey Sausage
gordon-ramsay-recipe.com
Servings: 6 • Size: 1 2/3 cups • Old Points: 4 pts • Points+: 6
Calories: 232 • Fat: 4 g • Carb: 31 g • Fiber: 5.5 g • Protein: 19 g • Sugar: 3 g
Sodium: 647 mg (will vary by brand of broth you use)

Ingredients:

14 oz reduced fat Italian chicken or turkey sausage
8 cups (1/2 batch) kale, stems removed, leaves shredded
1 tsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
1 medium carrot, sliced
4 cloves garlic, chopped
8 cups fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 cups water
3 medium red potatoes, peeled diced into 1/4 inch pieces
1 pinch dried red pepper flakes
salt to taste
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper

Directions:

In a large Dutch oven or pot, cook sausage over medium-low heat. Turn and cook until brown, about 10 minutes. Remove from pot, let cool and cut into thin slices.

Add oil to pot, add onions and carrots; cook on medium until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook 1 minute more.

Add broth, water and black pepper, bring to a boil and cook 5 minutes. Add cooked sausage, potatoes, red pepper flakes and bring back to a simmer. Cook covered for about 4 minutes. Add kale and bring back to a simmer. Cook partially covered until the potatoes and kale are cooked, about 5-6 minutes. Adjust salt if needed.

Makes 10 cups.

Lamb Merguez Patties – If the Sausage is Moroccan, Your Burger Will Be Rockin’

After using Merguez sausage in this beautiful stuffed acorn squash recipe last year, I got a bunch of emails saying, “I can’t find that
anywhere! Can you show us how to make it?!” I generally ignore those, since it’s
usually just people not looking hard enough (I’m looking at you, Mr. “I can’t
find Panko”).

However, in this case, I realized that Merguez is not
commonly stocked at the grocery store, so I decided to come up with an easy
home version. I didn’t bother with the casing, as these were originally going
to be breakfast patties, but as I mention in the video, I was seduced by a
brioche roll, and ended up going full burger. Happily, it made for a very
memorable lunch.

If you do happen to give this Merguez recipe a try, I hope
you make a double batch and not only experience the amazing burger it produces,
but also use it in/on a number of things. It is wonderful in things like beans,
frittatas, pastas, soups, and crumbled on a pizza. I really hope you give it a
try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for Four (4 oz) Patties:

1 pound ground lamb (rec., 85% lean, 15% fat)

1 tsp kosher salt (1/2 tsp fine salt)

1 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp coriander

1/4 tsp fennel seed

3 cloves garlic

2 tbsp Harissa (a spice red pepper paste), we did a version here.

1 tbsp tomato paste

*Note: I didn’t add cayenne since my Harissa was very spicy, but feel free.