Christmas Special 2023: Mince Pies

Ho! Ho! Ho! Merry Christmas!Leaving a mince pie out for Santa this year? I do hope so. This year’s Christmas Special is all about mince pies: the history and baking, as well as the confusion surrounding the fact that there’s no meat in them. Neil makes some early 18th-century-shaped pies and makes a sweet lamb mincemeat from the North of England. He’s on a mission to get the meat back into mincemeat AND to have them on the menu outside of the Christmas period.A huge thank you to Ivan Day for his help regarding the making of those 18th-century pies.*blog posts of recipes to accompany the episode will appear on Wednesday 20th December and Friday 22nd December 2023.*Things mentioned in today’s episode:Ivan Day’s blog post about mince pies The Accomplisht Cook by Robert MayThe Experienced English Housekeeper by Elizabeth RaffaldMrs Beeton’s Book of Household ManagementReceipts of Pastry and Cookery by Edward KidderJane Grigson’s Orange MincemeatMrs Beeton’s Mincemeat RecipeJane Grigson’s Gooseberry Tarts recipeIvan Day’s historical pie-making courseNeil’s appearance on the Full English podcastNeil’s appearance on the Shackbaggerly podcastNeil's A Dark History of Sugar talkNeil's Museum of Royal Worcester talkPrevious episodes mentioned in today’s episode:Pagan Lent and Easter (includes a section on hot cross buns)Elizabeth Raffald with Alessandra Pino & Neil Buttery Christmas Feasting with Annie Gray