Follow our fantastic recipes @alowcarblowsugarlifestyle
This is a fab recipe just in time for Christmas!
They taste just like mince pies should but without all of the sugar and carbs. One of these mince pies only has 5 grams of carbs (3 net carbs if counting) versus about 50 grams in a regular mince pie.
Try to use Erythritol in the pastry if you can for a more crisp finish. Don’t stress if you don’t have it as any of our sweeteners will also work in this recipe.
There are 3 options for the filling- rhubarb, apple or zucchini. The pies featured were made using rhubarb, and the flavours are truly spectacular. Apple and zucchini work equally as well.
Ingredients (makes 18 pies)
Pastry Ingredients
- 100 grams butter
- 1 tablespoon cream cheese
- 1 cup / 115grams almond flour
- 35 grams coconut flour
- 3 tablespoons erythritol
- 1 tablespoon ground linseed/flaxseed powder
- ½ teaspoon xanthan gum
- A Pinch of salt
- 1 large egg plus one for an egg wash
Filling Ingredients
- 2 stalks rhubarb finely diced or 150 grams/5.3 oz Granny Smith apple or zucchini peeled and finely diced
- ⅓ cup sugar free dried cranberries make your own or buy reduced sugar cranberries
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 tablespoon water
- A squeeze of lemon juice
- 4 tablespoons xylitol or sweetener of choice
- 1 tablespoon lemon zest or to taste
- 1 tablespoon orange zest or to taste
- 2 teaspoons mixed spice
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon powder
- A pinch of nutmeg
- A pinch of salt
- 1-2 tablespoons brandy - optional
Instructions
To make the Filling
- Place all ingredients into a small saucepan and simmer on a low heat for about 10 minutes or until the 'fruit' is soft.
- Turn the temperature up slightly and stir occasionally for a couple of minutes until the mixture dries out and thickens. Watch carefully so it doesn't burn. Allow to cool and set aside. The mixture should be reasonably thick.
To make the Pastry
- Combine the butter and the cream cheese in a microwave mixing bowl. Zap in the microwave until just soft enough to blend. Add the dry ingredients and the egg to the butter mixture and stir well to combine. Shape into a ball.
- The mixture may be ok to roll out straight away, if too soft, cover the bowl with clingwrap and place in the fridge or freezer until it firms up slightly- 10-15 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 175 C / 350 F.
- Roll ⅔'s of the dough out between two sheets of quality baking paper to about 3mm thick. Use a 7cm/2 ½" cookie cutter to cut out about 18 bases. Place the bases into your greased Yorkshire pudding tin/rounded base small quiche pan (a rounded based pan makes it so much easier to remove your pies once baked) and gently press into the base of the pan.
- Roll out the leftover dough and use a cookie cutter to press out 18 stars (use a star cutter that fits across top of your bases to the edge of the pastry.)
- Whisk your additional egg.
- Place about 1 tablespoon of filling into each base and place one star on top of each pie, pressing gently on the seams.
- Brush each star with the egg wash.
- Bake for between 15-20 minutes or until lightly golden and pastry is cooked through. If your pies are browning too quickly, turn down the heat and/or cover your pies with an aluminium tent.
- Leave mince pies to cool in the pan before removing. If you used erythritol in your pastry, the pies will continue to crisp up over a couple of hours
To Serve
- Dust with a small amount of powdered sweetener to serve. They taste delicious on their own served at room temperature. You can also serve them warm and top with whipped cream, Sugar Free Custard or Sugar Free Vanilla Ice Cream.
Recipe Notes
If the dough becomes too warm to cut you can place it back in the freezer for a few minutes to firm up.If you use zucchini for the filling, make sure you taste the mixture for sweetness as you may need to add more sweetener.The filling will last for up to 1 week stored in a sealed container in the fridge.
Nutritional Information
Serving: 1 serve | Calories: 127kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 10g | Fiber: 2gNote that we calculate our own nutritional values so they may not be precise. Calculate your own if desired. Carb values exclude sugar alcohols such as Erythritol, as they generally have no impact on blood sugar levels. 50% of the carbs from Xylitol is added to nutritional values. This is consistent with industry practice.
