Homemade Christmas Fruit Mince is the perfect ingredient for all Christmas baking and makes such a lovely gift even by itself. You can actually buy some very good mincemeat from stores, but homemade mincemeat is really something else. Once you make it yourself, you’ll never want to have store bought mincemeat anymore. Enjoy!
Watch How To Make Homemade Christmas Fruit Mince (Recipe Video)
Christmas Baking 101: Make Your Own Homemade Christmas Fruit Mince (Mincemeat)
It’s December and that makes right now officially Christmas! So let’s get started early on our Christmas baking. First, let’s start by preparing this traditional homemade Christmas Fruit Mince, also known as homemade vegetarian mincemeat. Homemade Christmas mincemeat is certainly the perfect ingredient for all Christmas baking. Also, it makes such a lovely gift even by itself.
You can actually buy some very good mincemeat from the stores. However, when it is homemade, it really is something else. So, once you make it yourself, you’ll never want to have store bought mincemeat anymore.
What is Homemade Christmas Fruit Mince (Mincemeat)?
Homemade Christmas Fruit Mince is made using a variety of fresh, dried and candied fruits. Then, these fruits are simmered over low heat in a flavourful mixture of butter, fruit juice, brown sugar, rum, lemon, orange zest and ground spices. This simmering process allows all the fruits to absorb the liquid and become soft and juicy.
For those who are avoiding liquor, you can substitute rum with rum extract, or with pineapple juice flavoured with almond extract. Rum is used simply for flavour. This homemade Christmas mincemeat is really ideal, as you can use this on the very next day after it’s made. So, it’s perfect for last minute Christmas baking too.
Homemade Vegetarian Mincemeat – A Vegetarian Friendly Christmas Mincemeat
What is so special about this version of Vegetarian Christmas mincemeat is this: it has all the flavours of a traditional fruit mince, but no meat is used for this recipe. This version of fruit mince using butter is so rich in taste. Trust me, even non-vegetarians will also love it.
This flavoured fruit mince only gets better the longer it is kept. You can refrigerate this homemade Christmas mincemeat in an airtight container for up to a month. This fruit mince is a Christmas staple and makes the perfect addition to all our holiday baking. As always, ENJOY!
What Other Recipes Can I Use With This Homemade Christmas Fruit Mince?
- Classic Christmas Mince Pies (Mincemeat Pies) 圣诞甜果派
- Christmas Mince Streusel Muffins (Mincemeat Muffins) 甜果脆皮玛芬糕
Here Are Some Other Christmas Baking Recipes You May Be Interested In:
- Easy Christmas Thumbprint Cookies Recipe 指印饼干
- Christmas Fruitcake Cookies Recipe 水果蛋糕饼干
- Gingerbread Cookies Recipe 姜饼曲奇
Christmas Fruit Mince (Christmas Mincemeat) 圣诞甜果馅
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Ingredients
- ¼ cup butter, 56g, room temperature
- ⅔ cup brown sugar, 140g
- 1 cup apple juice, 240 ml, unsweetened
- 2 Apples, large, peeled, cored and grated
- 1 orange, for juice and zest
- 1 lemon, for juice and zest
- ½ cup golden raisins
- ½ cup dark raisins
- ½ cup dried cranberries
- ½ cup dried currants
- ½ cup candied mixed peel
- ½ cup candied red cherries
- ½ cup candied mixed fruits
- ⅔ cup rum, light or dark
Spices:
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ¼ tsp ground ginger
- ¼ tsp ground cloves
- ¼ tsp salt
First, gather and measure all the dried and candied fruits needed to make mincemeat.
Then, have ready all other ingredients needed.
Also, measure all the seasonings required to cook the mincemeat.
Peel and core 2 large apples. Granny Smith and Honeycrisp are some of the choices.
Using a box grater, grate the apples and set aside.
Using a microplane, zest one orange and lemon. Rub the fruits in one direction against the little blades, turning the fruits as you zest to ensure only the skin is removed.
Then squeeze the orange and lemon juice from the zested fruits using a juicer and set aside. And we're ready to cook the mincemeat.
In a large covered pot, add in butter, brown sugar, unsweetened apple juice and seasonings.
Then, add in the grated apples.
Followed by the orange and lemon zest and juices.
Next, add in all the dried and candied fruits.
Lastly, add in the dark/light rum. For those not in favour of liquor, substitute with pineapple juice flavoured with almond extract instead.
On medium high heat, stir everything together.
Bring the fruit mincemeat mixture up to a boil and make sure the butter has melted.
Cover, lower heat and let it simmer until most of the liquid has been absorbed into the fruits and the alcohol evaporated, about 30 minutes. Be sure to stir the mixture occasionally.
And we’re done!
Transfer the fruit mincemeat to cool in a large bowl.
Then, add another 2 tablespoons rum/fruit juice into the fruit mincemeat before storing. This is to give it extra flavour.
Once cooled, the fruit mince can be kept in a covered container and refrigerated until needed.
This well stewed fruit mincemeat is so good and it only gets better with age. As always, ENJOY!
Instructions
Enjoy!
Notes
- The alcohol in the rum helps to preserve the mincemeat.
- For those avoiding liquor, use pineapple juice flavoured with almond extract (to replace light rum) or molasses thinned with pineapple juice and flavoured with almond extract (to replace dark rum).
- This fruit mince can be used the next day or stored refrigerated for up to a month.
- If kept refrigerated, occasionally add in some more rum or fruit juice to moisten the fruit mince (also further enhances the flavour).
- This recipe yields about 1kg of Christmas Fruit Mince. You can adjust the recipe accordingly for a bigger or smaller batch.
