Thursday, December 6, 2018

I Ate a Mince Pie

 My mince pies came in the post yesterday.  They are Walker's Mini Mince Pies.  They have a short crust (does that mean shortbread?) and they are raisin-y.  I heated mine too long, so it was chewy, but I can now understand why mince pies are such a staple in UK Christmases.
I think if I go further in my mince pie pursuit I shall order a jar of mince so that I can make my own pastry.  Here are the ingredients in Robertson's Mincemeat.  They all sound good, don't they?  My UK friends are probably chuckling at my mince pie ignorance. LOL.


One of my Christmas presents came yesterday and its photo was on the box and Bill doesn't like to wrap, so I got it early.  Isn't it pretty?  I do love an enamel pot.  I see too much soup in our future. 



Hello from the resident baby.  Isn't he funny?  He loves to cuddle, but who doesn't?


 When Jeff saw our Christmas tree he said, "It's very skinny."


 Because I don't have a "rush around" day today, I decided to look in this old 1980's Christmas book.  I like some of the out of fashion things.  Not a surprise.  I'll show you some of my favorite pages.


 I would love to bake some of this type of pastry.  I love flaky stuff topped with buttery almond frosting.  Do you?
 I really like this Mary and Joseph.  
 More Scandinavian goodies.  YUM!
 Isn't this sweet?  I think we could whip this saltwater taffy wreath up in no time.  I'm guessing the base is a styrofoam ring. 
 This festive book even holds a few cute knitting patterns. 
 My mom gave me my original book but I lost it (read: gave it away to Goodwill) so I ordered it again a few years ago and then I remembered that I wanted to make these dolls. I didn't, but aren't they cute?
 This was and IS my favorite craft in the entire book.  I love the sheep and Mary's face.

 Does anyone serve punch anymore?  It was a staple party drink when I was a child.  I don't even have a punch bowl.  I need one.  I might find one today and serve punch this holiday season.  Do you have a good punch recipe?

This reminds me of my friend Heather's posies.  I hope you enjoyed glimpses into this old fashioned book. 

On Monday evening I went to a JJ Heller concert at my friend's church.  Do you know about her?  She has a gentle sweet voice.  Her husband played the guitar and she gracefully gave a gorgeous Christmas concert.  I think you'll love this song. 

Every day in December bloggers 



17 comments:

Elizabethd said...

I had a little laugh about your mince pies! They are such a staple part of Christmas cooking here, and I have to admit to buying very good ready made pastry for mine. I have a couple of dozen in the freezer and plan on making more. Homemade are best!

Kit said...

Oh well now I definitely have to have a mince pie! I have been thinking about them for days. I like mince, hubby doesnt. All mine...lol Great book! I have been reading thru my old Home Companion Christmas magazines. :) Kit

Julia said...

I like mincemeat pies but haven't had any in so long. I love looking at Christmas cookbooks, especially the illustrated one but I'm usually too busy to cook what appeals to me. Maybe this year I will try something new.
Hugs, Julia

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

Hello Pom Pom! Did you really only eat ONE Walker's mini mince pie? If so, you have admirable self-control! They are soooooooooooo scrumptious. I've recently seen on IG a reference to "mince slice" which appears to be two layers of shortbread with mincemeat in between, looks like it's made in a pan and cut into squares, in case you want to give that a whirl! For myself, I am avoiding any baking as it's just too good and I cannot say "no."

Granny Marigold said...

Your new red enamel pot is amazing. Red is one of my favourite colours. I used to have red countertops but when we changed the kitchen I chose green. Silly me. Red really wakes you up in the morning.
The little video made me teary. So lovely.

Plain Jane said...

My great aunt used to make homemade mince pies, but I've never eaten one. They just looked nasty to me as a child. I may have to try one now.

Between Me and You said...

Love that you're eating Walker's mince pies! Mincemeat is really easy to make - I like Delia Smith's recipe best. I don't know why they're called mince pies because here in Scotland we have another 'delicacy' also called a mince pie but it's savoury and made with minced beef, amongst other things. Shortcrust pastry is different to shortbread. It's what you would make a quiche with, for example. I like my mincemeat pies made with flaky pastry, the melt-in-the-mouth kind!Beautiful crafts in your book and thank you for posting everyday. It's so heartening. xxx

Janet said...

I love that pot,too. I also love the cup with the bird with the peppers on his head, although I don't know what he could have done to deserve that.

As far as I can tell, short crust pastry is pastry in which the gluten is not allowed to form. This makes it crumbly. They do that by using a high ratio of fat or sometimes sugar. It makes since because gluten makes those looooong strands.

AMDG

Jeanie said...

Lots of lovely here, especially your sweet cuddler!

happyone said...

I love your enamel pot and those goodies sure look good.

Have a recipe that uses a jar of mince meat called Yum Yum Cake that my Grandma used to make. One of the few recipes I have from her.

Boyett-Brinkley said...

I have that book as well! I need to pull it out and look at it. I received a punch bowl when I got married -- while milk glass. I was taking it to school for a party and dropped it and broke it. I inherited my mother in law's punch bowl which will probably go to my daughter. The punch my mother always made was sherbet with either Big Red soda, Ginger Ale, or Orange soda. We weren't very sophisticated folks!

Henny Penny said...

I have always wondered about mince meat pie. I grew up thinking it was a pie made with chopped meat. Seriously! :) Maybe I should make one. It sounds like a Christmas treat. Timothy is so sweet and cuddly, and looks so much like our Dumperoo.

M.K. said...

ALthough I never make punch here at home, I do kind of have 2 punch bowls. Both were wedding gifts. The first is a cake stand with matching dome -- the stand turns upside down and holds the dome, also upside down, which becomes the punch bowl. Pretty cool! We have 3 punch bowls at the church and we sometimes have punch at special events. I like ginger ale with pineapple juice, other frozen juices (like strawberry), and sherbet in it too. Yummy :) I like your craft book. I remember those types of pretty hand wares. The mince pie sounds rather like a fruit cake ... without the cake ... but inside a pie. Fruit pie? I like fruit pie!

Farm Girl said...

I do love that song! I might have to buy some nonesuch mincemeat at the store and see about making a mince pie. You have peaked my curiosity.I love your red pot. What a fun pot to use to make soup and such.
I am afraid I am a bit of a bum today. I love Fridays. I love your book. I think its funny to gave it to Goodwill and now you have it back. Isn't funny how we change and then come back? I love your skinny tree.
Have a lovely day and I hope you and Tim stay warm.

Kezzie said...

I loved seeing the crafts in that book!
I do not like mincepies sadly- not a dried fruit and spices fan!
Tim looks so lovely and snuggly- I wish I were a cat!
Your tree IS skinny! I like it though!

ellen b. said...

Mincemeat sounds so scary in a pie until you read the ingredients! Ha!
I bought a jar somewhere last year and forgot to use it so it went into the trash instead of into a pie shell. Oye. So many lovely scenes to look at this time of year!

Debi said...

I haven't had mince pies in years. I do like them though. I have two punch bowls but haven't made punch in years. I'd have to check out Pinterest for a recipe if I decided to make one!

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