I decided to try my hand at making my own gluten free mincemeat (for use in mince pies) at home, and absolutely loved the result. Beautifully balanced, packed with delicious dried fruit and slithered almonds, and easily adaptable to suit your personal preferences.
I’m not actually a fan of shop-bought mincemeat, as I find it a bit gloopy and overly sweet, meaning I am generally a mince pie dodger at Christmas time. However with this mincemeat baked in my homemade gluten free mince pies, I am a total convert. It’s also really easy to make at home.
For those of you who aren’t familiar with mincemeat, is it completely vegetarian and the name is rather misleading! It’s actually a blend of dried fruits, spices, fruit juice/port/brandy (your choice), fresh fruit, butter and nuts. And it’s an extremely traditional and popular treat in the UK, found as the filling to the nation’s beloved mince pies.
Can I Make This Mincemeat in Advance?
Yes, it’ll actually develop a wonderful depth of flavour as time goes on. Store it in the fridge in a sterilised jar for up to a month. If it looks a little dry when you come to use it, simply add an extra tablespoon of fruit juice/port/brandy to loosen it.
What Makes This Mincemeat Gluten Free?
I am using butter instead of suet in this recipe, as suet in the UK often contains gluten. You will also want to check all your ingredients labels to ensure your nuts and dried fruit don’t harbour sneaky may contain warnings.
Can I Make Ingredient Substitutions?
Yes you can be really flexible with this one. Try to keep the overall quantities the same – so if you want to swap cranberries for dried figs, ensure you are still using 50g. If you are swapping port for apple juice, still use 2 tbsp. And so forth.
Gluten Free Mincemeat Recipe
Time for the recipe! You’ll get about 500g of gluten free mincemeat from this recipe (enough for 18-24 mince pies, depending how much filling you like) – and it will keep well in the fridge for a good month if needed.
For any help along the way or if you have questions, please do message me on social media (@myglutenfreeguide) or email me at laura@mygfguide.com.
If you enjoy this gluten free mincemeat recipe, please leave a review on the recipe card below and spread the word! It makes a world of difference to me :).
Thank you so much! Laura xxx
Gluten Free Mincemeat
A gorgeous homemade gluten free mincemeat, packed with dried fruit, fresh fruit, flaked almonds and spices. The perfect filling for gluten free mince pies.
Ingredients
- 100g raisins
- 50g dried apricots, chopped into small pieces
- 50g dried cranberries
- 1 large apple, grated (skin on and core removed)
- Juice of half a lemon
- Juice and zest of 1 orange
- 60g dark brown sugar
- 0.5 tsp ground cinnamon
- 0.5 tsp ground nutmeg
- 0.5 tsp ground all spice
- 0.5 tsp ground ginger
- 2 tbsp port (or brandy or apple juice)
- 50g flaked almonds
- 50g unsalted butter, grated
- Pinch of salt (I used Maldon salt)
Instructions
- Add all the ingredients EXCEPT the butter, to a large mixing bowl. Stir to combine.
- Scatter in the grated butter and use a fork to mix it through the other ingredients, try to avoid it clumping together.
- That's the mincemeat made! Either use straightaway or store in the fridge covered with clingfilm for up to 24 hours, or in a sterlised jar for up to a month (keep in the fridge). This mincemeat is absolutely delicious in my gluten free mince pies recipe, which you'll find linked above.
For more gluten free Christmas recipe ideas, why not try:
Happy baking! Laura xxx
