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| Recipe Archive > Cakes & Biscuits > |
 Christmas Latticed Marzipan
& Mincemeat Tartlets
(Makes 9 very substantial tartlets)
The combination of cooked marzipan and mincemeat is quite irresistible especially when it is covered in a freshly baked puff pastry case. Serve the tartlets warm from the oven, glazed with Whitworths icing sugar and accompanied by chilled pouring cream, delicious.
Equipment & Ingredients
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Lattice roller cutter (available from good kitchenware shops) |
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8cm / 3½ inch biscuit cutter |
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Puff pastry made with 225g / 8oz flour or 450g / 1lb ready made puff, thawed if frozen |
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1 jar of quality mincemeat, prepared with rum or brandy egg glaze |
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Whitworths icing sugar, sifted for glazing the tartlets |
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225g / 8oz ground almonds |
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110g / 4oz Whitworths icing |
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110g / 4oz Whitworths caster sugar |
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A few drops of almond essence (optional) |
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Whites of 2 eggs, whisked until foamy |
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Method
Prepare the marzipan. Place all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl, and combine with enough of the egg white to make a moist ball of paste. Knead lightly until smooth, then leave in the fridge to become firm.
Prepare the puff cases by dividing the pastry into two even pieces. Wrap one piece in kitchen film and place in the fridge. Roll out the other piece into a square that measures 33 x 33cm / 13 x 13in. Divide the marzipan into 9 equal pieces, then roll into balls. Lightly flatten the balls into 7.5cm / 3in circles and place them on the pastry square, spacing them evenly so that there is about 2.5cm / 1in between each circle and from the edges of the pastry to each circle. Slightly raise each disc and place under it 1 rounded tsp mincemeat. Replace the disc. Lightly paint a little egg glaze around each disc. Now roll out the second piece of pastry to the same dimensions, then use a cutter to make a lattice pattern the length of the pastry and separate the cuts gently with your fingers to open out the pattern. Transfer over the top of the mincemeat and marzipan and allow it to drape so that it covers the marzipan without stretching the pastry. Press around them with your fingertips to seal the pastry, then use a plain biscuit cutter to cut out 9 individual tartlets, making sure that the marzipan is in the centre of each circle. Lightly paint the surface of each tartlet with egg glaze and bake in a preheated oven for 15 minutes. For a really professional finish see the sugar tip below.
Tips
Sugar Tip:
For a fantastic glaze, set the baked tartlets on the grill rack and dredge lightly with Whitworths icing sugar. Set them under a hot grill and watch as the icing sugar caramelises into a brittle shine. Be careful because this takes less than a minute.
Pastry tip:
Set the baking sheet of oven-prepared tartlets on top of a preheated baking sheet in the oven to ensure the underside of the tartlets cook well.
Icing tip:
To download a decorative holly stencil for a plain mince pie, please click here.
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Click here for stencil |
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