Mince Pie Biscotti
Light and crunchy biscuits full of Christmas fruit, spice, and nuts. Flavoured with the same mincemeat used to fill traditional mince pies. Perfect eaten alongside a tipple or a cuppa, these easy biscotti make a wonderful Christmas gift too.
If doubling the recipe, form into two logs and space well apart on a baking tray (or on separate trays or baked in batches) as they will spread as they cook.
It's recommended that you read the accompanying blog post before starting the recipe.
Ingredients
- 125 g self-raising flour (or plain/all-purpose + 1 tsp baking powder in addition to that below)
- ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp mixed spice (can be increased to 1 tsp for a stronger flavour)
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon (can be increased to 1 tsp for a stronger flavour)
- 1 large pinch salt
- 50 g light brown soft sugar (can be replaced with caster sugar)
- 50 g roughly chopped nuts (e.g. pistachios and hazelnuts)
- 100 g fruit mincemeat (see Recipe Notes)
- 1 medium egg, beaten
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 180°C /160°Fan /Gas 4 /350°F with a shelf in the middle position.
Line a baking tray with baking paper.
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Sift the flour, baking powder, spices and salt into a bowl.
Stir in the brown sugar (or caster sugar if using) and nuts.
Add the fruit mincemeat to the bowl, breaking it up with a fork.
Gradually add enough of the beaten egg, stirring it in with the fork as you do, to create a soft dough that isn't wet. Use your hands to bring it together into a ball.
Tip 1. Some mincemeats will be wetter than others so you may not need all the egg or, if you've added it all and the mixture still seems dry, you can add a splash of milk, juice, or water.
Tip 2. If you've made the mixture too wet, work in a little more flour.
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Sprinkle flour over your work surface, ideally covered with a silicone mat, then transfer the ball of dough onto it.
Roll into a smooth log approximately 26 cm long x 3 cm wide x 2 cm high.
- Don't make the log any wider or flatter as it will spread a little as it bakes.
- Try to avoid gaps or air holes.
- Add extra flour if necessary to prevent sticking.
Carefully lift the log onto the paper-lined baking tray. If it stretches as you lift it, just pat it back together to the correct size.
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Bake in the oven for 35 minutes or until the log is risen and firm; if your oven cooks unevenly then turn the tray around half way through.
Remove from the oven, transfer the log to a cooling rack and leave until only just warm.
While the log is cooling: reduce the oven temperature to 160°C /140°Fan /Gas 3 /325°F.
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Put the log on a board and use a serrated bread knife to carefully cut it into slices 1cm wide, using a sawing motion: cutting on the diagonal for longer slices is traditional.
Put the slices back on the paper-lined baking tray, with a cut side uppermost, and return to the oven.
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Bake for 10 minutes then turn each biscotti over and bake for a further 8 - 10 minutes or until they are deep golden brown and completely firm: you shouldn't feel any 'bounce' if you press down on them.
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Put the biscotti on the cooling rack and leave until completely cold before storing in an airtight container.
Should stay crisp for at least 1 week.
Recipe Notes
Fruit Mincemeat.
Mincemeat is a British dried fruit preserve traditionally eaten at Christmas as the filling in mince pies. Making your own is incredibly easy, although ideally you'll want to leave it a couple of weeks to mature before using. I recommend either my classic Homemade Christmas Mincemeat or the one I used for the biscotti you see in this post, warmly spicy Ginger Christmas Mincemeat.
If you're buying mincemeat, it pays to get a well-flavoured, good quality one. Check the label to avoid palm oil and cheap fillers like apple puree.