Season: September to October. The term mincemeat originated in the fifteenth century, when chopped meat was preserved with a combination of dried fruit, sugar, and aromatic spices. During the seventeenth century, suet replaced the meat and has been used ever since. This recipe is a departure on several fronts: it uses fresh fruit as well as dried, and it contains no suet. In fact, it contains very little fat (only the oil in the walnuts). The result is light and fruity, but with all the rich, warm spiciness of a traditional mincemeat. If you can’t find russet apples, any good eating apple can be used.
Recipe information
Yield
makes four 12-ounce jars
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Wash the plums, halve and pit them, then put them into a saucepan with the orange juice. Cook gently until tender, about 15 minutes. Purée in a blender or press through a sieve. You should end up with about 3 cups of plum purée.
Step 2
Put the purée into a large bowl and add all the other ingredients, except the brandy or gin. Mix thoroughly, then cover and let stand for 12 hours.
Step 3
Preheat the oven to 250°F. Put the mincemeat in a large baking dish and bake, uncovered, for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Stir in the brandy or gin, then spoon into warm, sterilized jars (see p. 21), making sure there aren’t any air pockets. Seal (see p. 22) and store in a dry, dark, cool place until Christmas. Use within 1 year.
VARIATION
Step 4
You can vary this recipe, but keep the fresh fruit purée to around 3 cups and the total amount of dried fruit to 4 cups or 1 1/4 pounds. For an apple, pear, and ginger mincemeat, replace the plums with Granny Smith apples, the russet apples with firm pears, and 2/3 cup of either of the raisins with 3 1/2 ounces of crystallized ginger. You could also exchange the walnuts for almonds and add a couple of teaspoonfuls of ground cinnamon.
