Greetings,

For some reason the Missus (Frau Swissie) has got it into her head we should have some traditional mince pies this year - I'm not a big fan of them (despite being a Brit) but ok let's see what I can do...

Telegraph reckons M&S or Coop are the ones to go for.

Was expecting M&S online to satisfy - nadda !

Any recommendations for online from the UK, or is anybody selling decent imported ones locally in some obscure viaduct somewhere ?

Make your own? You can get the mince from your local coop. Though they tend to run out over the weeks leading to Christmas.

Grumpygrapefruit often has them on his cheese and beer stall.

I usually make my own - which reminds me, I have a jar of mincemeat from last year in the cupboard.

Cheers,
Nick

They do? Never seen it in our Coop, but then I rarely go into one these days.

Another place to try for either the pies themselves or mincemeat would be Globus. They do Christmas puds in the one in Bern so might have similar in your local branch.

Yup, they arrived yesterday, as well as Xmas Puds. Only in the shop this weekend but I'll put them online by Monday!

Another possibility for mincemeat to make your pies with is the BritShop

https://www.britshop.ch/

Also have mince pies.

https://www.britshop.ch/product/list...%26%20Cakes%20

I always make my own, 48 actually.


10 Murbeteig from Migros and the mincemeat I get at the British Shop or Britshop or at Jelmoli.


It takes quite a while to get the production started and finished, then they have to cool off and are then put into right size presentation tins. 'Right size' means three or four per person.


Bake for 23/25 minutes at 200 degrees in the middle of the oven


and Bob's your uncle.

Not being a Brit had no clue what mince pies were but had the opportunity to try some from this shop a few years back and they were outstanding.

Originally Mince Pies were made with meat. Usually lamb but sometimes minced pork and tongue. The meat was mixed with dried fruit, nuts, sugar and spices and baked in a pie. Sometimes the pie would then be sealed with fat and left in a cellar for months before eating at Christmas.

But it was the Victorians who then started making meat free Mince Pies which we know today.

Jims in Gland have them. They ship non-perishables by Post anywhere in CH/FL

Um... the suet would have been beef then.

Thanks for this. I was sure mincepies were not made with mincemeat these days and was perplexed when I saw the mince meat comments. I am not a Brit but the only mincepie I have eaten in my life definitely had no meat but a lot of brandy in it!

Yep it’s confusing. The mince pie filling is called mince meat (even though it has no meat in it) as is actual minced meat, such as minced beef!

But traditionally contains suet which is a meat product, though there are alternatives available now.

Don’t know why I can’t edit my above post. Here is Jims url https://shop.jimsbritishmarket.com/p...n-switzerland/

But the recipes I googled said minced meat?

errr, WHAT?
I think this post of your's will go down as the most confusing one in my memory.

Do I have to go to Zurich now, visit grumpy to check those out? (He better have crumpets this time too, though to make it worth the trip. )

Mincemeat (one word) is a product sold in jars, or you can make it yourself with dried fruits, nuts, sugar and spices. The original recipe (from before 150 years ago) did contain meat, but the Victorians phased that out. But we still call this pie filling Mincemeat.

round here it's uncle bertie....


oh nevermind...

There's also the confusing fact that the part of the fruit we eat is generally called the flesh ... even though most people think that flesh is just the meaty part of animals.

British food generally had a lot more spices than it does now.

Saffron Walden in Essex got it's full name in medieval times from the local crocus fields used to harvest the saffron.