Easy Christmas Mincemeat Muffins (gluten-free)

Mincemeat is the pie filling in traditional mince pies full of dried fruit and festive spices. Nothing beats homemade mincemeat and I will prepare a huge batch at the end of November to see us through our mince pie cravings across the Christmas season. However, it's inevitable that our jars last a lot longer than my enthusiasm for whipping up more batches of mince pies so I love developing fun ways of using up our leftover mincemeat. This Mincemeat Muffins Recipe is one of my favourites. These festive muffins are so easy to make. They are light and fluffy but also deliciously moist with a generous crisp streusel topping.

I have made these muffins with all kinds of different mincemeats - including the 3 versions I have on my website (Easy Traditional Mincemeat, Fresh Cranberry Mincemeat and Victorian Mincemeat) and they are a success with all of them- whether they have suet or not. Shop bought mincemeat is also absolutely fine to use.

I'll show you how to make these mincemeat muffins quickly and easily without any fancy equipment, just a couple of mixing bowls, a wooden spoon, a muffin tin and some paper liners. They are also an easy baking project to make with the kids if you are scratching around for baking activities between Christmas and New Year.

Ingredients Needed

Mincemeat. You can use shop bought but homemade mincemeat will always be the true winner! (see below for links to my homemade versions)

Sour cream. Using sour cream is excellent in gluten-free baking as it helps the texture and flavour of the muffins. It adds moisture and a subtle tang and leads to a soft rich tender crumb. Its acidity also helps activate bicarbonate of soda so the muffins rise better with more lightness.

Sugar. Soft light brown sugar adds a lovely flavour and moisture to the bake.

Unsalted Butter. Melted butter is needed for the muffins and room temperature butter is needed to make the streusel topping.

Eggs. This recipe uses medium eggs, about 60g each.

Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend This is the only flour blend I recommend using with this recipe. You can find the recipe for this mix on my website and it is a specific mix of 4 different flours:

• Sweet rice flour (glutinous rice flour).
• Sorghum flour.
• Oat flour.
• Tapioca flour (tapioca starch).

There are plenty of flour substitution tips if you can’t have the oat flour or can’t find sweet rice flour or sorghum flour if you click on the original post for this flour mix. READ MORE >>> Homemade Gluten-Free Flour Blend.

Flour substitution. You can alternatively choose to use 50% branded gluten-free flour mixed with 50% almond flour if you are not able to use my flour blend.

(It is also possible to make these muffins with regular all-purpose flour instead of the gluten-free flour choice if gluten-free isn't a concern for you.)

Gluten-free porridge oats. It gives a little crunch to the streusel topping. You can substitute with millet flakes if you need to avoid oats.

Mixed spice. For a little extra festive flavour. If you can't get hold of it then use my British Mixed Spice Recipe.

Raising agents. We use both bicarbonate of soda and baking powder here.

Salt. Using salt heightens the flavours of the muffins. I recommend kosher salt for baking as it has a gentle flavour.

Icing sugar (powdered sugar / confectioners sugar). This is mixed with the orange juice below to make a tangy glaze which just adds a little bit more warm citrus flavour.

Orange. Use the zest and the juice for making the easy glaze for drizzling on top of the muffins.

Favourite Mincemeat Recipes

It's a solid choice to make your own mincemeat. It is so much more flavourful than shop bought. If you need some options then these ones are wonderful.

• Easy Mincemeat Recipe. This mincemeat is a traditional mincemeat for all your festive needs.
• Boozy Cranberry Mincemeat. This mincemeat is vegan, nut free and bursting with fresh fruity flavour, doused in a lovely splash of Cointreau.
• Victorian Meat Mincemeat. This is definitely one to try. It's made with real beef although it is still a sweet mincemeat, the best one you will ever have!

How To Make Mincemeat Muffins

For full recipe instructions go to the recipe card at the end of this post. 

Prepare the Muffin Tin: Line a 12-hole muffin tin with muffin cases. Preheat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan assisted / gas mark 4 / 350°F.

Wet Ingredients: In a large bowl, mix together mincemeat, sour cream, sugar, butter, and eggs until combined.

Dry Ingredients and Combine: In another bowl, sift together gluten-free flour, spice, bicarbonate of soda, baking powder, and salt. Add to the liquid mixture and beat for a minute. Let the batter rest.

Prepare the Streusel Topping: In another large mixing bowl, mix flour, sugar, butter, oats, and spice by rubbing them together with your fingers. The mixture should be crumbly.

Assemble and Bake: Stir the muffin batter again and distribute it evenly into the muffin cases. Crumble the streusel on top and bake for 30 minutes.

Cool the Muffins: Remove from the oven and immediately transfer muffins to a rack to cool.

Make the Orange Icing: In a small bowl, mix icing sugar and zest of ½ an orange. Add 1-2 tablespoons of orange juice and whisk until smooth.

Ice the Muffins: Drizzle the icing over the cooled muffins before serving.