This post contains affiliate links. Please read my disclosures.
These simple Gluten-Free Mince Pies are made with the most flavourful sorghum and almond flour buttery pastry and filled with an easy homemade mincemeat. Mince pie lovers no longer need to miss out on gloriously flaky and tasty mince pies that are packed with Christmassy flavour and are easy to bake at home.
The first mince pie of the year is such a treat, full of nostalgia and cosy festive memories. Every bite embodies the heart of Christmas time. But let’s face it supermarket gluten-free mince pies do not quite hit the mark. If you have been disappointed by these tasteless, cardboard tasting and tooth-achingly sweet gluten-free mince pies then this recipe will be a revelation.
In this delicious gluten-free mince pie recipe the mincemeat is rich juicy and perfectly spiced and the pastry is king, full of buttery flavour which flakes into your mouth. And the best bit is that they are no more challenging to make than a regular mince pie.
If you've ever been afraid of making your own gluten-free pastry case, then don’t worry. You will use a homemade flour mix, which includes sweet rice flour, sorghum flour, almond flour, and ground flax seeds. You don't need any branded gluten-free flour blends or xanthum gum! However, if you don't have these flours, I provide you with alternatives so that you can use what you have on hand.
We will go through this simple method step by step. All you need to do is whisk the flours together, cut in the butter, stir in the eggs, then roll it out. That's it! This pastry recipe is excellent to work with and rolls out really well. Even better, when baked, it is so full of flavour and will not crumble but melt in the mouth.
As far as the filling goes, you can pick and choose the mincemeat recipe that suits your taste. Three of my favourites include Victorian Mincemeat, Cranberry Cointreau Mincemeat, and Easy Mincemeat. If you're a first-timer, I recommend the easy mincemeat. It's my go-to.
Jump to:
- Why You'll Love This Gluten-Free Mince Pie Recipe
- Watch this Video to see how to make Gluten-Free Mince Pies
- Ingredients and Notes
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Gluten-Free Mince Pies
- Expert Tips
- Recommended Equipment
- FAQS
- How to Serve
- How to Store and Keep
- More Gluten-Free Christmas Recipes You'll Love!
- Gluten-Free Mince Pies with Homemade Pastry
Why You'll Love This Gluten-Free Mince Pie Recipe
- These truly are the best mince pies and are indistinguishable for even your non-gluten-free friends and family members.
- The gluten-free shortcrust pastry is more than a vessel for holding your mincemeat. It has its own character and flavour profile to enhance your mince pies and is perfect for both those on a gluten-free diet and those who are not.
- You can make this pastry up to 3 days in advance, which makes it convenient for getting ahead of the game during the festive season.
- No xanthan gum or guar gum is needed!
- The richly spiced mincemeat filling is made in advance to allow the flavours to meld together.
Watch this Video to see how to make Gluten-Free Mince Pies
Ingredients and Notes
Homemade Flour Blend
You need only four ingredients to create a unique gluten-free flour blend that is delicious, easy to work with, and creates amazing double-crusted mince pies. (Substitutions are suggested below).
Sweet Rice Flour: This is the majority of flour used in this recipe. It is needed to bind the ingredients together and add elasticity to the mix so that the pastry can be easily rolled out. It has a near-neutral taste, so its role is mostly function.
Sorghum Flour: Produces an incredibly tasty pastry. Think wholewheat flour, earthy and wholesome—a perfect flavour match for the richly spiced mincemeat.
Almond Flour: This recipe was tested with defatted almond flour, which is an incredibly fine flour and different from ground almonds. It adds a mild nutty sweetness and a great protein structure, so it helps to hold the pastry together.
Ground Flaxseeds: Helps further bind the pastry to stop it from crumbling apart. It also adds a nice bit of texture.
The rest of the ingredients
Butter: Use unsalted cold butter directly from the fridge to create a flaky crust.
Caster Sugar: A type of granulated sugar that has a very fine grain size. It is finer than regular granulated sugar but coarser than powdered sugar.
Eggs: Acts as a binder, helping to hold the ingredients together. They provide structure to the dough, ensuring it holds its shape during baking.
Milk: Use whole milk for a rich dough.
Mincemeat: There are several different types of mincemeat you can use based on your taste preference. I recommend using my easy mincemeat. It's my go-to everyday traditional recipe.
Variations and Substitutions
Gluten-Free Flour Substitutions: I don't recommend substituting the flours for all-purpose gluten-free flour as the ratio of flours will not be suitable. You can substitute the sorghum flour for oat flour or millet flour. You can swap the sweet rice flour for cassava flour and the almond flour can be switched for chickpea flour (gram flour) if you have a nut allergy.
Dairy-Free: Make this recipe dairy-free by substituting unsalted butter with unsalted vegan butter. Use vegan baking butter. And substitute whole milk for coconut milk.
How to Make Gluten-Free Mince Pies
Find the full method in the recipe card below.
- In a large bowl, use butter cold from the fridge, sliced as thinly as possible, then rubbed with the flour to make rough shreds and add flakiness to your dough.
- Add a little caster sugar for sweetness.
- Add two eggs and an extra yolk for richness.
- Bring the dough together with your hands, with maybe a little ice-cold milk if more liquid is needed to make the pastry cohesive. You could also use a food processor to bring the dough together.
- Wrap your ball of pastry in cling film and keep it in the fridge until needed.
- Preheat the oven. To make the mince pies, dust your worktop and your rolling pin with extra sweet rice flour, then roll your pastry.
- Cut your pastry using a pastry cutter or round cookie cutter and place each pastry round carefully in the hole of a 12-hole muffin tray. If you want double-crusted mince pies, then cut slightly smaller rounds for the lids and tuck on top so the edges of the pastry all meet.
- If you would like to decorate the top of the mince pies, then cut out extra Christmas time shapes, like a pastry star, and place them on top.
- Whisk the extra egg yolk and a little milk to make a wash, then brush the beaten egg over the top of each mince pie. Place in the oven and bake the mince pies for 10 minutes until they are golden brown. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes to rest, then carefully remove each mince pie from the tin with a palette knife and place on a wire rack to cool.
Expert Tips
- It's important to keep the butter and eggs cold. You can even chill your flours in the refrigerator briefly before use. Cold ingredients help create a flakier crust.
- Make sure the cold butter is evenly distributed throughout the dry ingredients. The result should resemble coarse sand with small, pea-sized bits of butter. This helps create a flaky texture.
- Refrigerate the dough for at least 30 minutes before rolling it out. Chilling allows the dough to relax and makes it easier to roll out.
- Gluten-free dough can be stickier than traditional dough, so roll it out between two sheets of parchment paper. This makes handling easier without sticking to your rolling pin or countertop.
- Gluten-free homemade pastry is just as easy to make as regular wheat flour pastry. The only difference is that it is slightly more fragile to handle, so you may need to take a little more care when rolling it out.
- Spend a couple of minutes extra to blend together your gluten-free flour mix so you can ensure your pastry has the right bind, flakiness and snap.
Recommended Equipment
You can buy mince pie baking tins specifically for making these bite-sized pies. But if you don't have those, a regular 12-hole muffin tin makes the perfect-sized four-bite mince pies. You'll also need a round pastry cutter or round cookie cutters for cutting out the pastry.
FAQS
Mince pies are small sweet pies filled with mincemeat and encased in pastry. Traditional mincemeat is a mixture of dried fruits, spices, brandy and suet. Originally mincemeat would have also included minced meat such as beef or lamb but today's mince pies are usually meatless. These spiced festive pies have a long history that dates back to medieval times and are traditionally eaten at Christmas across the UK and Europe.
Mincemeat is a richly spiced filling usually made from dried fruit, nuts, and spices, which are preserved in brown sugar and brandy with suet to provide a silky mouthfeel. However, the variations of recipes for mincemeat are endless. You can switch up the alcohol, use fresh fruit, like apples, or omit the nuts or suet. You can use shop-bought or make your own recipe.
You don't have to make regular double crusted mince pies. There are many ways you can top your mince pies to make them even more enticing, including open-topped pies or decorated with pastry shapes, frangipane topped mince pies, brandy butter topped, or orange icing.
A mince pie can be totally re-invented depending on which pastry you use. This recipe uses a traditional homemade shortcrust gluten-free pastry which is so easy to make. However, you could also use gluten-free puff pastry if you prefer.
How to Serve
These homemade mince pies are delicious straight from the oven or allowed to cool to room temperature without any accompaniments.
However, for an exceptional treat, try them warmed up with a drizzle of Gluten-Free Brandy Sauce. It's a straightforward five-minute sauce that adds tons of flavour. Or brush them with a combination of clementine zest and juice for a citrus twist.
You could also serve these with a side of vanilla ice cream for the ultimate festive treat!
How to Store and Keep
Making the Pastry in Advance: You can make the pastry up to 3 days before making the mince pies. Bring it out 30 minutes to 1 hour (depending on how warm your kitchen is) before you would like to roll it out.
Room Temperature: Traditional mince pies can last at room temperature for about 1 to 2 days in a cool place. They are best when enjoyed shortly after baking, as their texture and flavor are at their peak. Store them in an airtight container or a resealable bag to prevent them from drying out or absorbing moisture from the environment.
Refrigerate: The best way to extend the shelf life of your mince pies is to store them in the refrigerator. They can last for up to a week when properly stored in an airtight container.
Freezing: Allow the mince pies to cool completely then place in an airtight container, layered with baking parchment in between. They will store in the freezer for up to 3 months. Allow to defrost at room temperature before serving. Or re-heat for 6-8 minutes in a pre-heated oven.
More Gluten-Free Christmas Recipes You'll Love!
✨Have you tried these Gluten-Free Mince Pies? Please leave a 5-star ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ rating on the recipe card and consider leaving a comment as well! I would love to hear about how your recipe turned out and your feedback also helps other readers✨
Gluten-Free Mince Pies with Homemade Pastry
Equipment
- muffin tin
Ingredients
- 140 g sweet rice flour - (glutinous rice flour), plus extra flour for dusting
- 125 g sorghum flour
- 75 g almond flour - defatted
- 25 g ground flaxseeds
- 125 g unsalted butter - directly from the fridge
- 100 g caster sugar
- 2 eggs + 1 yolk - medium, lightly beaten
- pinch of salt
- 1-2 tablespoons whole milk - very cold
- 300 g mincemeat
- 1 teaspoon egg yolk + 1 tablespoon whole milk whisked together for the wash
Instructions
Making the pastry
- In a large mixing bowl whisk together the sweet rice flour, sorghum flour, almond flour and flaxseeds.
- Slice the butter very thinly and add to the flour. Then rub the mixture between fingertips until roughly shorn and crumbly.
- Whisk in the caster sugar and salt and then pour in the eggs.
- Bring the dough together using a wooden spoon at first if you like and then your hands. If the dough is still too dry and crumbly then add a little extra whole milk.
- Turn the pastry out on to the work surface and knead very briefly into a ball until the dough is cohesive and slightly sticky.
- Wrap the pastry dough in cling film and place in the fridge for at least 30 minutes (or up to 3 days) until you are ready to make your mince pies.
Making the mince pies
- Pre-heat the oven to 180°C / 160°C fan assisted oven/gas mark 4, or 325°F.
- To make the mince pies, dust your worktop and your rolling pin with extra sweet rice flour then roll your pastry out to 3mm thickness or ¼ of an inch thick. The pastry will be quite fragile. I usually split the dough in half and roll out half at a time to save a lot of re-rolling.
- Cut your pastry using an 8cm or 3-inch pastry cutter and place each round carefully in the hole of a 12-hole muffin tin. The pastry will come up about halfway. Fill each mince pie with a heaped teaspoon of mincemeat. If you want double-crusted mince pies, then cut out further 6cm (2 inch) rounds for the lid and tuck on top so the edges of the pastry all meet.
- If you would like to decorate the top of the mince pies then cut out extra Christmassy shapes from the pastry and place on top.
- Whisk the extra egg yolk and milk to make a wash then brush over the top of each mince pie. Place in the oven and bake the mince pies for 10 minutes until they are golden. Leave in the tin for 5 minutes to rest then carefully remove each mince pie from the tin with a palette knife and place on a wire rack to cool. Wash and dry the tin then make your next batch.
- Store the mince pies in a metal tin. They keep quite well for up to 5 days but they are best on the day they are made.
Video
Notes
Mincemeat recipes
Flour substitutions
- Sorghum flour can be swapped for oat flour or millet flour.
- Sweet rice flour can be swapped for cassava flour.
- Defatted almond flour can be swapped for chickpea flour (gram flour).
Louise says
Just made a mixture of frangipane and plain mince pies using this pastry. Very pleased with the result, though I do agree gf pastry is much more delicate! I cooked them for 15 +5 mins to get a brown crust and cook the frangipane.
I had to handle the pastry quite a lot to roll it out. Does this affect it? I know gluten pastry doesn't like overhandling.. Think I will roll out smaller pieces next time. Thank you. I love this website.
Georgina Hartley says
Yes it's better if you don't overhandle as it just goes a little tougher but to be honest I have rolled and re-rolled this pastry a load in the past when I've been messing around making my pies and the end result is always delicious!
Sandra says
Any chance that I can cut the sugar out completely or at least in half?
Georgina Hartley says
Hi Sandra, I'm afraid not as the sugar is integral to the structure of the pastry in this recipe. However, I can give you a gluten-free pastry recipe which uses no sugar and it also tastes delicious with the mince pies. Go to >>> The Best All Butter Gluten-Free Pastry
Susan says
I like your recipes but I notice that despite several updates, the salt specified in the ingredient list is forgotten in the instructions. While not very important per se, it does not inspire confidence.
Georgina Hartley says
Thank you for your email. I have now amended the recipe to specify when the salt should be added.