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Home » Cakes, Cookies and Desserts » Christmas mince pinwheels

Christmas mince pinwheels

Author: VJ Published : December 2022 Modified : December 2022 / Be the first to comment!

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With only 3 ingredients and 20 minutes in the oven, these Christmas mince pinwheels are the easiest mince pies you will ever make. And what’s more, they taste so good I guarantee you’ll be making this recipe more than once in the run-up to Christmas!

A plate of Christmas fruit pinwheels.

Christmas mince pies

Christmas just wouldn’t be Christmas without a mince pie (or two, or three) to snack on. I always look forward to the first mince pies being sold in the shops, and these days they seem to be appearing earlier and earlier. This year, I actually spotted the first ones on sale in September!

I love biting through the soft pastry shell and getting my first taste of the tangy, fruity mincemeat filling.

But much as I love them, they are a bit of a faff to make. It seems much easier to buy a box in the supermarket!

So this year I decided that instead of mince pies I was going to make Christmas mince pinwheels. And it was a revelation.

So easy! I can’t believe I have never done this before!

And they taste just as good (or perhaps even better) than the real deal. Crispy puff pastry wrapped around a layer of fruity mincemeat. Oh! they are so good!

Let me show you!

Overhead shot of two plates of Christmas mince pinwheels.

What you will need

Equipment

You will need a baking tray and a roll of baking parchment. Believe me, cooked mincemeat can be quite sticky and if you line your baking tray with baking parchment before putting it in the oven you’ll save yourself at least half-an-hour of trying to clean the sticky tray.

If you buy a roll of puff pastry then you are good to go, but if you have a block of pastry you will need a rolling pin to roll it out into a thin rectangle.

For applying egg-wash to the mince pinwheels you will need a silicone pastry brush.

Ingredients

**You can find the full recipe for making Christmas mince pinwheels on the printable recipe card at the end of this post**

This recipe makes 16 to 18 Christmas mince pinwheels.

Ingredients for Christmas mince pinwheels.
You will only need three ingredients for making these Christmas mince pinwheels:

Puff pastry – you can buy this pastry ready-rolled, which is the easiest option, or you can buy a block of puff pastry and roll it yourself.

Fruit mincemeat – you can buy jars of this in the baking aisle at your local supermarket. The jar I bought was 400 grams by weight (that’s around 14 ounces).

Egg – lightly beaten with a tablespoon of milk, and used to seal the pastry roll, and also to brush over the pinwheels before putting them in the oven.

What to do

It couldn’t be simpler!

A sheet of puff pastry unrolled on a worksurface.

Allow the pastry to come to room temperature (to prevent cracking) and then unroll it onto the paper that it was wrapped in.

If you have a block of pastry, place it on a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle approximately 12″ x 15″ in size.

A sheet of puff pastry spread with fruit mincemeat.

Spread the mincemeat onto the pastry in a thin layer.

I used approximately three-quarters of a jar, but if you’ve rolled the pastry yourself, you may find you need the entire jar.

Don’t spread the mincemeat more thickly than in the picture or it will leak out all over the place and you’ll end up with a sticky mess.

Puff pastry and fruit mincemeat being rolled into a sausage shape.

Roll the pastry into a sausage shape, starting on the long side. Use the paper to help you to roll it.

The edge of the rolled pastry being brushed with beaten egg.

Brush the edge of the pastry with a little of the beaten egg and milk to help it seal.

A roll of puff pastry and fruit mincemeat with the end trimmed off.

Trim the edge from each end of the pastry roll to neaten it up a bit.

Don’t throw the offcuts away – put them on the baking tray for a chef’s treat.

Unbaked Christmas fruit pinwheels on a baking tray.

Cut the pastry roll into slices and arrange them on your parchment-lined baking tray. I got 17 slices plus both ends.

Try to push them into roughly circular shapes, but don’t get too hung up about it, they will magically spread out and shape up as they bake.

Brush the top and sides of each slice with the beaten egg.

Baked Christmas fruit pinwheels on a baking tray.

Place the pinwheels into a preheated oven (200C / 400F) for 18 to 20 minutes until golden brown.

Remove from the oven and leave on the tray to cool.

Serving and storage

If you want to make them look even more festive, you can dust them with icing sugar (or powdered sugar) before serving.

You can store these Christmas mince pinwheels in an airtight container in a cool place in the kitchen for 4 days before they start to turn stale.

I like to eat them at room temperature, but you can heat them for a few seconds in the microwave if you like to eat them warm.

If you’d like to be notified of any new recipes, why not subscribe to my newsletter. As a thank-you gift, you will receive a free recipe e-book containing some of my most popular cakes and desserts.

Christmas mince pinwheels FAQ

What is fruit mincemeat?

For those of you who don’t know, fruit mincemeat is simply a mixture of dried fruit such as currants, sultanas and raisins, mixed with a little brandy or other alcohol and a small amount of fat (in the form of suet).
In medieval England, this was used as a way of preserving meat, but over the years the meat has been removed from the recipe, leaving only the fruit.
These days, fruit mincemeat forms the filling in traditional Christmas mince pies.

Can I freeze these mince pinwheels?

Yes, you can freeze the assembled mince pinwheels on the baking tray and once frozen, transfer them to a plastic container. You can freeze them for up to three months.
To cook, arrange the frozen pinwheels on a baking tray lined with baking parchment and bake from frozen. You may have to add a couple of minutes to the baking time to compensate.

Close up of a plate of Christmas mince pinwheels.

Save for later

If you’d like to make these Christmas fruit pinwheels yourself, why not save the recipe to one of your Pinterest boards so you can find it easily. Just click on the image below.

Alternatively, you can save the recipe by clicking on the floating heart icon on the right-hand side of the screen.

Other recipes

If this isn’t quite what you are looking for, why not take a look at some of my other easy Christmas baking recipes:

  • No bake Christmas cake with chocolate – the easiest Christmas cake ever – just mix everything together and pop it into the refrigerator to set
  • Chocolate orange tarts – crispy pastry shells, coated with melted chocolate and filled with a tangy orange custard
  • Fruit mincemeat starbread – a Christmas twist on the ever-popular Chelesa buns
  • Impossible Christmas tart – all mixed in one dish, which magically separates into three distinct layers in the oven
  • No-bake Baileys chocolate truffles – the perfect after-dinner treat
  • Last minute Christmas cake – a quick and easy Christmas cake that doesn’t need to be matured

The recipe

A plate of Christmas fruit pinwheels.

Christmas mince pinwheels

With only 3 ingredients and 20 minutes in the oven, these Christmas mince pinwheels are the easiest mince pies you will ever make. And what's more, they taste so good I guarantee you'll be making this recipe more than once in the run-up to Christmas!
Recipe by: Veronica
Baking
British
Calories 57
Prep 20 minutes
Cook 20 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Servings: 16 pinwheels
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5 from 1 vote

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Equipment

  • Baking tray
  • Baking parchment
  • Rolling Pin optional
  • Pastry brush

Ingredients

  • 1 roll puff pastry store-bought
  • 14 ounces / 400 gram jar fruit mincemeat you may not need all of it
  • 1 small egg lightly beaten with 1 tablespoon of milk

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 200°C / 400°F
  • Allow the pastry to come to room temperature (to prevent cracking) and then unroll it onto the paper that it was wrapped in.
    If you have a block of pastry, place it on a lightly floured surface and roll it out into a rectangle approximately 12" x 15" in size.
    1 roll puff pastry
  • Spread the mincemeat onto the pastry in a thin layer.
    I used approximately three-quarters of a jar, but if you've rolled the pastry yourself, you may find you need the entire jar.
    14 ounces / 400 gram jar fruit mincemeat
  • Roll the pastry into a sausage shape, starting on the long side. Use the paper to help you to roll it.
  • Brush the edge of the pastry with a little of the beaten egg and milk to help it seal.
    1 small egg
  • Trim the edge from each end of the pastry roll to neaten it up a bit.
    Don't throw the offcuts away – put them on the baking tray for a chef's treat.
  • Cut the pastry roll into half-inch thick slices and arrange them on your parchment-lined baking tray.
    Try to push them into roughly circular shapes, but don't get too hung up about it, they will magically spread out and shape up as they bake.
    Brush the top and sides of each slice with the beaten egg.
  • Place the pinwheels into a preheated oven (200C / 400F) for 18 to 20 minutes until golden brown.
    Remove from the oven and leave on the tray to cool.
  • If desired, sprinkle with icing sugar before serving.

Notes

The unbaked pinwheels can be frozen and baked from frozen.  If baking from frozen add 2 or 3 extra minutes to the cooking time.
Store in an airtight container in the kitchen.

Nutrition

Serving – 1pinwheel | Calories – 57kcal | Carbohydrates – 11.1g | Protein – 0.5g | Fat – 1g | Saturated Fat – 0.5g | Cholesterol – 9mg | Sodium – 12mg | Potassium – 4mg | Fiber – 0.9g | Sugar – 8.3g | Vitamin D – 1µg | Calcium – 52mg | Iron – 1mg

I am not a nutritionist. The nutrition information has been calculated using an on-line calculator, and is intended for information and guidance purposes only. If the nutrition information is important to you, you should consider calculating it yourself, using your preferred tool.

Unless otherwise stated, a cup is the standard US cup containing 240 ml. In all my recipes this cup is assumed to hold 140g of flour. For help converting other ingredients between cups, grams, ounces and other measures, see my recipe conversion calculator.
All my recipes are developed and tested at sea-level. For tips on adjusting recipes for high altitudes see my post on baking at high altitudes.
Tried this recipe?If you made this recipe I’d love it if you could leave me a comment and let me know how it went!
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Filed Under: All Recipes, Cakes, Cookies and Desserts

About VJ

In my previous life, I was an IT Consultant. Now that I've swapped an office for a kitchen I have a lot more time to spend on things that interest me such as trying out new recipes. Most of my cooking is based around quick and easy meals, and you'll probably find a little South African influence creeping in due to the many years I spent there.

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In my previous life, I was an IT Consultant. Now that I've swapped an office for a kitchen I have a lot more time to spend on things that interest me such as trying out new recipes. Most of my cooking is based around quick and easy meals, and you'll probably find a little South African influence creeping in due to the many years I spent there.

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