Why it works: Sugar and egg are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Mince Pies
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare
Roll out the pastry to ¼ inch thick and cut into rounds with a fluted cutter, larger than the patty-pans.
Place half of the rounds on patty-pans and add a little mincemeat in the center of each.
Wet the edges of the pastry and cover with the remaining rounds, pressing the edges lightly together.
Glaze and bake
Glaze with egg white and dust with castor sugar.
Bake in a 400°F (200°C) oven for about 20 minutes.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Puff pastry
- Its layers puff and crisp in the oven, forming the light, flaky shell.
- Mincemeat
- Its sugar and fruit fill the pies with sweetness and moisture as they bake.
- Castor sugar
- Dusted on top, it caramelises and adds a crisp, golden sweet finish.
- Egg white
- Brushed on as a glaze, it helps the top brown and turn glossy.
The step that matters
Pressing the pastry edges together. Wetting and pressing the edges seals the lid to the base so filling does not leak out and the pastry can rise evenly during baking.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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