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Overall rating: 6/10

Review: The best gluten free vegan mince pie I’ve ever eaten…but also my first!

I’ve had many requests to review some gluten free and vegan mince pie options. Done it in one here!

I’ve reviewed this as a mince pie – no preferential treatment for the GF or V.

Interesting to note that most mincemeat on the market is already gluten free and vegan. If there’s brandy added then that can complicate matters as some aren’t vegan. Keep your eyes peeled vegan folks.

Onto this mince pie…I’m pleasantly surprised. I thought it would be a tasteless, squishy mess. I was wrong.

The pastry is a decent consistency but is let down by having a bit of a grainy after taste and texture. There’s a very clear spiced flavour to the whole pie which is potentially in there to make up for the lack of flavour from the butter etc in the pastry. It’s actually a little overpowering.

The mincemeat is good and juicy, pretty decent actually. Very happy with that, some nice whole fruits in there.

All in all this isn’t one of the best mince pies I’ve had this year….but it’s the best gluten free vegan one. One to try if you’re looking for GF/V options.

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Overall rating: 2/10

Review: Like so many fancy looking mince pies this year, Sainsbury’s have managed to miss the mark.

The first thing you notice when you bit into this mince pie is the cavernous gap where the mincemeat should be…its over half empty! The second thing you notice is just how dry the mincemeat is – I had to double check the box to make sure they hadn’t been left over from last year.

The final observation is the taste – the mincemeat has a slightly strange after taste, almost chemical. Very unpleasant. The only saving grace is the pastry which is decent. But overall a big waste of money…did anyone taste these Sainsbury’s? I’m available all year, you just need to ask.

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Overall rating: 8/10

Review: Look at that box! These are some fancy mince pies. M&S know how to do food so I’m excited about trying these…

The pie is quite large, it doesn’t taper towards the bottom like most do. The top is as fancy as the box, with an intricate star motif and icing sugar to finish. On first bite I think it’s a bit soft – not too soft but not perfect either.

The filling is the star of the show here, full of delightful fruit and a glug of cognac. But the overriding flavour is orange from the clementine advertised on the box. Glad to see a mince pie tasting like it’s advertised for once, but the orange maybe causes the spice and fruit of the mincemeat to fade a little too far into the background.

Still a very good mince pie M&S, happy to have these at the table over Christmas.

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Overall rating: 8.5/10

Review: The second M&S mince pie of 2019. It’s a cracker. Well it’s a pie, but you know what I mean…

This is the standard pie from M&S so I’m not expecting it to be as good as their fancy pie. It is. It’s better. Blimey.

The pastry on this one is great, it’s not as soft as the fancy pie which is good. A nice sprinkle of sugar on the biscuit-like top which just finishes it off nicely. The filling is really tasty and a nice consistency, again better than the fancy pie (less orange).

This is a great contender and something that would look great on your table and impress your festive visitors.

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Overall rating: 9/10

Review: The winner from 2017 returns triumphantly. Another great mince pie from Co-op.

The biscuity pastry is sweet and crumbly – but not too crumbly. Inside this towering beast of a mince pie is a lovely, rich, fruity and spiced mincemeat. A great mix of actual whole fruits and mincemeat paste. A generous filling too – not quite to the top, which is a good thing because it’s a big eat already! This one has brandy & port but not in huge amounts, just enough to give it hint. A sprinkling of coarse sugar on top finishes this pie off perfectly. These only come in packs of two, but get a few in for Christmas as they’re sure to be somewhere close to the best of the best in 2019.

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Overall rating: 7/10

Review: Oh ohh. Here comes Mr Big Shot! It’s the deep filled pie from Mr Kipling – with a Good Housekeeping Institute taste award on the box no less…

I’m not sure who’s on the Good Housekeeping Institute mince pie tasting panel (you just have to ask guys, I’ll help) but this pie is just a bit better than standard. A 7 is a good score and I’d be happy to have these as a festive workhorse – being them out when you have guests in bulk. Keep the fancy stuff back for yourself.

The pastry is very slightly on the soft side, but the mincemeat is nice with some nice full fruit and bite. It’s not particularly memorable but there’s nothing terrible either. You wont go far wrong with a Mr Kipling pie – they’ve been making them for long enough I suppose.

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Overall rating: 6.5/10

Review: I quite fancy a lattice top, something a bit different. This one looks quite nice on the box but as so often this year, the actual pie is a little paler.

Biting into it, the bottom is a bit too soft and the top is then inextricably too dry – not ideal at all. The one saving grace is the mincemeat – with lots of juicy fruit and lovely sweet, rich flavour. The pastry doesn’t have much of a taste to compliment the mincemeat though, which is a shame.

A good try but feels like it’s just there to look pretty and make up the numbers.

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Overall Rating: 6/10

Review: Aldi have had a mixed showing the last few years. They tend to release a raft of mince pies of all types – and the specially selected range usually score well. However, this is a classic mince pie from that range and whilst it’s nice to look at – it’s disappointingly bland.

 

The pastry is a little dry and flavourless – quite crumbly. The filling isn’t coarse enough, it’s more paste than mincemeat. It needs more fruit to give it a better taste and texture. The brandy advertised on the box needs to be added next time too, must’ve got a dodgy batch without any ‍♂️

All in all this is a very standard mince pie – not terrible but certainly nothing to shout about.

Onto the next one!

 

Overall rating: 8.5/10

Review: Last year’s winner here. Big boots to fill. I’m excited!

I’m disappointed. Damn it. But there’s no doubt these are still a very good mince pie.

ASDA, like many of the big supermarkets, still run with a selection of factory made boxes pies – and a smaller selection of bakery pies. This is the deep filled version from the bakery and so mileage may vary (dependent on the staff, even I guess). The pastry on these is very slightly too pale for my liking – but that’s a really minor point. The filling is a little short – both on amount and taste – but certainly better than most standard factory boxes pies.

Hard to say where they would’ve ended up on the scale if they had been in the oven a little longer with a little more (and sharper) filling…as it stands I think 8.5/10 is fair. They’re a big eat too – so that always helps.

Enjoy!

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Overall rating: 2/10

Review: Oh dear. I’m not sure how these can come from the same bakery as the 8.5/10 deep filled mince pies?

Shallow filled pies aren’t my favourite anyway, I mean having less filling and more pastry surely can’t be good! But these have somehow ended up greasy. The pastry is unpleasant. The filling isn’t the same as in the deep filled pie either, which is a mystery.

Very little flavour, a claggy, greasy pastry – one to avoid no matter how cheap they might seem.

Sorry ASDA…

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