So... What are the best mince pies?

[DaddyCoolNippingAtYourNose]

.. and i don't mean the crappy standard ones. i mean the finest ones ever. i was always partial to tesco 'finest' and sainsbury 'taste the diff' but someone last year recommended the next step up on the posh scale to 'Duchy Originals' which i've bought but haven't tucked into yet.

which are the very very best in your opinions?

And I don't care what Fortnum and Mason's are like as I'm extremely unlikely to ever taste one! Unless some kind, wealthy Southern MNer takes pity on a poor, uncivilised Northern waif and sends me a big old F&M food hamper.

So no Morrisons on your list then? Hmmmm...

Otherwises Tescos me, which is good as I have 2 nearby!

Tescos for me

I may have to shove some F&M pies in my basket when I go to do my Christmas shopping there next week.

Are you kind and wealthy, soupy?

i couldn't get the morrison ones. they are in coventry and nobody was going that way. i heard they were poo anyway.

Sadly not... well, I'm kind.

om my gosh, great to find out i am not the only mince pieaholic around, every year around the end of November i am getting the opposite of withdrawel symptoms just waiting for them to come into shops, after christmas i mass buy and feeze them so i can continue having them till at least FEb, should we start a campaign - "keep our mince pies all year" I have found that asda ones are also very very good, actually nicer than M&S it has to be asda luxury ones though, also the tesco finest are scrummy, i thnk everyone is different though as i don't like anything that is too sugary and i like a good filling with a nice short pastry and lashings of cream.

Well not according to the Guardian daaaaling...

i know what you mean weesaidie, according to the times they did not do very well either but as i reckon it's all down to personal taste, must admit i have made them myself before and never find them quite the same, that starts a whole new debat on what mincemeat to use aaarrrghhh help, how can a little round pastry cake cause so much trouble to so many people, are we all mad??

It is personal taste I think. I wanted to make my own but got a recipe out recently and it said you should leave the mincemeat at least a month to mature... boo hoo!

could always make do with shop ones in the month the mincemeat takes to mature. Helpful hint here AVOId weightwatchers mince pies, just had one ( in last month of 3rd pregnancy and trying to avoid piling on those unneccesary pounds) they are disgusting, devoid of any flavour or texture, very bland pastry limp and dull small and flat with lack of filling, probably why they are lo- cal then.

can't even imagine low cal mince pies. i mean, a mince pie is pure 100% badness. calories, cholesterol, you name it.

nevermind personal taste, waitrose are the best

oh, and here's a bump of my final review....

1. Waitrose All Butter - By far the best pie by a long shot. This is a superior pie and i'm not just saying that. right from the golden brown finish to the perfect, tangy filling.

2. Tesco Finest - A surpise here. This is prob the most popular pie and given tesco's nature, will probably be on 50% to 60% of tables this xmas. This is an unusual pie. shallow and saucer like and kinda weird looking but the taste is lovely and it deserves to be at the top.

3. M&S Luxury Deep Filled - A fine pie but like many other things M&S, doesn't quite meet the 'best of the best' requirements. M&S are getting lazy.

4. Duchy Originals - Excellent pastry, terrible filling. Extremely expensive. The pastry is superior (similar to waitrose) but the filling really lets this pie down.

5. Sainsbury's Taste the diff - Not all bad but too sweet, cheap gooey pastry and mediocre filling.

6. Asda Extra Luxury - Not good. They look impressive but the filling is too strong and cheap tasting and the pastry is truly awful.

7. Somerfield - Shouldn't even be on here. A truly minging pie.

I agree on number 3 and 5, Good old M&S are getting lazy and rely too much on their reputation for good food, and sainsburys are just goeey yuck as you say.

Aldi Luxury Mince Pies @ £1.09 are delicious and have one awards.

hmmm, i'm just down the road from Aldi. i forgot about them. i'll make a visit tomorrow lunch time.

saying that, apparently asda has won awards and theirs were swill.

TBH I loathe any type of mince pies but my dh assures me that these ones are the best.

Mind you he may be a bit biased since he is the manager of our local store

just had an in depth discussion with assistant. she argued that the M&S pie was a good 'all rounder' and i would tend to agree.

It's slightly higher than average on all fronts:

filling
pastry
size and amount of filling.

she was put off by the high level of brandy in the waitrose pies, which is fair enough.

so... for all you light weights - M&S

Well I have no Waitrose so willprobably go with M&S and try out poor ignored Morrisons!

"just had an in depth discussion with assistant" Busy at work are you?

pmsl

must try waitrose ones as they seem to be getting good reviews, tried morisons already, must say not overly impressed, they do the job but there are better ones out there, for me pastry must keep a little bite even after beinmg microwaved to heat up, pies must be warm not cold, where does everyone alse stand on this as i suspect that may influence taste.

just need to add, have just eaten morrisons own mince pies and they were lovely. prefer them to M&S or tescos organic which I previously liked best.
am also v sad mince pie-aholic.

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