You can forget the ‘meat’ in venerable mincemeat

In an era of tofu ice cream and veggie burgers, mincemeat pie has an image problem. If only it were called apple-raisin pie, which is what it tastes like.

Mincemeat pie, food historians agree, was first made centuries ago in England as a way to stretch a small amount of meat by adding fruit. The mixture was preserved with spices and rum or brandy. A 1961 edition of the culinary encyclopedia “Larousse Gastronomique” notes dryly that “mincemeat takes rather a long time to prepare, owing to the fact that it must steep for a month in Madeira, rum or brandy.”

Today, “it’s mostly fruit and spices and very little meat,” said Robyn Bueltel, a senior manager for None Such mincemeat, a ready-to-use brand of pie filling. “From eating it, you would never know that it has meat. You would never taste it and certainly would never see it.”

None Such still includes a “minuscule” amount of ground beef “so we can be true to the name,” Bueltel said.

Mincemeat pie

1box None Such condensed mincemeat mix

1/2cup water

1/2cup brandy

1/2cup apple cider or juice

4cups mixed fruit (such raisins and chopped apples and pears)

Drop of molasses

1/2teaspoon nutmeg

1prepared double-crust pie shell, not baked

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the mincemeat mix, water, brandy, cider, fruit, molasses and nutmeg in a medium saucepan over a medium-low heat. Cook, stirring frequently, until the apples and pears are tender and the smell of liquor has dissipated, about 10 minutes. Do not boil.

Transfer the mixture to the pie shell. Place the top crust over the pie and seal the edges by pressing down on them with a fork. With a straw, make a tiny hole in the center of the top crust to allow steam to escape.

Bake until the crust is lightly browned, about 30 minutes. If the edges brown too quickly, cover them with foil.

Remove the pie from the oven and let stand 10 minutes. Best served warm.

Makes 8 servings.

Note: For a simpler version, combine 2 boxes of None Such condensed mincemeat with 3 cups of water. Heat and stir until uniform, then transfer to a pie shell and bake.