It’s December, which means it’s mince tart season. The festive English treats (known in the UK as mince pies) are a favourite around Christmas time. They are typically party-pie-sized tarts made of a buttery pastry shell filled with a fruit filling known as mincemeat, and topped with a decorative star-shaped pastry cut-out. Here are three Melbourne bakeries selling some of the finest around.
All Are Welcome (Ivanhoe East, Northcote and Thornbury)
Owner and baker Boris Portnoy says his team will bake around 7000 mince tarts this month across all three of his bakeries. But with pre-orders now closed, he recommends those looking to pick up some of All Are Welcome’s tarts get to the bakeries early to avoid disappointment.
The fruit filling is made by soaking the dried fruit mixture in ginger beer that Portnoy makes himself. The fruit mixture is aged for two to three months before being mixed with a blend of freshly ground allspice, Indonesian long pepper, Sri Lankan cinnamon and mace; placed into the pastry shells; and then baked.
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SUBSCRIBE NOWMonforte Viennoiserie
This is the first year Giorgia McAllister Forte’s Carlton North bakery is making mince tarts. At Monforte, the team uses a blend of organic currants, sultanas, prunes, apple, house-candied blood orange and fresh ginger.
The fruit is macerated in a blackcurrant leaf and apricot shrub (a drinking vinegar), whisky and melted butter. The warm spices used in the blend are toasted whole before being ground and Forte and her team use black pepper for extra warmth.
The tarts are available until close on December 24th (or until they sell out).
Morning Market (Fitzroy and Prahran)
The ingredients in the filling for Morning Market’s mince tarts have been macerating for months now. The tarts from Andrew McConnell’s grocery-cafe-bakery contain a mix of apples, currants, brandy, pastis (an anise-flavoured spirit) and warm spices, and are available up until Sunday, December 24.
Matilda Mont Albert
Unlike typical mince tarts, the ones at this French-inspired suburban corner store are both vegan and booze-free. Dried cranberries are soaked in orange juice overnight, then mixed with slithered almonds, before being piled into a butter-free pastry tart and baked.