Mince pie, anyone? The history of a seasonal favourite

We're officially into Advent so it's time for some Christmas fare. Some say the mince pie was invented in Ireland. Whether that's true or not, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas if we couldn’t devour at least one. Robert Hume delves into the evolution of today’s spicy tart

Mince pies — the real taste of Christmas for many

Mince pies are “indispensable at this time of year”, declared Cork bakers FH Thompson & Sons in the Cork Examiner at Christmas 1890.

Of course, there are mince pies and mince pies, some with crumbly short pastry, others with flaky puff pastry. “Some you eat for the sake of the filling, leaving as much as possible of the crust on your plate”, pointed out pastry manufacturer Krusto in their 1931 advert. Of others — like theirs, naturally — you wouldn’t waste a crumb of “light, golden” casing. But until recent times, if you asked someone whether they’d like a mince pie, you’d be offering them a mainly savoury dish flavoured with spices originally brought to Europe by the Crusaders from the Holy Land.