The Backstage Kitchen: NOT the Worst Pies in London

If you saw our production of Sweeney Todd and you’re anything like me, you left the theater distinctly more curious about what exactly goes into those famous meat pies. And a bit more hungry, too (don’t judge!).

This definitely isn’t a recipe for the Worst Pies in London – or a recipe with a decidedly sinister list of ingredients – but if you’re looking to make delicious meat pies this autumn and into the holiday season, we have just the thing! Adding warm spices like cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon into this beef and brandy mincemeat is sure to heat up the whole house as Boston begins its lunge into winter.

Meat Pie Recipemakes two 9-inch meat pies
Here’s what you’ll need:
2 pastries for nine-inch two-crust pies (simple recipe here, or store-bought can be used)1½ cups cooked beef or venison (no people!), diced
4 cups apples, chopped1½ cups raisins¼ cup sweet pickle juice¼ cup pineapple or apricot juice1 large orange, peeled, sectioned, cut into bite-size½ teaspoon salt½ teaspoon ground cloves1 teaspoon ground cinnamon1 teaspoon ground nutmeg1½ cups white sugar½ cup molasses or sorghum1 cup beef brothBrandy to taste

Recipe
Thoroughly combine the beef, apples, raisins, sweet pickle juice, pineapple juice, orange pieces, salt, cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg, sugar, molasses, and beef broth in a sealable container. Let the mincemeat mixture sit in the refrigerator for 1-3 days. This can be frozen for up to 6 months to be used later.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
Place a layer of pastry dough along the bottom of two nine-inch pie pans. Divide mincemeat between the two pies and add brandy to taste. Cover each pie with a second layer of pastry dough, fluting the edges with a fork and cutting two-inch slits in the center for steam to escape. If you so choose, you can brush the edges with egg wash and dust with sugar.
Place in oven and bake until the crust is golden and the edges are lightly browned.
Hopefully with a recipe like this, the chilly winter months here in New England will be a bit more bearable. But don’t get any ideas from the Demon Barber of Fleet Street–no people are to be harmed in the makings of these pies!
Did you try the recipe? Comment below!