When it comes to food, Christmas brings with it stress and a to-do list a mile long. It would be great if you could tick something off that list early, such as baking your mince pies and then freezing them for later. But is that possible?
Can You Freeze Mince Pies?
Yes, you can freeze mince pies for up to 3 months. You can freeze them either baked or uncooked but they should always be served warm.Ā
Do Do Mince Pies freeze well? Yes
Can you refreeze Mince Pies? No
How To Freeze Mince Pies
What’s great is that you have two options when it comes to freezing mince pies ready for the festive season. You can choose to freeze them baked or uncooked, both of which have their benefits and drawbacks:
How to Freeze Uncooked Mince Pies
If you love freshly baked mince pies then this is the option for you. You get all the benefits of freshly baked homemade pies and can also cut out some of the time by preparing them early and freezing them.
To freeze uncooked mince pies, follow this method:
- Make Your Mince Pies: Prepare them by following your favourite recipe. But obviously stop before you get to baking them. You can make them in your usual baking pan as you normally would using your favourite mincemeat.
- Flash Freeze: Wrap the pan in a sheet of cling film to protect it in the freezer. Pop the whole pan into the freezer and freeze for a few hours.
- Store: Take the baking tray out of the freezer and transfer each frozen pie to a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. If a mince pie has got stuck to the tray then use a palette knife to carefully remove it. Label the bag or container with the date and contents.
- Final Freeze: Pop it back into the freezer until you need the mince pies. You can keep each unbaked mince pie in the freezer for around three months.
How to Freeze Cooked Mince Pies
Freezing baked mince pies is just as easy to do and it can save you a little more time. You will still want to heat them up quickly in a warm oven:
- Bake Your Mince Pies: Follow your usual recipe, cook them as you normally would and then allow them to cool completely.
- Flash Freeze: Pop them onto a baking sheet. Make sure they arenāt touching each other. Put the whole thing into the freezer and freeze them for a few hours.
- Final Freeze: Take the tray out of the freezer and transfer each mince pie into a freezer bag or freezer-safe container. Label the container with the date and put it back into the freezer for up to three months.
We’ll explain how to go about defrosting and reheating them (whether they’re baked or not) down below.
How to Freeze Iced Mince Pies
If you are a fan of the mince pies that have a layer of icing on top instead of pastry then there is good news. You can freeze these too. Just be careful because they might not be quite as nice frozen as they were fresh.
Also, you canāt heat them up to combat any sogginess you get from the freezing process. If you have iced mince pies that would end up going to waste then there is no harm in freezing them.
The same applies to icing sugar. When you freeze a mince pie that has been dusted with icing sugar, you’ll find the icing sugar disappears so you’ll need to reapply a fresh sprinkling when you defrost them.
3 Tips for Freezing Mince Pies
Now you know how to freeze them, we’ve got our 3 top tips which we strongly recommend following when freezing mince pies to have the best results:
Avoid the Icing
Although you can freeze them with icing, it’s not something we would advise as icing, in general, doesn’t freeze that well. Add icing after thawing or simply sprinkle with icing sugar if you’re short for time.
Grease the Pan
If you’re freezing unbaked pies in a pan then make sure the pan is freezer-safe first. You also need to make sure the pan is well greased because you need to be able to take the mince pies out of the pan later during this process. You could also dust the tray with plain flour to prevent them from sticking.
Opt for Unbaked
By freezing them unbaked, you get to bake them fresh which means you get those Christmas scents of mincemeat and cinnamon wafting through the house as you bake them.
How Long Can You Freeze Mince Pies?
Once you have frozen them the next obvious question is, how long can you keep them frozen for?
You can freeze mince pies either cooked or uncooked for up to three months as long as you have frozen them correctly.
Because you can freeze them for up to three months, you can get started with your Christmas preparations towards the end of September knowing that you’ll have a ready-to-go batch of mince pies that just need warming up in the oven and dusting with icing sugar.
Mince pies that have been cooked will keep in the fridge, in an airtight container, for between 4 and 5 days. Uncooked mince pies should be cooked within 2 days.
How Do You Defrost Mince Pies?
Defrosting mince pies is fairly easy but you do want to do it carefully to minimise any risk of the pastry becoming too soggy. Whether you’ve frozen them baked or unbaked, the method remains the same:
Take each mince pie you want to enjoy out of the freezer and remove them from any packaging and bags you have used. Place each mince pie onto a wire rack and leave it at room temperature for roughly 2 hours.
Once thawed, you can warm them through in a warm oven if they’re already cooked. If they’re uncooked then brush with beaten egg and bake for the same time as you normally would following your favourite recipe.
If you prefer, you can defrost overnight. Instead of leaving them out at room temperature, place them on a plate in the fridge and allow them to defrost overnight.
Can You Refreeze Mince Pies?
We wouldn’t recommend that you refreeze mince pies. Pastry can change in texture in the freezer and the more times you freeze them, the more chance there is a having soggy pastry.
The only exception is if you have previously frozen unbaked mince pies and have now baked them and decided to freeze some. This would be fine.
Do Mince Pies Freeze Well?
Mince pies do freeze well, generally. You should expect there to be a little change in texture between those that are freshly baked and those which have been frozen – but this is the case for most pastry foods.
However, if you have frozen them unbaked then by the time they have baked they should be just as delicious as they would have been if you made them fresh!
Related FAQs
If you’ve still got questions about freezing mince pies then these may help:
Mr Kipling might be worried that the texture and quality will reduce if you freeze their mince pies but it should be safe to freeze them if you want to avoid throwing them out.
Yes, mincemeat tarts can be frozen for around 3 months. Freeze them on a baking tray until solid and then portion them up into freezer bags.
Yes, frangipane mince pies can be frozen but you may find the topping goes from being velvety to being a little grainy.
Filo mince pies can be frozen for around 3 months, either baked or unbaked. But, you need to be very careful when handling it to avoid them breaking as they will be very brittle.
