Meri Kirihimete! It’s mince pie season. These are some of the best from local bakeries (along with some of the best local bakeries doing something different).
Throw the rule book out the window because we’re reexamining traditions. This festive season, mince pies are being reimagined.
For these pies
and tarts, there are substitutions including chocolate, cherries, strawberries and other specifically seasonal fare.
If you are a mince pie sceptic, rest assured, there are alternative baked goods to enjoy in all the festivities.
Consider the panettone from Beabea’s Bakery, which is a dough full of dried fruits and suspended from the ceiling to create a bulb-shaped serving (they’re a little smaller in size, so have a greater chance of being consumed while fresh).
Mor is offering up a biscuit box, with a broader flavour range that includes malted tonka sugar biscuit, milk chocolate hobnobs, dark chocolate and orange shortbread and ginger crunch among others. You can also find their twist on a traditional mince pie (a tart featuring big curls of pastry, made with wholewheat spelt, creating an earthier and deeper flavour).
Copain has an extensive range that goes beyond mince pies, including fresh berry tarts, pavlova, Christmas cake and galette des roi.
Florets is baking a plant-based Christmas cake, tightly packed with strong flavours including cranberries, cherries and figs.
OTT Patisserie has two alternatives: cinnamon star cookies and vanilla crescents.
Daily Bread will once again be selling its hefty and well-buttered Christmas Stollen, made from a recipe by the successful bakery’s German baker and co-founder Patrick Welzenbach (which itself was passed on by his grandfather).
But for those looking for pies and tarts, here are some of the best on offer and where you can find them.
Daily Bread
Two beloved flavours of mini mince pies are back on offer at Daily Bread this year. There is the very summery strawberry option, which sees the fruit mixed with sultanas, apples and mixed peels.
A sour cherry variety sees another summer fruit mixed with rum-soaked sultanas and candied citrus peel.
Beyond the bakeries, there are also more traditional tarts only available at Farro Fresh. They are a mix of apple, raisins and rum.
All of the different mince flavours are encompassed by the same pastry, spiced with a subtle but complementary cinnamon and rye.
“The cinnamon and rye short pastry is crumbly in a good way and melts in your mouth, and isn’t as full-on buttery as some of the others we’ve tried. The sour cherry filling is mouth-wateringly tart. I could eat a whole pack of these in one sitting. I won’t. But I could.” – Stephanie Holmes
“I love how crisp and fragile the pastry is, as it crumbles into a sugary and sweet dust to complement the lush and fruity filling of the pie. It reminds me of a sugar cookie. They are an ideal size too – perfect for morning tea.” – Madeleine Crutchley
Price: Nine pies for $23.
Where to get them: Available across Daily Bread locations in Pt Chev, Ponsonby, Belmont, Britomart, Newmarket, Federal St, New Lynn, Stonefields, Orakei, Takapuna and Botany. You can also find some pies at Farro, or order online at Dailybread.co.nz.
Loaf
The norms go out the window for this sweet package from Loaf, which plays on the form to present a sour cherry filling within a chocolate shell. The tarts are teeny, making them more appropriate for a snackish serving.
“This pastry is my favourite of the bunch. I’d say in both texture and taste, it’s closer to a cookie. There are chunks of chocolate dispersed throughout, which creates extra sweetness and a toothsome bite.” – MC
Price: Nine pies for $16.
Where to get them: Available online and in-store at Farro.
Paneton
The season, Paneton is serving up mince tarts created with a recipe they’ve worked to refine over 40 years. An all-butter sweet pastry encases housemade fruit mince, which contains plenty of apple. The fruit is also soaked in a French cognac.
The tarts are also award-winning, taking home the top prize at the Baking NZ Christmas Tart Competition (where they were put up against other treats from across the country).
“This is one you don’t need to warm up.” – Bethany Haverland
“You can tell the minced fruits are soaked in cognac, as the mixture is pleasantly moist. The pastry is sweet enough to contrast those richer flavours too.” – MC
Where to get them: Order online at Panetonbakery.co.nz or find in-store at Farrro or with My Food Bag.
Wild Wheat
Wild Wheat head baker and founder Andrew Fearnside says their recipe is inspired by the baker’s mum, “who would make her own fruit mince from scratch every Christmas, in a thin-crust short pastry – also made from scratch”.
The fruit mince is made up of dried prunes, sultanas, cranberries, raisins, figs, apples, banana and chocolate. This mix is left to soak for weeks in rum, spices and brandy. The tops of the pies are left open and adorned with a pastry star. They’re finished with an extra dusting of icing sugar – and the bakers recommend serving with another helping to beat the Auckland humidity.
“This is ALL about the mince. It kicks off with a bright, almost citrusy top note that descends into a rich, mellow sweetness.” – Kim Knight
“I love the visual of these pies. The expanse of jammy mince makes them look more luxurious and I imagine them resting comfortably in the centre of the table after Christmas lunch. That larger helping of mince makes these better suited to mince-pie fans, but even the sceptic has to admit these are particularly stunning.” – MC
Price: One for $3.20, and six for $20.
Where to get them: Available across Wild Wheat stores in Mt Eden, Mt Albert, Howick, Belmont, Birkenhead and Ascot Rd, Māngere. There are also limited stocks at some supermarkets and speciality stores.
OTT Patisserie
The crunchy almond topping for these mince pies offers a point of difference. OTT Patisserie’s treats are certainly coveted amongst local community, as they’ve been on sale since mid-October.
“The mince is a little sugary but the petiteness of this pie is perfectly suited to ‘just one more mouthful’ Christmas cravings.” – KK
“The almond topping combined with a dusting of icing sugar makes these pies sweeter than your usual creation, and I don’t think it’s needed on a mince pie. But if you’ve got a sweet tooth, and prefer more sweetness and less tang, these might be for you. The bite-sized pies mean you won’t want to stop at just one.” – SH
Where to get them: 2 Birkenhead Ave, Birkenhead. You can also order online at Ottpatisserie.co.nz.
Sabato
“If I’m told that someone doesn’t like a Christmas mince pie, I just assume it is because they haven’t tasted ours,” says Sabato’s head chef Kate Flay.
The yellow, crumbly pastry is a closely guarded family secret. The brandy-soaked fruit filling offers punctuation in these pies, with the punchy taste cutting through the deeply buttery pastry.
The gluten-free flour variety is created in-house and baked at an adjusted temperature to better suit the mixture.
“Due to the low ratio of mince, it mostly feels like I’m eating a biscuit [which is a nice surprise for a mince-pie pessimist]. For posterity, I also sampled the gluten-free variety. The pastry is slightly more crumbly, but they have an even stronger buttery note. I almost prefer them to the more floury pies!” – MC
“While I’m not huge on Christmas mince pies [usually because the gluten-free versions always seem to taste slightly stale to me] Sabato’s take includes a delightfully crumbly crust, both buttery and moreish. The moist fruit mince filling – comprising sultanas, apples and currants – is spiced well and not overly sweet. These were so delicious. In fact, I had to eat two to double-check my tasting notes were accurate. I’d happily take a couple of packs of these along to my family Christmas to gift to my coeliac cousin and gluten-intolerant aunt. Five stars! – Ashleigh Cometti
Price: A six-pack of pies is $18.90 (add a dollar for the gluten-free option).
Where to get them: 57 Normanby Rd, Mt Eden. You can also order online at Sabato.co.nz.
Scratch Bakers
Situated amongst many legacy media offices, this inner-city cafe feeds and caffeinates plenty of NZ’s journalists, including those who contribute to Viva.
The mince is prepared months in advance, soaked in “heaps of brandy, fruit juice, citrus zest and vanilla pods” according to the bakers. The whole team is involved in the construction, from the shells and stars, to glazing and icing sugar dusting.
“A good mince-to-pastry ratio but the mince was a bit dry and very sultana-dominant. Good pastry though – a dark brown without being burnt, and not too crumbly.” – SH
“I imagine this pie, which is more sturdy, would stand up well to dunking in hot drinks. It’s a nice addition to a hot drink, better suited for a coffee date than a living room indulgence. I can imagine journalists gobbling these at their cafe meetings.” – MC
Price: Six for $15 or nine for $20.
Where to get them: 5 Graham St, Auckland CBD.
Zesti
We’re looking at all the options, and this four-pack of pies is stocked on most supermarket shelves across Tāmaki Makaurau, making it a more accessible treat.
There are three flavours available, including traditional, caramel and berry. Viva sampled the latter, for a non-traditionalist take on the treats.
“These are not mince pies at all – they taste more like old-school English jam tarts. Jammy and sweet, with not a hint of festive spice. If you’re a traditionalist, avoid these. If you don’t like classic mince pies, these could be the sweet treat you’ve been looking for.” – SH
“These pies have a super nostalgic scent – they make me think of lunchbox shrewsberry biscuits. The taste isn’t too far off either, with the sweet filling just packing a little more tang. I also love the flowery imprint on the bottom (a little extra fun that’s very welcome).” – MC
Where to get them: Most supermarkets will stock these mince pies.
Ripe Deli
The mince pies from Ripe Deli are full of dried fruits that have been soaked in brandy and lightly spiced. They promise buttery pastry (they are also stocking gluten-free and vegan options for those who need them).
“These are a top pick this year, with the buttery, crumbly pastry only just encasing the densely packed, well-balanced fruity filling.” – SH
“These mini tarts have the perfect filling to crust ratio – a generous amount of fruit mince in a sweet pastry that melts in your mouth.” – BH
“Perfect buttery pastry and moist [yes moist!] fruit mince? That’s a combo that happens surprisingly rarely in my experience. But these tiny bites hit the mark. The fruit mince was plentiful and even had a slight orange juice taste to it? A+ Would eat again.” – Bridget Jones
Price: 1 for $4, 6 for $24 or a dozen for $48.
Where to get them: You can find these pies in store at their Grey Lynn and Smales Farm locations or order them online.
A version of this story was first published in 2023 and has been updated.
More festivities
From party ensembles to end-of-year wellbeing.