Christmas Pop Tarts: Pastry Cookies With Mincemeat Pie Filling and Shortcrust Dough

With crisp, flaky, buttery pastry and sweetly spiced mincemeat pie filling, these cookie sized treats are essentially Christmas pop tarts or toaster strudel for grown ups.

This year I made a batch of mincemeat filling for individual mince pies as part of Thanksgiving dessert. I only made a half batch of pies, so I had quite a bit of filling leftover. One morning when I was enjoying one of my favorite December breakfasts (Greek yogurt topped with mincemeat and walnuts), I was debating what to use my leftover mince meat filling for. Cookies popped into my head!

Stuffed cookies really, and actually closer to individual pastries or hand pies; essentially, cookie-sized shortcrust pastry with mincemeat filling. Festive pop tarts for adults (or if your mincemeat is alcohol free, kiddos with a discerning palate), if you will! Yes indeed, don’t mind if I do.

These pastry cookies are a pretty addition to a Christmas cookie platter, holiday party dessert table, or – if you want to get really wild and crazy – serve them as part of a festive brunch!

Christmas Mincemeat Pop Tarts Ingredients

Step-by-Step Instructions: How to Make Mincemeat Pastry Cookies

There are two parts to this recipe: the filling and the pastry crust. I show you how to make each component from scratch, but you also have time-saving options. If you prefer, you can use store-bought dough (for this recipe, I recommend frozen puff pastry instead of refrigerated pie dough) and/or store-bought mincemeat pie filling.

If you decide to make both components from scratch, you’re a rock star! For your efforts, you’ll be rewarded with the most delicious pastries that I like to think of as grown-up Christmas pop tarts. Neither the filling nor the dough are hard to make, but please read through the whole recipe before starting so you know what to expect.

1: Make the Mincemeat Pie Filling

1. Prep. Peel, core, and chop the apples small.
2. Add everything to the pot. Add the chopped apple, raisins, golden raisins, dried cranberries, orange juice, lemon juice, apple cider, brown sugar, almonds, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, allspice, cloves, salt, and butter to a medium-large pot over medium heat.
3. Cook. Once boiling, cover the pot, turn the heat down to a simmer, and cook 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. After that, remove the lid and continue cooking uncovered until the mixture has turned dark and is thickened, about 15 minutes, stirring frequently.
4. Finishing touches and cool. Remove from the heat and stir in the orange zest, lemon zest, and brandy. Let it cool completely before using to make mince pie or mince tarts.

2: Make the Dough

1. Work the butter into the dry ingredients. Whisk together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Add the chilled, diced butter. Cut the butter into the dry ingredients with a fork, a pastry cutter, or your fingertips. It should look crumbly, with some pieces of butter the size of small peas.
2. Start adding water. Drizzle the water in a little at a time, mixing as you go.
3. Mix as you drizzle. You can mix the dough with a fork, but it works best mixing with your fingertips. (TIP: I find the best method is to start working the water into the dough with a fork, but eventually switch to my hands.)
4. How much water to add. Add just enough water so it comes together to form a ball of dough. (TIP: You may need more or less water than stated; the exact amount of water it takes to hydrate the dough depends on multiple factors, including the age of the flour and the humidity level.)
5. Chill. Divide the dough ball into 2 equal parts. Roll each into a ball, flatten each ball slightly into a disk, wrap them in plastic wrap, and refrigerate until chilled, about 30 minutes (or up to 3 days).
6. Roll out the dough. After chilling, place 1 disk of dough onto a floured work surface. Working from the center out, roll the dough out to a rectangle about 11 to 12-inches by 16 to 18-inches.

3: Stamp Out the Dough Into Circles

Use a 3-inch cookie cutter (or a glass or bowl with that diameter) to stamp out circles in the dough. Gather the scraps of dough, re-roll them, and repeat until the dough is gone. Repeat this process with the second disk of dough. (PRO TIP: You should get about 16 circles from each disk of dough for a total of 32 circles from this recipe.)

4: Assemble the Pastries

1. Add the filling. Place 1 tablespoon of mincemeat pie filling in the center of 16 dough circles. Lightly wet your finger with water and run it on the dough along the outside of the mincemeat filling (to help the other piece of dough stick on top).
2. Top with another dough circle. Place another circle of dough on top, and crimp it with a fork to seal the outside. Continue this way until all the pies are formed. You should get 16 pies.
3. Arrange on a baking tray. Use a thin metal spatula to lift up each pastry and arrange them on a large baking tray lined with parchment paper or a silpat liner. Use a paring knife to make a couple small slits in the top of each pie (or poke the top of each pie a couple times with a fork) so steam can escape. Lightly brush the top of each pie with egg wash.

5: Chill the Pastries and Preheat the Oven

Transfer the baking try to the fridge to chill for 30 minutes. Preheat the oven to 375F.

6: Bake

Bake the pies until they’re golden and flaky, about 25 to 30 minutes at 375F, rotating the tray once halfway through. Cool completely before glazing.

7: Glaze (Optional)

Once the pastries are cool, mix together the powdered sugar and water for the glaze in a shallow bowl. Dip the top of each pastry in the glaze, and place it in a rack set on a baking tray so any excess can drip off. Let the glaze set before serving or storing. (PRO TIP: You can skip the glaze if you like and enjoy them as-is, or with a dusting of powdered sugar on top.)

Storage and Reheating Tips

• Storage: After the glaze is set, you can store these layered between pieces of parchment paper in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
• Freezing: If you leave off the glaze, you can freeze them for up to 3 months. To re-crisp the thawed pastry cookies after freezing before glazing, put them on a baking tray in a preheated 350F oven until warm, about 5 minutes. After that, let them cool, dip the tops in glaze, and let the glaze set before serving.
• Reheating: You can reheat these unglazed pastries from frozen in a regular toaster (set to medium), toaster oven or regular oven (preheated to 375F for about 8 to 10 minutes), or air fryer (at 350F for about 6 minutes, flipping once).

Frequently Asked Questions

If You Like Mincemeat, You’ll Also Love

• 15-Minute Sugar Plums – With dried fruit, nuts, and warm gingerbread spices.
• Christmas Morning Scones – Vanilla bean, nutmeg, and rosemary-scented.
• Easy Slice and Bake Christmas Shortbread Cookies – With pistachios, cranberries, orange zest, and white chocolate.