Mince pies scream Christmas! Last year I only tried one brand of mince pies and this year I wanted to see what else was out there. Me and my boyfriend decided to hold a mince pie competition for 4 chosen brands and we rated them in order of preference. We were surprised at our results as some were unexpected losers and winners. I hope this gives you more information into which mince pie to try from our list! All prices mentioned are at the time of writing this blog post.
Lidl Deluxe Luxury Mince Pies £1.35
We gave these 6/10. I had high hopes for Lidl as I love their food as it is really great quality whilst being affordable. However, the pastry was a little claggy and not very crumbly. The pastry did taste good though. The filling was ¾ full and had a good juicy texture but was a little bland.
Cook Remarkable Mince Pies £3.75
The most expensive of the bunch because they are handmade. I usually LOVE Cook food and they are great for homemade ready meals when you need an easy dinner. I felt so disappointed though and so we only scored these a 5/10. The presentation was a little boring as there was no decoration on top. The pastry was not buttery as they used margarine. It seemed like it tasted a little salty to me too. The pastry was nice and crumbly, but it was very thick and the pastry to filling ratio was too little on the filling side. The mince fruit filling was tasty but not very zingy and a little dry. A well-made pie but not for me. Sorry Cook!
M&S Collection Mince Pies £2.50
Oh wow, these were just a step above the rest! The taste was incredible, and they had a zingy citrus taste to the filling from the fruit peel in the mixture. It was very festive tasting indeed. There was an excellent filling ratio as it was full to the brim too. The pastry was lovely and buttery. It was sweet, thin and delicate to eat. So light and moreish. We gave them a 9/10.
Waitrose 1 All Butter Mince Pies £2.50
I thought these were a very close second and competitive contender to the winning spot. They were very yummy, and the pastry was excellent with a thin and crumbly texture that was melt in the mouth. They were a little messy to eat as they fell apart when eating them, but I didn’t mind! The filling was so flavoursome in comparison to the Lidl mince pies. I was so impressed with these. We gave these 8/10.
In order of preference
- M&S
- Waitrose
- Lidl
- Cook
What mince pies have you tried this year? Do you have a favourite?
