Today's contender for the 2018 Best Christmas Mince Pie is... 

🎉  🎊  Mr Kipling's   🎊  🎉   ( Mixed Fillings - £??? Can't be more than £2 ) 

(Bit tricky getting 3 in one!)

Pastry: A little crumbly here, more of a powdery texture and a little drier than I would have liked BUT they were consistent across all 3 despite the different fillings. Good shape, colour and lovely designs! Sugared tops and a little foil tray. Very nice and what you'd expect from a specialist baker brand like Mr K's.

Filling: In the time between delivery and consumption...I forgot which pie was which so I went into this as a BLIND TASTE TEST 😎

1. I struck lucky here - Traditional on the first bite. This was pretty standard fare but a little more upmarket than your basic mince pie filling. Good fruit and flavour but the powdery dry pastry quickly overpowered the moist filling. Bit sad really.

2. I was confused for a while, took a few bites and then it hit me. CHRISTMAS PUDDING! They describe it a Brandy, Port and Cherry...and it was definitely boozy. A little hot, bit of a burn but nicely paired against the cherry. This was a really good departure from the norm and I highly recommend.

3. This one had me stumped. I was getting orange and spicy Christmas clove vibes... but I had no idea. It was nice but I had to ask Google what was going on in my mouth. A lot of tea was needed afterwards.

Presentation: They really look the part and don't disappoint as long as you've got a tea to combat the pastry. No leaks, easy removal but I got sticky fingers each time! 

I am finding myself compelled to be a little kinder since these were donated but I have to say that...we've seen better. M&S and Greggs really smashed it out of the park so we aren't breaking any new ground here BUT at least 1/3rd of this trio is something a little bit special.

Summary: Worth a punt.

** Thank you to sweet, sweet Otto who's responsible for these delivering these pies! **

Further submissions are still welcome! I think we have many of the major players covered but there's stills a world of pies out there!

Adam Cooke

Photographer / Pie Tester