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

🎉  🎊  The Nightingale Patisserie    🎊  🎉   ( £1.20 EACH! ) 

Pastry: Quite delicate and thicccck! Not a bad thing in this case though since there's a healthy portion of filling to balance it out. Brilliant colour and homely roughness really make for a heartwarming look.

Filling: Very good! Not hugely boozy but the consistency is spot on...whole fruits bound together with jammy goodness that's spiced really well. There's some leaking but it's all self contained, no sticky fingers!

Presentation: There's no getting away from the fact that they're a bit rough around the edges with the knocked pastry, leaky filling AND an uneven application of powdered sugar (though this is much preferred in place of a caster sugar top). Hear me out though because in this case I don't think it's a negative! 

These pies struck a different chord with me. They remind me of home! Yes M&S will knock your socks off, yes ASDA deserve the high praise and of course Greggs are great (that's if you can find any left). What's tough is that these surprisingly expensive little pies are pretty close to what my Mum would make and it's hard to put a price on something which makes you feel warm and fuzzy. I can't recommend a trip all the way to Clapham South for you to buy some of these pies but if you're in the area...you're in for a treat.

Summary: Caught me off guard.

Current Leaders

1st: M&S - Collection 

2nd: ASDA - Extra Special

3rd: Greggs - Standard

Independants

1st: The Nightingale Patisserie 

Monday / Wednesday / Friday!

Adam Cooke

Photographer / Pie Tester