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Mince pie rolls

Close-up of glazed Christmas rolls drizzled with icing. Text reads "Christmas Rolls" in bold above the warm, golden pastries.

By Tom · Updated

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  • Serves 8
  • About 3 hours 10 min
  • Takes a bit of care

These mince pie rolls are my Christmas twist on the classic cinnamon roll. Soft, fluffy dough filled with sweet mincemeat, finished with orange icing and zest, they smell and taste just like Christmas. Mince pie rolls recipe | A Christmas twist on cinnamon rolls.

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The recipe

Mince pie rolls

These mince pie rolls are my Christmas twist on the classic cinnamon roll.

  • Serves 8
  • 20 min prep
  • 50 min cooking
  • 2 hours hands-off
  • Takes a bit of care

Times and difficulty are our estimates from the method, not stopwatch figures.

Scale
8 servings
Measurements

Ingredients

Dough

Filling

To finish

Tick things off as you go — they stay ticked if you close the page.

A dotted underline means the amount has been rounded to something you can measure.

Method

Make the dough

  1. Step 1

    Place the bread flour (450 g) and caster sugar (50 g) into a large mixing bowl. Lightly whisk together, then make a well in the centre.

  2. Step 2

    Place the fast-action yeast (7 g) on one side of the bowl and the salt (½ tsp) on the other side. This helps prevent the salt from slowing down the yeast activation.

  3. Step 3

    Set the bowl aside briefly.

Heat the milk and butter

  1. Step 1

    Pour the whole milk (200 ml) into a heavy saucepan and add the butter (90 g). Place over a low heat and warm gently until the butter has just melted. Remove from the heat and leave to cool back down to room temperature.

Combine the ingredients

  1. Step 1

    Crack the egg into the flour (450 g) mixture. Once the milk (200 ml) and butter (90 g) mixture has cooled slightly, pour it into the bowl as well.

  2. Step 2

    Mix everything together until it forms a dough.

Knead the dough

  1. Step 1

    Turn the dough out onto a work surface. Knead for 5-10 minutes until the dough becomes smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky. You can use a little extra flour if needed, but the dough will become less sticky as you knead.

  2. Step 2

    Knead by stretching the dough away from you, rolling it back, rotating, and repeating until smooth.

  3. Step 3

    Shape the dough into a ball.

First rise

  1. Step 1

    Place the dough back into the bowl and cover with a clean, damp cloth. Leave somewhere warm for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.

Roll and fill

  1. Step 1

    Once risen, turn the dough out and roll it into a large rectangle about 1 cm thick.

  2. Step 2

    Spoon the sweet mincemeat (400 g) over the entire surface and spread it evenly.

Shape the rolls

  1. Step 1

    Roll the dough up tightly, starting from one long edge. Pinch and fold over the first turn, then continue rolling until you have a large sausage shape.

  2. Step 2

    Cut into 8 equal-sized pieces.

Second rise

  1. Step 1

    Place the rolls onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper, laying them down so the spiral faces upwards. Gently press them down so they are an even size/hight.

  2. Step 2

    Cover with a clean, damp cloth and leave to rise again for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

Bake

  1. Step 1

    Preheat the oven to 170°C fan.

  2. Step 2

    Once risen, uncover the rolls and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown on top.

Glaze

  1. Step 1

    While still warm, brush the tops with warm marmalade to add shine and extra festive flavour.

  2. Step 2

    Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.

Orange icing

  1. Step 1

    Mix the icing sugar (100 g) with 1-2 teaspoons of orange juice (1 tsp) to form a thick, smooth paste. Add the juice gradually until you reach your desired consistency.

  2. Step 2

    Place the icing (100 g) into a piping bag and drizzle over the cooled rolls.

  3. Step 3

    Finish with a light grating of orange zest on top.

To serve

  1. Step 1

    The rolls should be soft, sweet, and full of mince pie flavour, with a fresh orange (1 tsp) finish. Enjoy warm or at room temperature.

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Questions people ask

How long does mince pie rolls take?

About 3 hours 10 min from start to finish: 20 min of prep, 50 min of cooking, and 2 hours hands-off while it waits. That figure is worked out from the method rather than timed with a stopwatch, so give yourself a little more the first time.

How many does it serve, and can I change that?

As written it serves 8. Use the scale control on the recipe card to change it: every quantity in the ingredients and inside the method steps updates with it. Seasoning, and anything measured in pinches or splashes, is deliberately left alone.

Can I see the ingredients in ounces and pints?

Yes. The metric and imperial switch on the recipe card converts every quantity, rounded to amounts you can actually weigh or measure rather than to four decimal places. Your choice is remembered for every recipe on the site.