Quote:
Originally Posted by Sirtel
I actually had no idea mincemeat meant something else than ground meat before reading it here. Then I had to google it. In Estonia "mincemeat" as in pie filling et al is exactly that, "minced/ground meat".
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The original mincemeat pie was a mix of ground meat, fruits and spices. It was a way of preserving the meat in an era where ice boxes and other preservation methods were uncommon. It wasn't until the late Victorian era/early 20th century, that a mincemeat pie without meat became the common form.
One comment about early mincemeat pies was that after baking, liquid fat was poured over the pie covering all openings and the pie could be kept for up to a year. Evidently people survived eating them.
Hmmm... my interest in cooking and it's history is showing.