Vegan Mince Pies

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Add the orange juice to a medium-sized saucepan on a medium to high heat.

Add the sugar to the orange juice and stir until it dissolves, bring to the boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.

Chop the apples into small dice pieces, discarding the core. Chop the dates and add to the sugar mixture along with the sultanas/ raisins and spices. Simmer and stew down for about 20 minutes and allow to cool before filling your cases.

Get a muffin tray and fill with 12 foil mince pie cases.

Unroll the defrosted pastry on a lightly floured surface. Using a 9 -10cm circular cutter, cut out 9 -10 circles from the first pastry sheet.

Then simply gather all the pastry scraps, form a smooth dough ball and roll out again to cut the final 2-3 circles needed. With the second sheet of pastry, use a 7cm circle or star-shaped cutter to cut the 12 tops for your mince pies.

Line all 12 of your mince pie cases with the pastry and gently fill with the fruit mixture (a heaped 1.5 tbsp per pie).

Top with the pastry stars, brush with a little non-dairy milk to help the pies go golden brown when baking.

Bake for about 20 minutes in the oven and add a sprinkle of icing sugar using a sieve to finish.