Mincemeat Making Time

 I made mincemeat last week.  Instead of using candied peel like lots of recipes call for, I prefer to use fresh.  I ground 6 apples, 4 oranges and 2 lemons.

 Then I added 8 ounces of suet.  You can buy cooking grade suet from your local butcher.

 Grind 2 boxes of raisins, 2 bags of dried cranberries, some dried figs, dates and plums.  Grind any kind of nuts you have on hand. You will need about 4 cups. Most mincemeat has booze in it but since a lot of this will end up at the shelter, I only used apple cider and it came out great.  Add 2 boxes of currents.  They don't need to be ground because they are small already.  Add 2 cups of brown sugar,  3 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. nutmeg and 1/4 tsp. mace and ground cloves.

 Place the mincemeat in a heavy dutch oven and bake at 225 degrees for 4 hours.  The suet will melt and coat the mixture.

 Now it is ready to use in tarts.

I use this vintage grinder to get just the right consistency.