Dairy and gluten free
Makes approximately 1.2 litres

This is the loveliest fruit mince I know. It's light and moist, and has none of the horrible peel found in so many versions. It's the perfect place to use seconds or windfalls. You can easily keep this in a clean, sealed jar in the fridge forever, but if you want to keep it in the pantry, you'll need to give it a boiling water bath. The jars will need to be proper jam jars, so they withstand the heat of the water bath.

Ingredients:

300 ml apple juice
250 ml apple juice concentrate
1 kg apples - peeled and chopped into small dice
1 teaspoon mixed spice
1/4 teaspoon (approx) freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
225 gm seeded raisins - roughly chopped
120 gm currants
120 gm sultanas
60 gm almonds - finely chopped
finely grated zest of 1 lemon
150 ml brandy

Method:

Wash the jars and lids, place them on a baking tray lined with a clean tea towel and keep them warm in a low temperature oven. Wash and dry your ladle and funnel.

Place all ingredients except for the brandy in a saucepan. Cover and bring to a gentle simmer. Continue to cook for approximately 20 minutes, allowing the apples to sweat out their juices. Remove the lid and continue to simmer, uncovered, until the mixture is thick and the apples have cooked down. This will take approximately 30 minutes. Stir frequently, especially towards the end of the cooking time. As the fruit mince is nearly ready, bring a very large pot of water (this is for the boiling water bath) to the boil. You will need a big enough pot so that water can boil freely underneath and on top of the jars, and something on the bottom - like a cake cooling rack - to lift the jars off the pot bottom. When the fruit mince is finished, remove from the heat and allow to cool just a little. Stir in the brandy.

Remove the jars and lids from the oven, keeping them on their tray, and ladle the warm fruit mince into the jars using a funnel. Place the lids on the jars, then screw them on but not the entire way - they should have just that tiny, little bit more to go before they are really tight. Using special tongs, lower the jars into the boiling water. When the water comes back to the boil, time 15 minutes at the boil. Using the same tongs, remove and place the jars on a towel or wooden surface. Tighten the lids that last tiny bit - you will need to hold the jars, and perhaps also the lids, with a tea towel. Let them sit until totally cool, when a concave dent should be evident in the middle of each lid. If this has not occurred, use the filling straight away or store it in the fridge.