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Publication #FCS8293

Selecting, Preparing, and Canning: Festive Mincemeat Pie Filling1

United States Department Of Agriculture, Extension Service2
Festive Mincemeat Pie Filling
2 cups finely chopped suet
4 lbs ground beef or 4 lbs ground venison and 1 lb sausage
5 qts chopped apples
2 lbs dark seedless raisins
1 lb white raisins
2 qts apple cider
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground nutmeg
5 cups sugar
2 tbsp salt

Yield: About 7 quarts

Procedure: Cook meat and suet in water to avoid browning. Peel, core, and quarter apples. Put meat, suet, and apples through food grinder using a medium blade. Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan, and simmer 1 hour or until slightly thickened. Stir often. Fill jars with mixture without delay, leaving 1-inch headspace. Adjust lids and process according to the recommendations in Table 1 or Table 2.

Tables

Table 1. 

Table 1. Recommended process time for Festive Mincemeat Pie Filling in a dial-gauge pressure canner.

Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of

Style of Pack

Jar Size

Process Time

0 - 2,000 ft

2,001 - 4,000 ft

4,001 - 6,000 ft

6,000 - 8,000 ft

Hot

Quarts

90 min

11 lb

12 lb

13 lb

14 lb

*After the canner is completely depressurized, remove the weight from the vent port or open the petcock. Wait 10 minutes; then unfasten the lid and remove it carefully. Lift the lid with the underside away from you so that the steam coming out of the canner does not burn your face.
Table 2. 
Table 2. Recommended process time for Festive Mincemeat Pie Filling in a weighted-gauge pressure canner.
Canner Pressure (PSI) at Altitudes of
Style of Pack Jar Size Process Time 0 - 1,000 ft Above 1,000 ft
Hot Quarts 90 min 10 lb 15 lb

*After the canner is completely depressurized, remove the weight from the vent port or open the petcock. Wait 10 minutes; then unfasten the lid and remove it carefully. Lift the lid with the underside away from you so that the steam coming out of the canner does not burn your face.

Footnotes

1.

This document is FCS 8293, a series of the Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Publication date: May 2003. Revised: July 2005. Reviewed: July 2008. This document was extracted from the Complete Guide to Home Canning, Agriculture Information Bulletin No. 539, USDA. It was originally published on CD-ROM as part of HE 8148, Guide 2: Selecting, Preparing, and Canning Fruit and Fruit Products. Please visit the EDIS Web site at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu

2.

Reviewed for use in Florida by Amy Simonne, assistant professor, Food Safety and Quality, Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Larry Arrington, Dean.