One popular festive treat in the UK is a mince pie and here we check out the best mince pies for 2021.

Whether you are looking for deep filled mince pies with a crumble topping or a gluten-free mince pie, they all come with a delicious mincemeat filling.

A quality mince pie will melt in the mouth and have a butter shortcrust pastry to deliver a heavenly treat.

Luxury pies are also worth buying if you would like a quality offering but there are still tasty supermarket mince pies to enjoy too.

Here, the Christmas.co.uk team has been taste testing the offerings for 2021 and there are some very impressive choices to enjoy.

 

Harvey Nichols mince pies

Best mince pies for 2021 harvey nicholsOur first tasty offering are the Harvey Nichols pies, and this is a store that knows what people want to enjoy.

They are a luxury mince pie offering and we loved their 12 Mini Traditional Rich Fruit Mince Pies at £9.95.

Harvey Nichols calls these buttery pies ‘decadent’ and they are packed with rich fruit that has been soaked in rum and brandy and flavoured with Christmas spices.

They are baked in small artisanal batches, so you need to ensure that you eat them within the relevant ‘consume by date’.

These small pies are ideal if you have guests or family dropping by for a cup of tea because they have a ‘wow’ factor with a lovely texture and great taste.

We also enjoyed the Harvey Nichols 12 Mini Traditional, Ginger & Amaretto Mince Pies Selection at £9.95 which offer a tasty alternative to a traditional mince pie filling.

The store also offers the same recipe for its traditional size pies at £6.95 and we also loved their large traditional Rich Fruit Mince Pies at £9.95 for four.

Again, they are made in small artisanal batches and the buttery pies have Christmas spices and delicious fruit that have been soaked in rum and brandy.

They are very flavoursome and an ideal accompaniment for a cup of tea!

 

Heston from Waitrose Night Before Christmas Mince Pies

Best mince pies for 2021 waitroseAnother great offering are the pies from Waitrose and these ‘Night Before Christmas Mince Pies’ are a real treat.

They are made with a caraway and carrot shortcrust pastry and the mincemeat consists of carrot, vine fruits, Clementine and lashings of cream sherry.

If you and your young ones are leaving out pies for Santa and his reindeer on Christmas Eve, then these pies really will be a treat to see them on their way.

They cost £3 for six delicious pies.

Waitrose also offers a range of other pie alternatives, including their No. 1 Brown Butter Mince Pies that have a nice aftertaste.

The retailer’s Christmas All-butter Mini Mince Pie Selection is also worth considering for parties or guests and their standard Christmas All-butter Mince Pies cost £1.80 for a box of six and are a real treat.

We also quite like their Cherry and Almond Pies which are a nice spin on traditional offerings and cost £2.25 for a pack of four.

 

ASDA Extra Special Extra Indulgent Orange Zest Mince Pies

Best mince pies for 2021 AsdaAsda has a great tasting range of pies, but their Extra Special Extra Indulgent Orange Zest Mince Pies really are something else.

They cost £1.95 for a pack of four and the all-butter orange zest pastry contains mincemeat that has been matured for three months.

The result is a surprisingly deep flavoured pie that delights and will impress guests or family.

The mincemeat has a quite boozy overtone with port and brandy being used along with warming spices.

It’s a lovely fruity finish and it’s a nicely sweet mince pie that stands out from the crowd.

 

Meg Rivers Mince pies

Best mince pies for 2021 meg riversWe love the products from Meg Rivers, and their Mini Frangipane Mince Pies are a real delight.

They cost £18 for 12 and were hugely popular in 2020.

There’s a reason for this, and Meg Rivers has used a traditional pastry base and their own special recipe mincemeat.

Instead of using a pastry lid to seal the mince pie, they use a layer of frangipane and a sprinkling of toasted almond flakes.

Again, these pies that are baked in small batches, so you need to be aware of the ‘consume by date’ but these creations really do deliver a delightful mince pie experience.

If you’re looking for a real festive treat and you are entertaining family and friends who love a mince pie, then these mini frangipane creations will undoubtedly impress.

 

Bettys Classic Mince Pies

Best mince pies for 2021 BettysIf you want a top-class mince pie, then the offering from Bettys this year is an award-winning delight to impress.

The pies are baked to order every day and make for a great gift.

They cost £13.75 for 12 classic mince pies, and they are regular winners of various taste tests.

Bettys use a special mincemeat recipe consisting of golden cherries, vine fruits, almonds as well as seasonal spices and everything is then soaked in brandy and left to mature.

Each mince pie has a classic pastry star as a decoration and the gift box they come in is also impressive.

This really is a classic mince pie, and a standout creation is worth every penny.

 

Morrisons Short Crust Mince Pies

Best mince pies for 2021 MorrisonsWe thought these Morrisons ‘bake at home shortcrust mince pies’ were a great idea and they are a very tasty treat.

They cost £2.50 for a pack of six and they take 20 minutes to bake from frozen. These are the same pies that they sell in-store.

The pies are suitable for vegetarians and are packed with flavoursome mincemeat and lemon peel to bring a zesty rewarding taste.

While you may not get away with pretending that you actually made these from scratch, they smell delicious when baking and being dished up.

There’s no preparation or washing up to do and along with a very tasty fruity filling, the rich buttery shortcrust pastry impresses.

 

Yumbles mince pies – Nummy

Best mince pies for 2021 YumblesYumbles is a food platform packed with talented bakers offering their mince pie goods and we were really impressed by the vegan and refined sugar-free creation by Nummy.

They cost £19 for a box of six but they are packed with flavour and style and offer a classic sweet treat.

The mincemeat is made with cranberries, dates, sultanas, spices and hazelnuts and baked on a crumbly oat base.

These are flour-free, alcohol-free vegan creations with no artificial content.

The pie is definitely a great taste with lovely consistency and is obviously made with premium ingredients.

Even if you’re not a vegan, these Nummy refined sugar-free pies are a tasty delight.

Yumbles also offers other great pies such as keto pies, vegan pies and mince pie brownies.

There are also handmade luxury brandy and orange pies and vegan Christmas mince pie blondies. It’s a very interesting selection and worth exploring.

 

cutter & squidge Mince Pies

Best mince pies for 2021 cutter & squidgeThese all-butter mince pies from cutter & squidge are handmade in London and baked every day to order.

They are 100% vegetarian, and the mincemeat has been made with mixed dried fruits, chopped apples, spices and almonds.

These pies taste fantastic when warm with a dollop of cream a commission might

They cost £10.24 a box of six and have a long shelf life of three months and have all-natural ingredients.

They are very impressive and extremely tasty.

 

Tesco Finest Crumble Topped Mince Pies

Best mince pies for 2021 Tesco FinestOf all the pies we tasted to find the best mince pie to buy in 2021, we were really taken by these Tesco Finest Crumble Topped Mince Pies with salted caramel and festive spice.

Growing numbers of retailers are offering crumble topped pies and here there’s an all-butter crumble base and the mincemeat filling is impressive with apple, sultanas, currants, mixed spices and orange peel.

It’s a really flavoursome offering and between that and the all-butter crumble is a salted caramel filling that brings a very tasty spin on a traditional pie.

These pies are also delicious when warmed with the mincemeat flavours really coming to the fore, but the salted caramel sauce softens to create an impressive and delightful mince pie

The Tesco Finest range also includes Traditional Mince Pies that are very nice, and there’s also a quite boozy Crumble Topped Mince Pie with cognac, brandy and port.