Healthy Mince Pies

Christmas is by far my favourite time of the year. Ive been seeing little cookies all over the internet so i though id do something a little different. I found this recipe on Madeleine Shaws website a loved it so much. Not only is it delicious but there super healthy too. (I will leave the link to her page bellow, its worth a look!). They are vegetarian but by using a substitute for the egg you could easily recreate it as vegan. Its not hard to follow along i you read over the directions first, which i should have done. Though if they do turn out total disasters you can rest assured they'll still taste good... mine did. 

So lets begin...

What your going to need.. 

• 100g of raisins
• 100g of cranberries
• 100g of sultanas
• 1 apple
• 1 & 1/2 tsp of ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp of ground nutmeg
• 1/2 tsp  ground ginger
• 2 oranges
• 250g of ground almonds/almond meal
• 200 g of walnuts
• 2 TBSP of coconut sugar or honey
• 2 tbsp of coconut oil
• 1 egg
• 
  

Directions
Zest and juice the oranges, place in a pot and put on a medium heat.
Cut up the apple into small slithers (discard stem) and place into pot with raisins, sultanas, cranberries, vanilla, 1/2 tsp of ginger, 1/2 tsp cinnamon and 1/2 nutmeg. (I know it doesn't look like 
enough liquid but it is) 
Let this simmer for 25 minutes only stirring occasionally (make sure you don’t boil it). 
Turn off the heat, transfer to another bowl and let cool.
Turn on the oven to 150ºC.
Place the almonds and walnuts in a food processor and pulse until a flour is formed, add honey, 1 TBSP of cinnamon, coconut oil and egg and combine until a dough forms (if it is a little dry add a little water, if it is too moist add a little more almonds)
Grease some muffin/cupcake holders with coconut oil.
Grab a large TBSP of dough and push into the moulds covering the bottom of the shell, leaving enough room to put the mince inside (you might need to add a little more depending on your tin size). Make sure the entire sides are covered. This mixture should make around 15 mince pies however this maybe more or less dependant on your mould size.
Add in a little over 1 TBSP of mince into each shell.
With the left over pastry, roll out inbetween baking paper until it is 1/2 cm thick, using a circle cutter the same size as the top of your pie. If you run out of pastry cutting a little shape from the lids will help you extend your pastry out so you don't need to make more. Once your done place them in the oven and bake for 25 minutes. 
Remove and rest on a tray once cooled. These stay best when placed in an upright container in the fridge. 

http://madeleineshaw.com/recipes/healthy-mince-pies/

Christmas arrived at Lush

Christmas time is probably one of my favourite times to buy from lush. They capture the scent and essence of christmas in a way i struggle to find anywhere else. So i made a little purchase and i thought id share it with you all. 

Butter bear: A sweet smelling bear packed with cocoa butter and vanilla leaving you feel like a slippery eel, but incredibly moisturising.

Dashing santa:This bath bomb smells like a warm christmas morning and fills you bath with a vibrant red.

Farther christmas: This bath bomb smells a little like fairy floss with a vibrant centre surprise.

Five golden rings: These are a new affection to the Lush christmas collection. They are five small bubble bar rings which when you crumble under running water creates bubbles. I would not recommend using this one unless you don't mind glitter all over your body, bath and house. Its very vanilla scented and quite moisturising.

Golden wonder gift: This is by far my favourite bath bomb i wait for every year. Not only is it exiting to watch fizzle the smell is beautiful. Last year i dropped this when they where sold out and was devastated. 

Stardust bath bomb:  This one to me didn't really have a strong recognisable scent. It was almost like baby powder but that may be more to do with its appearance.

Holy go lightly: This is a cult classic that again enraptures the essence of christmas. Very spiced scent. This one again is a bubble bar thats quite a generous size. 

Snow angel bath melt: Bath melts i find are the most moisturising of all lushes bath products. This one again is layered with cocoa for moisturising and a top layer of rose sent for fizz. 

Cinders bath bomb: This is another bath bomb layered with spicy undertones. A prior warning this one is always smaller that the other bath bombs however i think the piping candy on the top makes up for it. 

Sephora Haul

So Sephora just started shipping their products to Australia, so i though i'd make a little order. Their range of cruelty free products is small but what they do stock is fantastic. Nudestix are probably my all time favourite brand at the moment. Which their products being based around the idea of 'natural beauty' and a 'natural feel'. Which they achieve in their range. I purchased an eyeshadow trio ( shades    
Angel, Immortal and Twilight) and a contouring stick in dark. The consistency and pigment in all of the products is on point. It blend easily into the stun with warm hands. Rubbing up for highlight and down for bronzing. The packaging of these is adorable too with a little mirror inside for travel. My only disappointment with the product was in Sephora who have recently raised the prices of the products. I also purchased two brushes from Zoeva, their is so much positive words spoken about these brushes and i agree completely. I purchases a flat conturing brush and an eyeshadow buffing brush. Which i should add both come with vegan alternatives, so please grab those up instead. As for the brushes the brussels are very soft and i have not noticed any shedding yet and i have been using them quite vigourusly.
If you want to check out any of these products ill pop a link down bellow to Sephora's website there having a 20% off site wide sale from tomorrow until the 27th of november so it might be worth a look.

http://www.sephora.com.au

All opinions are my own and always will be!

Clover x