Mincemeat

Old-fashion cooking at it's best!! This is labor intense but worth every hour of work. I don't know if there is anything else you can use this for but I always made pies. If my memory serves me right it took 1 1/2 pints to make a pie so I always made two. I served the pie, hot topped with a frozen rum sauce #17308 that would melt down the sides.

• Ready In: 4 hrs
• Yields: 10 pints

Ingredients

• 2  lbs lean beef, cooked tender and put through food chopper (reserve 1 cup stock)
• 1⁄2 lb suet, chopped fine
• 5  lbs apples, chopped, save peels and cores
• 3  lbs raisins, chopped
• 1  tablespoon salt
• 2  cups brown sugar
• 5  cups water (boil apple peel and cores or 1 quart sweet cider)
• 1  cup  meat stock
• 2 1⁄2 pints  grape juice
• 1  teaspoon mace
• 1⁄2 teaspoon pepper
• 2  teaspoons allspice
• 2  teaspoons cloves
• 2  teaspoons nutmeg
• 2  teaspoons cinnamon
• 1  cup molasses
• 1  orange (juice and peel chopped)
• 1  lemon (juice and peel chopped)
• 3⁄4 cup vinegar

Directions

1. Cook beef until tender by whatever method you want whether it be pressure cooker, crockpot or stovetop.
2. In the meantime peel and core apples placing peel and core in a pan.
3. Add water to cover (but not over 5 cups) and bring to boil; simmer 10 minutes.
4. Strain and measure adding water to make 5 cups; set aside to cool.
5. When the beef is cool enough to handle, chop beef in your food processor.
6. (I used the old-fashion hand grinder.) In a LARGE pot add beef, suet, apples, raisins, salt, brown sugar, water (that you cooked peels and cores in) and meat stock and bring to boil.
7. Reduced heat and simmer one hour, stirring it occasionally.
8. Next to this mixture add grape juice, mace, pepper, allspice, cloves, nutmeg, cinnamon, molasses, orange, lemon and vinegar.
9. Return it to a boil and boil for 10 minutes.
10. Pack in sterile canning jars to within 1 inch of the top.
11. Put on cap, screw band FIRMLY TIGHT.
12. Process pints 25 minutes at 10 pounds pressure.
13. Let canner cool and unlock before removing jars.