Mincemeat on toast.Danielle Matar/The Globe and Mail
In my youth, this was usually served at high tea, around 5 o'clock. Today, it makes a great appetizer or hors d'oeuvre inside of a pastry shell.
Servings: 4
Ingredients
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 lb medium ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup peeled and chopped carrots, about 1/4 lb
1/2 cup peeled chopped rutabaga, about 1/4 lb
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tbsp tomato paste
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 bay leaf
1 cup red wine
2 cups beef stock, packaged low salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 1/2-inch slices sourdough bread
2 tbsp chopped parsley
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Method
Heat 2 tbsp oil in sauté pan over high heat. Add beef and sauté while breaking up with a wooden spoon. Season meat lightly with salt and pepper. Cook until meat loses its pinkness, about 4 minutes. Add onions, carrots, rutabaga and garlic. Continue to cook until vegetables soften about 5 minutes. Stir in soy sauce and Worcestershire, tomato paste, thyme, rosemary and bay leaf.
Pour in wine and bring to boil, scraping up any browned bits. Reduce heat to medium and cook uncovered until wine is almost fully absorbed, about 5 to 6 minutes. Add stock and bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer gently until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper if needed. Gently mash some of the veggies into the meat with a wooden spoon for further thickening.
Heat 1/4 cup oil in skillet over medium-low heat. Add bread and brown on each side, about 1 to 2 minutes each side. Place on serving dishes and heap with mince. Sprinkle with parsley. Serve with a bitter lettuce salad on the side.