Fun Facts Friday - Mince Pies

Written by Mums NI on Friday, 07 December 2018 Posted in: Fun Facts Friday

At Mums NI, we believe that education starts at home. We, as parents, are our children's Primary Educators. Together, we can inspire young minds and make learning fun!

In this Fun Facts Friday, we are looking at the much loved traditional Mince Pie! Almost everyone loves this little treat during December. So get your little ones and snuggle down for this fun fact mission to find out more about them.

What's inside? What do they represent? Does Santa really like them?

Lets find out . . .

Fact 1

Make a Wish! It's tradition to make a wish when eating your first mince pie of the festive season.

Fact 2

Mince pies used to be made with lamb mincemeat mixed with dried fruits and alcohol and spices. Thankfully, over the years, the meat was taken out but the name stayed the same. We now call it sweet mincemeat.

Fact 3

Mince pies weren't always round. They used to be oval shaped to look like the manager baby Jesus slept in. Sometimes, a baby Jesus made of pastry would be laid on top.

Fact 4

The spices used in mince pies are said to represent the gifts the 3 Wise Men brought to baby Jesus - Cinnamon, Clove and Nutmeg. The star on mince pies is said to be the Star that guided the Wise Men.

Fact 5

Mince pies can be eaten cold or warm. We think they taste better heated up with some cream.

Fact 6

The worlds largest mince pie factory is the Mr Kipling factory in Barnsley, England where they make 27 million mince pies per year! That's a lot of pies!

Fact 7

On 15th October 1932 in Leicestershire (England), the largest mince pie in the whole world was was baked. It weighed an astonishing 2,260lb and measured a whooping 20 x 5 ft! That's a whole lot of eating! I can only eat 2 in a sitting.