Great British Bake Off star’s recipe for CBD mince pies 

Great British Bake Off star Howard Middleton is putting a green twist on Christmas this year, with his new CBD-infused mince pies.

The recipe for this Christmas treat includes the use of hemp flour, added CBD oil and an optional hemp-style frosting.

Howard first hit fame when he appeared on the 2013 series of the popular cooking show Great British Bake Off, where he caught viewer’s eye with his unusual set of ingredients and recipes.

The cook even introduced the show’s judges to hemp flour and has since gone on to release his first book ‘Delicious Gluten-Free Baking’.

He spoke about how his unorthodox style helped shape this recipe.

“I love to experiment with my baking to cater for those with intolerances and people who like to try alternative ingredients and new flavours,” Howard said.

“With so much time spent inside this year, home-baking has been on the rise and I hope people will give my tasty twist on a mince pie recipe a trial in their kitchens.

“The recipe calls for hemp flour, coconut flour plus hemp oil and water from a can of chickpeas so your gluten-free and vegan friends can enjoy it, too.

“I like to show that it’s possible for ingredients to be inclusive and delicious. For adults who want to include CBD oil, there is an optional measure of 10mg for each pie.”

CBD use is on the rise in the UK, with around six million adults in the country having now tried the supplement.

The recipe was created in collaboration with ActivelyCBD.com and the company’s wholesale manager Jonathan Thorpe, a former chef himself, spoke about how happy he was to help create the dish.

“The mince pie recipe he has created is simply show stopping – and your gluten-free and vegan friends can enjoy them too,” Jonathon said.

“Howard is a hero of ours thanks to his attitude in the kitchen, working with a variety of different ingredients to suit individuals’ dietary requirements and tastes. 

“For adults who want to add CBD oil to their cooking, we supply high-quality products to consumers in the UK. Each product is verified in independent labs and subject to full spectrum analysis to verify CBD content.”

Actively CBD provides a range of hemp products, from drinks and chocolate to essential oils.

See Howard’s full recipe for his CBD mince pies below:

Ingredients

For the pastry

75g plain gluten-free flour, plus extra for rolling

20g icing sugar

10g hemp flour

15g coconut flour (or replace with more plain gluten-free flour)

25g ground almonds

A half pinch of salt

⅛ tsp gluten-free baking powder

65g cold vegan butter substitute, cubed (or you can use a mix of this and hard coconut oil)

½  tsp grated orange or lemon zest

¼  tsp ground cinnamon (optional)

3 – 4 tbsp orange or lemon juice

For the filling

12 tsp mincemeat (suitable for vegans and gluten-free)

For the frangipane topping

2 tbsp hemp oil

90g caster sugar

3 – 4 tbsp aquafaba (drained water from a can of chickpeas)

150g ground almonds

½ tsp almond extract

 A handful of flaked almonds

To finish

Icing sugar

A little green food colouring

10mg full spectrum CBD oil from ActivelyCBD.com (optional)

Method

1. To make the pastry, put the flours, icing sugar, ground almonds, salt and baking powder in a mixing bowl and rub in the cubes of vegan fat (or you can pulse in a food processor).
2. Stir in the zest and cinnamon, then stir in the juice and bring the dough together until it forms a smooth ball.
3. Roll out on a floured surface (it’s easiest to do this in batches), then stamp out circles using a 7cm cutter and ease these carefully into a 12-hole shallow tart tin. Chill in the fridge or freezer, whilst you make the frangipane topping.
4. Preheat the oven to 190°C/170°C fan.
5. To make the frangipane topping, beat the oil with the sugar and aquafaba, then stir in the ground almonds and almond extract and mix well.
6. Put a spoonful of mincemeat in each pastry case, then top with frangipane and level off. Sprinkle with flaked almonds.
7. Bake for about 15 minutes until the topping is golden and firm and the pastry has browned.
8. Leave to cool for five minutes in the tin, then remove and finish cooling on a wire rack.
9. Make a water icing with icing sugar, a little green colouring and water until you have a smooth consistency that’s not too runny. If you’re over and you’ve spoken to a doctor, add in a serving of full-spectrum CBD oil from ActivelyCBD.com if you like
10. Dust the mince pies with icing sugar, then pipe or drizzle over the green icing artistically.