This last week, while I worked from home, I had several calls from readers who gave me information and recipes about mincemeat. I’ll share what I learned in this and future columns. I so enjoyed visiting with you all, and thanks so much for the information.

As you may recall, my brother Duane Osborn was wanting to buy mincemeat pies or the mincemeat to make them. He couldn’t find either. He remembered the days when our mother, Judy Osborn, baked mincemeat pies during the holidays. (Duane did bake some mock mincemeat pies. More about this later.)

The first reader to call me was Sharon Kohls, of Craig. She gave me a very old recipe for mincemeat and a recipe for mincemeat cookies. Sharon was a hairdresser in Evergreen before she moved to Craig. She got this recipe from a client.

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MincemeatMincemeat

Mincemeat

Grind the following together:

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4 pounds beef, cooked

2 pounds suet

1 pound citron

2 large oranges

2 large lemons

After grinding, add the following:After grinding, add the following:

After grinding, add the following:

1 box currants

8 pounds diced, cooked apples

3 pounds raisins

4 pounds brown sugar

2 glasses of quince or crabapple jelly

1 ounce cinnamon

1 ounce mace

1 ounce allspice

1 ounce cloves

1 ounce nutmeg

1 quart rum (Sharon thinks she used dark. It cooks off.)

Cook the mixture until it cooks down. When ready, put the mincemeat in jars and process in a water bath. Then there is mincemeat to make pies and cookies.

*Note: Some cooks used cooked venison meat instead of beef.

Courtesy of Sharon Kohls of Craig.

Mincemeat Cookies
Mincemeat Cookies

Mincemeat Cookies

1 cup shortening

1 ½ teaspoons salt

1 ½ cups sugar

1-1/3 cups mincemeat

3 eggs

3 cups flour

1 teaspoon soda

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Cream shortening and sugar. Add eggs and mix well. Add mincemeat. Mix. Add the flour, salt, and soda. Mix well. Drop by teaspoons on a cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 degrees for 8 to 10 minutes.

Courtesy of Sharon Kohls of Craig.

Thanks again, Sharon, and to everyone who was kind enough to call me. If you have a recipe that you would like to share with readers, please call me at 970-824-8809 or write to me at Box 415, Craig 81626.