My mom's easy mince pies are my go-to dessert — and they never fail to impress

As a Brit living in the US, I make mince pies every year I'm stateside for the holidays.

My mom's mince pies are, in my unbiased opinion, the best.

They're a smaller version of the treat, which I appreciate, since I prefer a more even ratio of pastry to mincemeat. And one bite never fails to transport me back to Christmas in the UK.

The recipe is actually from the UK supermarket, Waitrose, and it’s almost completely foolproof.

The exact recipe no longer appears on Waitrose's website (my mom told me she has a physical copy somewhere), though the grocery store has a few different takes on the treat available online.

Thankfully, though, I've memorialized the specific method my mom uses on a recipe card and now I'm sharing it with you.

The recipe makes 24 mini mince pies. You’ll only need a handful of ingredients to make them, and most should already be in your pantry.

You'll need the following:

• ½ cup confectioners' sugar (plus extra for sprinkling);

• 9 tbsps unsalted butter, softened;

• 2 cups plain flour;

• 3 tbsps finely ground almonds or almond flour;

• Zest of 1 orange, grated;

• 1 large egg;

• 11 oz mincemeat.

In terms of equipment, you'll need a few extra accouterments beyond your standard mixing bowls.

You'll need mixing bowls, of course, and also a mini cupcake pan, sieve, rolling pin (though you could also use a clean bottle), citrus grater, and two circular, fluted cutters (one approximately 2.25 inches wide and another about 1.75 inches wide).

The recipe also calls for using a food processor, but I use an electric hand whisk and find that gets the job done. It's helpful to have a spatula on hand as well.

The first step is to mix the confectioners' sugar and softened butter in a food processor, or with an electric mixer, until smooth.

If your butter isn't soft enough, pop it in the microwave for a few seconds so it's easy to work with. And if you don't have a food processor, don't sweat it; you can use an electric hand mixer, like I do, or do it by hand.

After blending the butter and sugar, I use a spatula to pry any bits of the mixture that get stuck in the whisks of my electric mixer, and smooth the contents of the bowl.

Next, add your egg, flour, ground almonds or almond flour, and orange zest to the bowl with your butter and sugar mixture.

Don't blend it too thoroughly — you want to combine it until it's just mixed in.

I'd suggest lowering the setting on your processor or mixer, depending on what you're using, to avoid overmixing.

Transfer the mixture onto a floured countertop and gently work the pastry into a ball using your hands.

I find that some of the mixture is often a bit crumbly, but I try not to overhandle the dough as I mold it into a ball.

Place the pastry in a bowl, cover it, and pop it in the fridge. Set a timer for at least two hours, and relax.

This is my favorite part. I tend to get the first batch of dishes out of the way before taking a well-deserved break.

Two or more hours later, it's time to make the pastry cases for your mince pies. Take your pastry out of the fridge and preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

By the time you've made the pastry cases, loaded them up with the mincemeat, and topped them with a shortcrust lid, your oven should be at temp.

To make the pie cups, place parchment paper or cling wrap on a floured countertop then put approximately three-quarters of the pastry on top, before adding a second sheet of parchment or cling wrap. Then, roll until the pastry is about 3 millimeters thick.

Don't make the mistake of rolling the pastry too thin. I've learned the hard way that it shouldn't be paper thin, and should still be easy enough to handle.

Once you've rolled out your pastry, take the larger cutter and cut 24 circles. Grease your pan with a little butter, then carefully place the pastry circles into your cupcake tin.

As you do, gently nudge — and don't push — the center of the pastry into the cupcake insert so it won't break.

If it does, you could perform a little pastry surgery by using some of the leftover pastry around the cuttings you've made to patch up any holes. It's not perfect, but once the mincemeat is in you won't be able to tell.

Add about a teaspoon of mincemeat to each pastry cup in your tin.

You don't have to be methodical about it. I eyeball the amount of mincemeat I add, and tend to use both a spoon and mini spreader to push any stubborn bits of the filling off the cutlery and into the pastry cup.

Then, pick up the remainder of your dough and repeat the process of rolling out the pastry to a 3-millimeter thickness in a parchment paper or cling wrap sandwich. Then, use the smaller cutter to cut 24 lids out of the pastry.

If the cling wrap or parchment paper you used for the first round of pastry rolling is still standing, I'd suggest reusing it to cut down on kitchen waste.

You'll see I also have a jug of water and a brush handy — which you'll use in the next step.

Wet the edges of each circle with some water, and firmly affix atop your mincemeat-loaded pastry cups. Prick with a fork on top. Then pop them in the oven for 10-15 minutes until they're golden brown.

I find the mince pies are perfectly baked after 15 minutes on the top shelf of my oven, but I'd recommend setting a timer for 10 minutes to check on them since ovens can differ.

When the mince pies are golden brown, take them out and leave them in the pan for a few minutes.

Once the pies are out of the oven, and after they've sat in the pan for a few minutes, gently nudge them out of the cupcake tin and transfer to a cooling rack.

Let them sit for at least 20 minutes until they're all the way cool.

Finally, dust your cooled mince pies with some confectioners' sugar for that just-snowed look.

If your pastry looks less than perfect, don't fret — like a good concealer, sprinkling confectioners' sugar on your mince pies should cover any imperfections.

And if you're making them ahead of an event, I'd recommend topping them up with a fresh dusting of confectioners' sugar before you put them out for guests.

Serve and enjoy.

There's really no wrong way to serve these mince pies. They're a crowd pleaser on a platter at a holiday party served with mulled wine, or perfect with a mug of tea for an anytime-of-day snack. However you eat them, they'll be sure to impress on your holiday table.

I find these keep for days in an airtight container at room temperature and can travel easily. I'm taking a batch of the mince pies to my in-laws for the holidays, though they're so hard to resist I can't promise they'll all make it on the five-hour drive there.

They're a delightful treat, and thanks to their small size they're not too sweet or mincemeat-heavy, while still tasting festive. The orange in the pastry also adds a hint of brightness, which I love.

But the best thing about these mince pies is that no matter where I am, they never fail to bring me closer to home.