Let's face it, we're all going to treat ourselves to a mince pie or two. But with our help you can choose the least calorific!
Mince pies are a delicious Christmas staple loved by all the family, and we certainly aren't going to be able to resist at least one or two, no matter how strict the pre-Christmas diet may be. With the festive season upon us, we've rated some of the most popular mince pies from a range of supermarkets, both in terms of taste and nutritional value, with stats including calories, fat and saturated fat, and those all important sugar levels. From high-end purchases from Duchy to bargain pies from Iceland, you can find out how healthy your favourite is here – and we’re pretty sure the results are going to surprise you...
To keep our findings equal, we've kept the nutritional value to per pie - and whilst the winner may be slightly smaller than your average mince pie, you could eat almost two and a half of them before you matched the calories of the 'worst' pie, which sounds like a pretty good deal to us. There’s a selection of shapes and sizes of pie, from deep filled to iced top, so whether you like your mince pies cold with a glass of mulled wine on the side, or warmed up with a scoop of ice cream or drizzle of cream, you're bound to find a delicious variety to suit your tastes and dietary restrictions here. There’s even an option for those who need to eat gluten-free – and it’s not bad calorie-wise either!
Click through the slides in the gallery to find out the best and worst mince pies for your diet…
Which of these mince pies is your favourite? Did the results shock you? And would you buy any of the worst rated pies now you know the truth about what they contain? Let us know your thoughts in our comments section below…
M Signature All Butter Deep Filled Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 0/10
Cal: 275kcal
Fat: 11.4
Sat fat: 7.1 g
Sugar: 18.6g
Salt: 0.15g
Price: £1.74 for 6 Reasonably light on the purse strings, but heavy in terms of calories, Morrisons home baked mince pies are delicious, but won't help with your pre-Christmas party diet.
Sainsbury's Deep Filled Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 1/10
Cal: 262kcal
Fat: 10.2g
Sat fat: 4.0g
Sugar: 18.6g
Salt: 0.18g
Price: £1.30 for 6 Before we started looking at the nutritional content, these would have been exactly the type of mince pie that we would have stocked up on for the Christmas cupboard. Well priced, usually on offer and tasty, however having seen the levels of sugar included these are the ones we'll be leaving on the shelf!
Waitrose Shortcrust Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 2/10
Cal: 259kcal
Fat: 10.2g
Sat fat: 4.7g
?Sugar: 20.8g
Salt: 0.2g
Price: £1.70 for 6 These were one of the tastiest shortcrust mince pies we tried this year, but unfortunately there is a shocking amount of fat and sugar in them. We recommend avoiding them or at least treating them as an extra special treat.
Sainsbury's Puff Pastry Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 2/10
Cal: 256kcal
Fat: 10g
Sat fat: 5g
Sugar: 19g
Salt: 2.5g
Price: £1 for 4 These are the most deceiving mince pies we tried. The light, flaky pastry makes you assume that these would be better for you than some of the heavier varieties. It's not the case though; these pies have lots of sugar and fat, not to mention calories.
Iceland Deep Fill Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 3/10
Cal: 252kcal
Fat: 9.7g
Sat fat: 2.9g
Sugar: 19.2g
Salt: 0.2g
Price: £1 for 6 Iceland, the supermarket dedicated to mums, has one of the cheapest boxes of mince pies around. But unfortunately these are also one of the worst for us in terms of calories, fat and sugar. One to keep clear of if you're on a diet!
Asda Extra Special Luxury Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 3/10
Cal: 247kcal
Fat: 9.0g
Sat fat: 5.9g
Sugar: 22g
Salt: 0.06 g
Price: £1.25 for 6 If you're on a diet or watching your weight these are the kinds of mince pies to avoid. The calorie count is very high, but it's the sugar that will really stick to your tummy and be hard to get rid of, even with exercise.
Sainbury's Taste the Difference All Butter Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 4/10
Cal: 240kcal
Fat: 8.5g
Sat fat: 5.1g
Sugar: 24.8g
Salt: 0.2g
Price: £2.50 for 6 As with Asda's Extra Special All Butter Mince Pies, we'd try to find a healthier alternative to these unless it's a one off and you want to really indulge (as they are very tasty).
Waitrose All Butter Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 4/10
Cal: 238kcal
Fat: 8.9g
Sat fat: 5.5g
Sugar: 23.4g
Salt: 0.1g
Price: £2.50 for 6 Rich, buttery and calorific, these mince pies are a once a year treat only, even if they are on offer! While we loved the flavour, these are the kind of mince pies you don't want to have in your cupboard if you're low on self-restraint at this time of year.
Tesco Finest Rhubarb & Stem Ginger Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 4/10
Cal: 237kcal
Fat: 8.4g
Sat fat: 5.6g
Sugar: 22g
Salt: 0.2g
Price: £2.00 for 6 Stepping away from the original mince pie slightly, these rhubarb and stem ginger pies are the perfect Christmas party treat for those who want to give friends something different. They also work well as a pudding with some vanilla ice-cream.
Asda Christmas Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 5/10
Cal: 229 kcal
Fat: 9.0g
Sat fat: 2.9g
Sugar: 16g
Salt: 0.06g
Price: 89p for 6 Great value and filled with the most incredible mince mix, Asda's mince pies are a reasonably safe bet. Just indulge in every now and again rather than making them a weekly fixture in your trolley.
Mr Kipling Christmas Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 5/10
Cal: 226kcal
Fat: 9.0g
Sat fat: 3.9g
Sugar: 19.7g
Salt: 0.18g
Price: £1.50 for 6 Whilst they're not the highest in cals or fat, Mr Kiplings pies do contain quite a lot of sugar. These mince pies aren't the worst option - but stick to just one!
Sainsbury's Freefrom Deep Filled Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 5/10
Cal: 226kcal
Fat: 7.8g
Sat fat: 2.5g
Sugar: 21.9g
Salt: 0.1g
Price: £2.19 for 4 For
those who have allergies with gluten, wheat or dairy, these mince pies
from Sainsbury's are the perfect option. Not only do they taste exactly
the same as traditional pies, but they're not too bad on the calorie or
fat levels either.
Mince pies 2015
Rating for calorie-counters: 6/10
Cal: 229kcal
Fat: 8.3g
Sat fat: 3.6g
Sugar: 22.3g
Salt: 0.11g
Price: £1.30 for 6 We expected iced mince pies to rate much worse on the calorie front. However, while the amount of sugar is still very high, the fat levels aren't too bad. So much so, we'd definitely buy a couple of packs for the kids as a treat when these are on offer.
Mince pies 2015
Rating for calorie-counters: 6/10
Cal: 220 kcal
Fat: 7.6g
Sat fat: 3.2g
Sugar: 24g
Salt: 0.07g
Price: £1 for 6 These are some of the best value mince pies in our round-up, and not too bad for your waistline either. We recommend warming them up slightly, adding ice-cream and sprinkling with cinnamon. Delicious!
Duchy Originals Organic Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 7/10
Cal: 216kcal
Fat: 7.6g
Sat fat: 4.5g
Sugar: 24.3g
Salt: 0.1g
Price: £4 for 6 Christmas is the time of year when we're most likely to splash out on food, and these delicious mince pies from Duchy Originals are worth every penny. Plus the amount of calories make them the perfect treat for when all the presents have been wrapped.
Heston From Waitrose Shortcrust Mince Pies
Rating for calorie-counters: 8/10
Cal: 194kcal
Fat: 6.4g
Sat fat: 4g
Sugar: 19.2g
Salt: 0.3g
Price: £3.50 for 6 In true Heston style, these mince pies are just as much about the look and the smell as they are about the taste. With clementine sugar dusting, these yummy mince pies smell like Christmas. These are definitely the ones to bring out to impress when you have friends over.
Waitrose Mini Mince Pie Selection
Rating for calorie-counters: 9/10
Cal: 109kcal
Fat: 4.4g
Sat fat: 2.4g
Sugar: 11.6g
Salt: 0.1g
Price: £2.40 for 9 By taste alone we would have put these mince pies much higher up on the calorie counter. Not only are they absolutely delicious, but there are a mixture of flavours in the pack for the whole family to choose from. Plus you could eat two and a half of these pies before you reached the same amount of calories as the worst mince pie!
Tesco Finest Mini Mince pies
Rating for calories-counters: 10/10
Cal: 80kcal
Fat: 2.7g
Sat fat: 1.7g
Sugar: 5.0g
Salt: 0.1g
Price: £2.50 for 12 Tesco's Finest Mini Mince Pies are deliciously yummy, bite-size versions of the traditional mince pie. We loved these and would definitely add them to our shopping trolley. Because of their smaller size they're also better for your waistline, meaning you can still have a treat without toppling the scales - a worthy winner indeed!
