Make your last-minute Christmas baking way easier by filling a pastry-lined tray with fruit mince and adding star-shaped pastry cut-outs for the top. Then simply cut into brownie-style squares and serve.

1. Preheat the oven to 180° C. To make the pastry, sift 120 g flour, ½ t salt and 2 T icing sugar into a bowl. Work in 150 g softened butter using your fingertips until the mixture is the consistency of fine breadcrumbs.

2. Stir 1 T water into the yolk of 1 free-range beaten egg yolk. Mix this into the flour-and-butter mixture.

3. Work the mixture into a stiff dough, adding water if necessary. Wrap the dough in clingwrap and chill for 30 minutes.

4. Roll out the pastry onto a floured surface and cut to the size of your baking tray. Cut out pastry stars for the top from the pastry offcuts.

5. Place on a greased baking tray and prick all over using a fork. Set aside.

6. To make the fruit mince, place the following into a large saucepan and cook over medium heat until most liquid has reduced and the mince is sticky: 220 g dried Turkish figs, 3 peeled and diced Granny Smith apples, 500 g roughly chopped prunes, 100 g pine nuts, 500 g seedless raisins, 250g dried cranberries, ½ t white pepper, ½ t nutmeg, 1 t ground cinnamon, 1 t ground ginger, 1 t ground cardamom, 3 zested and juiced oranges, 1 zested lemon, 100 g brown treacle sugar, ¼ cup brandy.

7. Spoon fruit mince generously over the pastry sheet and top with the pastry stars. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until golden brown.

Too busy to get baking? Choose from a delicious array of Woolies Christmas cakes and fruit mince pies online.