Beef & Vege Pie

Who loves pies?

There's just something about homemade pies that warms my soul, especially on a cool rainy day like today. I have fond memories of my trips to Australia, where some of the world's best pies are served in a dizzying array of flavours!

My own homemade pie is, of course, nowhere near that standard. But we all start somewhere, so here's my shot at a beef pie...

Pie Filling:
Unlike baking, my cooking is almost never to recipe. You can vary the ingredients according to your tastes, and you can add anything you like or omit the stuff you don't like. So, here goes:
* Meat of your choice, minced or cubed (you can use beef, chicken, pork, lamb, or even ham)
* Vegetables (e.g. peas, carrots, corn, celery, mushrooms, potatoes, etc)
* Onions, chopped
* Liquid (e.g. tomato puree/paste, milk, or canned soup)
* Herbs (e.g. basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano, curry, whatever you fancy!)
* Salt & pepper to taste

1 - Fry onions till soft, then add meat and cook till almost done.
2 - Add vegetables and cook.
3 - When almost done, add liquid and herbs of choice and cook till it boils. If the mixture is too thin, simmer till it thickens, or add some slurry or instant mashed potatoes. 
4 - When done to your liking, set aside while you prepare the crust.

Pie Crust:
* 120g butter, very cold
* 260g flour
* 80ml cold water
* 1/2 tsp salt

Makes about 4 small pie crusts.
If you are serving the pies in ramekins, you can also omit the base and just have the crust on top. In this case, halve the recipe.

1 - Cut or rub the butter into the flour and salt until it resembles coarse bread crumbs.

2 - Gradually add teaspoonfuls of cold water and stir till the dough comes together.

3 - Knead it a few times. Then divide into 4 parts. Further divide each quarter into 2/3 (for the base) and 1/3 (for the top).

4 - With a rolling pin, roll each portion out to circles.

5 - With the larger pieces, line the base of your ramekin or pie shell. You could even use large muffin tins!

6 - Fill with pie filling, and top with smaller piece of dough.

7 - Using a fork, press the edges to seal in all the juicy goodness. But don't forget to poke some steam vents on the top. Brush with egg wash or milk (for that glossy brown effect).

Bake at 200 degC for about 20-30 min, depending on the size of your pie. Since the filling is already cooked, your pie is done when the tops are nicely browned.

enjoy!

  

Crusty Tips:

* Place the butter in the freezer for about 10 min, then grate it over the flour. The flour will coat the small bits of butter and with a quick stir you'll instantly get that bread-crumb texture. Sure beats using all that effort to cut the butter with a fork or pastry blender! It also avoids melting the butter with your warm fingers with the rubbing-in method.

* Alternatively, just blitz the flour and butter in a food processor, then drizzle cold water until the dough comes together.

Chicken Pot Pie

You won't believe how easy it is to make this! It is one of the snack items that I like to prepare when friends come over for a visit. They look professional, and the best part is, I could even prepare it hours earlier and heat it up just before serving.

How to make:

1. Fry diced potato and carrot till soft. Set aside.
2. Fry crushed garlic in olive oil till fragrant. Add diced chicken. Add sliced mushrooms.
3. Now put in the potato and carrot dices.
4. Pour in one can of Campbells mushroom cream soup mixed with some water. Sprinkle pepper according to taste. Set aside.
5. Cut and roll Sunshine frozen puff pastry for the crust.
6. Skillfully fold your pastry and wrap your ingredients inside. Make sure the edges are secured or the ingredients would spill out during the baking process.
7. Brush with egg wash and bake at 180 degC till golden brown.
8. Enjoy.