Veal and Stilton pie
This rich, filling pie is a real winter warmer and makes a fantastic dinner party dish. Serve with seasonal greens.
Ingredients
For the pie filling
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 3 celery sticks, finely chopped
- 2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
- 200ml/7fl oz red wine
- 1kg/2lb 4oz veal, finely chopped
- 2–3 thyme sprigs
- 1 head garlic, cloves separated and peeled
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tbsp tomato purée
- 3 tomatoes, roughly chopped
- 2 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced on a mandolin
- 300²µ/10½´Ç³ú Stilton, crumbled
For the pastry
- 450g/1lb plain flour, plus extra for dusting
- 80²µ/2¾´Ç³ú butter, plus extra for greasing
- 80²µ/2¾´Ç³ú lard
- pinch salt
- 2 free-range eggs, beaten
- 1 free-range egg, beaten, to glaze
Method
To make the pie filling, heat the oil in a casserole dish and sauté the onion, celery and carrots for 5 minutes, or until softened. Deglaze with the red wine and cook until reduced.
Add the veal, thyme, garlic, bay leaves, tomato purée and chopped tomatoes to the dish and stir to combine. Pour in just enough water to cover and simmer without a lid for 1½–2 hours, or until the veal is cooked and tender. Check the dish regularly and top up with more water if needed.
To make the pastry, place the flour in a large bowl. Add the butter and, using your fingertips, rub it into the flour until it resembles breadcrumbs. In a saucepan, heat 150ml/5fl oz water, the lard and salt until just boiling. Pour the liquid onto the flour mixture, add the eggs and mix using a wooden spoon.
Tip the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead to a smooth dough. Wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Preheat the oven to 200C/180C Fan/Gas 6 and grease a 20-cm/8-in springform round baking tin.
Roll out a large circle of dough, reserving some for a lid, and line the prepared tin. Spoon some of the veal filling into the pastry-lined tin. Press it down and level the surface. Add a layer of potato and Stilton and then cover with more veal filling. Add more Stilton over the top.
Using the remaining pastry, roll out a pie lid on a lightly floured work surface. Brush the top edges of the pastry in the tin with beaten egg yolk and place the pastry lid on top. Crimp the edges to seal and trim off any excess pastry. Make a couple of slits in the top of the pie to allow the steam to escape and brush the pastry lid with egg yolk.
Bake for 40 minutes–1 hour, or until the top is golden brown. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes then remove from the tin and leave to cool completely on a wire rack before serving.
