All Eyes On The Pies

Bye-bye – No, Hello –the Old School English (and Every Other) Vintage-style Pie, Back in Fashion and Fresh Outta the Oven, Oozing Nostalgic Goodness and Consoling Warmth on a Gloomy Day.

STEAK AND BLUE CHEESE INDIVIDUAL POT PIES

Serves 6 A LITTLE EFFORT 3 hrs 40 mins + 1 hr, to cool

THE FLAVOUR COMBINATIONS PIE FILLING 

1,5kg boneless stewing beef, cubed

50g cake flour 

15ml (1 tbsp) olive oil 

1 large onion, peeled and diced 

2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced

1 x 400g tin chopped tomatoes

500ml (2 cups) beef stock 

250ml (1 cup) Guinness dry stout handful thyme leaves 

3 carrots, peeled and cut into chunks salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

150g blue cheese (Stilton, if you can find it, but Gorgonzola will work), broken into chunks

PASTRY 

1 x 400g roll puff pastry, defrosted but still chilled 

1 beaten egg, to brush small handful sage leaves

HOW TO DO IT 

1 For the filling, toss the steak cubes in the cake flour. Place the olive oil in a large stoveproof casserole dish over high heat. Brown the meat, in batches if necessary, until golden brown on all sides, about 15 minutes. Remove the meat from the dish and set aside. Lower the heat and fry the onion and garlic until soft and translucent, about 10 minutes. If necessary, add a little water to the pan and scrape with a wooden spoon to release any meat that has stuck to the bottom of the dish. 

2 Return the meat to the dish and add the tinned tomatoes, the beef stock, stout and thyme. Simmer, covered, about 2 hours 30 minutes. Add the carrots and simmer, a further 30 minutes, before tasting the stew and seasoning accordingly. Allow the stew to cool completely (place the stew in a bowl in the freezer to speed up the process).