Hi
Nibblers!
Whenever I come home from overseas, the first thing I crave is a good old Aussie meat pie. That shortcut pastry at the base, simple beef mince filling and flaky puff pastry on top is the best. What's better is the comfort of a home-made pie and having the house smelling of baking goodness. The weather has been miserable in Sydney at the moment. It's raining and has been storming constantly. So, I decided to make my own little version of the classic meat pie to enjoy. This version is best enjoyed at the table as it can be difficult to handle. But, trust me, the cutlery use is worth it because they taste amazing. Crunchy pastry shell with saucy minced beef filling, being fancy on a budget. Hope you enjoy this #CountdownToChristmas Recipe!
How To: Meat Pastry Shell Pies
Yields 10 large pies and 12 mini pies
What you'll need:
- 6 ready made puff pastry sheets
- 500g of minced beef
- 1 Tbs mixed herbs
- 2 Tbs. cornflour with 1 TBs. water to form a paste
- 1 tsp. salt
- 2 medium sized onions (diced)
- 250mL beef stock
- 70mL of thickened cream
- 3 eggs separated into yolk (egg wash) / white
- 2 Tbs. curry powder (optional - if you want a twist on your pies. It tastes amazing)
- Circle cookie cutters (Doesn't matter what size as long as one of the circle cutters is larger than the other. I used a large lid from my peanut butter jar)
How To:
 |
Don't chuck the left over pastry,
mould it into something new |
1.
Cook diced onions in a large saucepan on a medium heat until light brown
2.
Add minced meat to saucepan and keep stirring to separate the mince and cook for about 5 minutes or until brown
3.
Add stock, salt, cream, egg whites, herbs and stir until well incorporated
Note: If you would like curry flavoured mince, add curry powder to mince and stir until well combined. I did half a traditional mince and half curry filling
4.
Add cornflour paste to saucepan and wait until meat boils then, reduce heat to low and let simmer for 20 minutes until think and leave to cool.
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| Pastry Shells ready to go! |
The pastry shell recipe was inspired by Food Wishes Recipe Video. Click the link to see how Chef John made his pastry shells. I found it messier to egg wash the whole pastry sheet so, decided to only egg wash after cutting out the shapes.
5.
Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees Celcius or 400 degrees Farenheit
6.
For each pastry shell, cut two larger circles and one smaller circle from puff pastry sheet
7.
Place one of the large circles cut outs on a lined baking tray, brush with egg wash, then place`another large circle cut out directly on top of the first cut out. Brush again with egg wash then place the smaller circular cut out in the centre of the first two stacked cut outs. Brush again with egg wash to ensure a perfect golden brown.
8.
Repeat steps 7-8 until you've used all puff pastry sheets (should produce 10 pastry shells)
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| I did half curry and traditional mince |
9.
Place pastry shells into oven for 20-25 minutes or until brown then leave to cool
10.
Reduce oven temperature to 180 degrees Celcius or 350 degrees Farenheit
11.
With remaining puff pastry scraps from cut out, mould together into a ball and roll into a log about 30cm long
12.
Divide log into 12 equal pieces and using your fingers (or rolling pin) stretch pastry until it fits into a greased 12 mould muffin tin
13.
Place about 1 and a half Tbs. of mince filling into each mould
14.
Brush egg wash onto the corners of each pastry mould and pop into the oven for 20 minutes or until golden brown
15.
Reheat remaining mince in saucepan until warmed evenly through
16.
Cut a lid for each pastry shell then spoon in minced filling (Fits about 4 Tbs. in each pie) then enjoy!
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| Pastry Shells cooling |
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| Cut the top to make a lid |
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| Then fill it with mince |
It may look a tad complicated in words but trust me, it's super easy! They taste great on their own or with a it of sauce. I couldn't help consuming a few of these pies after I had finished taking photos of them. Unfortunately, I had forgotten to take pictures of the mini pies but, if you head to my 'Mini Quiche' recipe, they turned out quite similar visually.
The larger pies are best eaten as soon as they're made so you can make the shells in advanced, but don't fill them until you want to eat them. As for the mini pies, I left mine in the fridge and reheated them for a quick breakfast whenever I was on the go. I also love these pastry shells because they're so versatile and you can put anything you want in them. Hope you enjoyed this recipe and leave a comment below if you try this recipe out!
Nibble Away,
Jo
