It was a weekend to just be. An enjoyable Thursday Night round of Golf followed by an explosive curry had seen me saunter through Friday and the tiredness was now catching up with me. I knew it was important to save energy as I was pushing myself hard at work and needed to power up for the working week to come. However in pushing myself hard professionally new doors had opened over the last sixteen months and I had been able to re-connect with the hungry twenty-one year old who was so keen to choose the profession I was now a part of.
I fancied making a pie for tea. Specifically a pie flavoured by the delicious Craft Lager that good friends of mine I had seen the previous month, and am looking forward to seeing this month and the one that follows it, had turned me onto. Their taste in alcohol, as with their taste in music, is impeccable has opened up many exciting flavours and sounds to me over the years.
On the player was R.E.M's flawless 1985 record "Fables of the Reconstruction". The recording of the record was difficult for the band and they nearly split up. It was recorded in the UK with class producer Joe Boyd, who's impressive production CV included some exciting early Fairport Convention Albums, the groundbreaking first Pink Floyd Single and Nick Drake's seminal first two albums.
The present record includes the bouncy thud of "Driver 8" which is held together by spindly guitars and a bass that sounds as heavy as a ship's anchor. Another of many highlights is the reflective, folky "Maps and Legends". My advice readers, if you want a copy of this album, is to try and purchase the version with five bonus tracks that include three non-album rarities and compelling live cuts of the two tracks I previously mentioned.
My aim for this pie was to get the feel of a rich meat pie without a lot of the unhealthy ingredients that normally go with that. That's why I used Unsalted Butter in the Pastry and Vegetarian Steak Strips instead of real beef for example.
The ingredients for this pie were:
Shortcrust Pastry made from 30 ounces of Plain Flour and Fifteen Ounces of Unsalted Butter.
One White Onion- peeled, topped, tailed and diced.
Two Carrots- topped, tailed, peeled and cubed.
Two New Potatoes- peeled and sliced width-ways.
Half a Pint of Craft Lager- such as Pistonhead Lager for example.
A tablespoon of Tomato Puree.
Two Tomatoes- cut into cubes.
A teaspoon of dried Parsley.
A teaspoon of Mustard Seeds.
Fifteen Ounces of Quorn Steak Strips.
Fifteen Ounces of Pui Lentils.
The method was as follows:
1. I fried the Onion, Carrots, Potatoes, Tomatoes, Parsley, Mustard Seeds, Tomato Puree and Steak Strips on a medium heat for twenty minutes. To help the ingredients cook without sticking or burning, I fried them in Olive Oil in my Le Cresceut Dish with the lid on, apart from the times I stirred the ingredients at regular intervals.
2. After twenty minutes I added the Craft Lager to the Le Cresceut and simmered everything on the hob with the lid of the Le Cresceut on for a further twenty minutes.
3. While the ingredients were cooking in the Le Cresceut I boiled the Pui Lentils in a saucepan of water with the lid on for forty minutes.
4. While the Lentils and the Le Cresceut ingredients were cooking I made the Pastry using the usual method of rubbing the Flour and Butter together to form a mixture that was consistent with breadcrumbs. Then I mixed all this together with two tablespoons of Almond Milk. After that I put the Pastry to chill in the fridge as the other ingredients continued to cook.
5. When the Pui Lentils had cooked, I added them to the Le Cresceut and turned the heat off from under the Le Cresceut.
6. I then greased a 25 centimetre wide pie dish, that was five centimetres deep. Then I rolled out two thirds of the Pastry and lined the bottom and sides of the dish with it. Then I added the Pui Lentils and the contents of the Le Cresceut dish and spread them evenly throughout the pie dish. Next I rolled out the other third of the pastry and lay it over the top of the pie dish while sealing the edges of the Pastry to make the Pie pretty airtight.
7. I then baked the pie for 40 minutes on Gas Mark Five, after which I removed it from the oven, sliced it and served some of the pieces.
This particular craft lager had a very tangy taste that pervaded the pie in a positive way. This was complimented by the richness of the protein filled Pui Lentils, Carrots and Potatoes. Although I used to love Steak and Kidney Pie when I was a kid, this recipe meant I don't miss that particular recipe at all.
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