Okay… So my eldest has decided she LOVES pies. So naturally I took it upon myself to come up with the best pie recipe I could muster. This one is most definitely a weekend recipe but there is something so homey about being in the kitchen cooking pies. The beef needs slow cooking but once the filling is done it’s quite quick to cook in the oven as its just the pastry that needs browning. My family loves football, I do not. But I do love cooking so this is perfect for getting my cook on in the Winter months. We’ve mostly made this Steak and Guinness Pie using a pie dish and cooking a family sized pie but recently we invested in the Sunbeam pie cooker and it’s even better. Makes the finish product look more professional, everyone gets a personal pie and the process is just fun. Enjoy.

Steak and Guinness pie: perfect for footy season or a warming winter meal.

Steak and Guiness Pie

Ingredients

• 2 onions diced
• 1 Tb olive oil
• 2 sticks celery diced
• 3 carrots diced
• 1-2 sprigs rosemary (2 tsp thyme or 2 bayleaf can substitute)
• 1 kg diced beef
• 1 heaped Tb celtic sea salt
• 2 tsp freshly ground pepper
• 3 cloves garlic crushed
• 1/2 tsp nutmeg (I love freshly ground)
• 250g mushrooms chopped roughly
• 1 can Guinness (or crushed mutti tomatoes)
• 2 cups water
• Puff pastry to cook.

Method

1. Fry chopped onion in oil until translucent (medium heat, try not to brown onion too much).
2. Add diced beef, salt and spices (pepper, nutmeg, rosemary, garlic) and stir until meat is browned and cooked through. (It helps to bring the beef to room temperature before cooking to prevent it from broiling).
3. Add carrot, celery and rosemary continue stirring frequently until just tender.
4. Add the can of Guinness (or mutti tomatoes) then simmer on low for 2-3 hours or until the meat falls apart and liquid has evaporated.

I usually do this whole process the day or two before I want to make pies. You use the filling straight from this point so often, I feel like I’ve been in the kitchen long enough by this point so call it a day. The mixture freezes well in portions and wil keep in the fridge for five days easily. This means quick dinners or snacks for thie kids if you have a pie maker. Or an easy dinner if you have a traditional pie dish and just want the puff pastry top. Simply reheat the filling and add your pastry and cook until brown (knowing the filling is already cooked).

Tips and thoughts for Steak and Guinness Pie

• If using a pie dish, blind bake the base, then add the filling and top.
• I prefer using puff pastery for the top and bottom.
• For an even easier option (and less calories) we often just have the puff pastry top and forgo the bottom altogether.