Burgundy Pie Recipes

Steps:

• Cook and stir bacon in Dutch oven on medium heat until crisp. Use slotted spoon to remove bacon from pan; drain on paper towels. Add 2 Tbsp. dressing to bacon drippings in pan; mix well. Reserve for later use.
• Combine 1/2 cup flour and 1/2 tsp. pepper in large bowl. Add beef pieces; toss to evenly coat meat with flour mixture. Gently shake beef to remove excess flour mixture; discard unused flour mixture.
• Heat reserved dressing mixture on medium-high heat. Add half the beef pieces; cook 8 to 10 min. or until evenly browned, stirring frequently. Use slotted spoon to transfer browned meat to medium bowl. Cook remaining beef pieces in drippings remaining in pan; add to cooked beef in bowl, reserving meat drippings in pan.
• Add vegetables to reserved drippings; cook and stir 5 min. Stir in garlic. Return browned beef to pan along with the beef broth, wine and bay leaf; stir. Bring to boil; simmer on medium-low heat 1 hour or until beef is tender, stirring occasionally.
• Mix thyme with remaining dressing, flour and pepper until blended. Add to stew; mix well. Simmer 15 min. or until thickened, stirring frequently. Remove and discard bay leaf. Spoon meat mixture into 2-qt. casserole sprayed with cooking spray; top with bacon.
• Heat oven to 400ºF. Prepare dough for Foolproof PHILLY Pie Crust Recipe; place on lightly floured surface. Roll out to size 1/2 inch larger than top of casserole dish; place over casserole dish. Flute edge, sealing pastry to edge of dish. Cut several slits in crust to allow steam to escape; place on baking sheet.
• Bake 35 to 40 min. or until golden brown, covering edge of crust with foil for the last 10 min. if necessary to prevent overbrowning.

Steps:

• Place the bay leaves and thyme on a small piece of cheesecloth and tie the corners together tightly to form a bundle; set aside.
• Heat 3 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season the beef with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Working in batches, add the beef to the pot and cook, turning, until browned all over, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a plate and add the bacon to the pot. Cook, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots, onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the tomato paste and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are coated, about 1 minute. Add the flour and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
• Add the cognac to the pot and cook, scraping up any browned bits, until the liquid has mostly evaporated, about 1 minute. Add the wine, chicken broth, cheesecloth bundle, browned meat and any juices and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer, stirring and scraping up the bottom of the pot occasionally, until the beef is tender and the sauce is thick, about 2 hours. Discard the cheesecloth bundle.
• Meanwhile, make the crust: Combine the flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the parsley and chives and pulse to combine, then add the butter and pulse 8 to 10 times until it looks like coarse meal. Add 1/2 cup ice water and pulse until the dough just starts coming together, adding 1 to 2 tablespoons more ice water if necessary. Turn the dough out onto a large piece of plastic wrap and form into a disk; wrap and refrigerate 30 minutes or overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Finish the stew: Heat the remaining 1 tablespoon vegetable oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms are lightly browned, about 7 minutes. Add to the pot with the stew along with the pearl onions and butter; stir. Transfer the mixture to a 3-to-4-quart oval or 9-by-13-inch baking dish and set aside to cool.
• On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 12-by-15-inch rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. Beat the egg with 1 tablespoon water; brush the edges and outside of the baking dish with the egg wash. Drape the dough over the filling and press it against the sides of the dish; trim any excess to leave a 1-inch overhang. Cut a few slits in the top to vent.
• Brush the crust with more of the egg wash. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling, about 45 minutes. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

Steps:

• (Up to a month ahead) heat the oil in a large pan. Fry the bacon lardons over a high heat for several mins until well coloured. Using a slotted spoon, remove from the pan, drain on kitchen paper and set aside. Season the beef, then fry in the fat left in the pan. Once coloured, add all the remaining ingredients for the beef, except the cornfl our and bacon, and bring to a simmer. Partly cover the pan with a lid and continue to cook for a further 2-2½ hrs or until the beef is tender.
• Once cooked, tip everything into a colander set over another pan so you can catch the sauce. Tip the contents of the colander into a large pie dish, about 28cm x 23cm x 5cm. Re-boil the sauce and check for seasoning. Thicken with the loosened cornfl our, adding a little at a time and stirring until you have the desired coating consistency. Spoon enough sauce over the beef to barely cover and loosen it, then stir. Remaining sauce can be frozen, ready to re-heat and offer separately on the day.
• While the beef is cooling, make the mash. Boil the potatoes until tender, 15-20 mins, depending on size. Drain off the water and replace the lid. Shake the pan to break up the boiled potatoes. Add butter and milk a little at a time while mashing. Season.
• Spoon and spread the mashed potatoes on top of the cooled beef. Once covered, the mash can be marked with a spoon, palette knife or fork for a more interesting fi nish (see Gary's tip, left). When cold, the cottage pie is ready to cover and freeze.
• The day before serving, transfer the pie to the fridge to defrost overnight. (Or reheat from frozen on the day, see below.)
• On the day, reheat the pie. Heat oven to 180C/fan 160C/gas 4. If thawed, bake for 50 mins-1 hr, or until heated through, then increase heat to 200C/fan 180C/gas 6 for the fi nal 10 mins for a golden brown topping. If cooking from frozen, cover with foil, then bake for 1¼ hrs; remove foil and bake uncovered for 1¼ hrs more, then increase heat as above for the last 10 mins.

Steps:

• Tip 1.6kg braising steak, cut into large chunks, into a large bowl with 3 bay leaves, a small bunch of thyme, 2 bottles cheap red wine and some pepper, then cover and leave in the fridge overnight.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6.
• Place a colander over another large bowl and strain the marinated meat, keeping the wine.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large frying pan, then brown the meat in batches, transferring to a plate once browned. When all the meat is browned, pour a little wine into the now-empty frying pan and bubble to release any caramelised bits from the pan.
• Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large casserole and fry 3 large or 6 normal carrots, cut into large chunks, and 2 roughly chopped onions until they start to colour. Stir in 3 tbsp plain flour for 1 min, then add 1 tbsp tomato purée.
• Add the beef and any juices, the wine from the frying pan and the rest of the wine and herbs. Season and bring to a simmer. Give everything a good stir, then cover.
• Transfer to the oven and bake for 2 hrs until the meat is really tender. Cool. Will freeze for up to 3 months.
• To serve, defrost completely overnight in the fridge if frozen, then place on a low heat to warm through.
• Meanwhile, heat a small knob of butter in a frying pan and add 300g bacon lardons and 500g peeled pearl onions or small shallots. Sizzle for about 10 mins until the bacon starts to crisp and the onions soften and colour.
• Add 400g halved mushrooms and fry for another 5 mins, then stir everything into the stew and heat for 10 mins more. Serve scattered with chopped parsley.

Steps:

• In a large skillet, sauté onions in butter and oil over medium heat until soft.
• Add the mushrooms and garlic, and cook until soft.
• Cube the chicken breasts and add to the skillet; cook until pieces are browned on all sides.
• Stir in the thyme, then sprinkle the flour over the mixture and stir again; add the wine.
• Add the chicken bouillon to the hot water and stir to dissolve, then stir into the chicken/vegetable mixture.
• Simmer uncovered for 15 minutes; season with salt and pepper to taste.
• Transfer into a deep pie dish or a 2 quart casserole and set aside (there may be excess sauce- save it and cook it separately in a saucepan for gravy after the pie is done).
• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Roll out the puff pastry.
• Cut a 1/2-inch (1 cm) strip of pastry; brush the rim of the pie plate with warm water, arrange the pastry strip around the top edge of the pie dish, and gently press the pastry onto the rim.
• Brush the pastry edge with warm water; roll out remaining pastry large enough to cover the filling, place on top of the pre-placed edge, seal the edges well, and trim and crimp the edge.
• Brush the pastry with the beaten egg, and make a small decorative vent hole in the center of the top (if you like, you can use the pastry trimmings to make leaves and arrange them on top of the pie; don't forget to brush them with egg, too).
• Bake the pie in your preheated oven for 45 minutes, or until the top is crisp and golden.
• Serve and enjoy!
• Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 F. In a bowl, combine the blueberries, cranberries, sugar, flour, nutmeg and salt; toss until well combined. Using as little additional flour as possible, roll out the dough and line the bottom of the pie plate. Spoon the filling into the pie dough. Dot the filling liberally with butter. Roll out the remaining dough until is large enough to cover the top of the pie. Set it on the filling. Fold and crimp the overhang to seal it. Brush the surface with the egg mixture and cut a few slashes for venting. Bake the pie for about 50 minutes or until the crust is golden.