These mini lamb pies are rich and comforting, braised lamb encased in a buttery, flaky pie crust. The perfect individual size, these are easily made in a Texas muffin pan.
226gunsalted butter, cubed and chilled(1 cup / 2 sticks / 8oz)
~½cupiced water
1egg yolk, mixed with a dash of milk or cream
For best results, always weigh ingredients where a weight is provided
Equipment
Dutch oven
Texas muffin pan
food processor
Instructions
FOR THE LAMB FILLING: Trim any large pieces of visible fat from the lamb and cut it into small cubes, rough 1 ½ cm / ½ inch.
Mix the lamb well with the salt and pepper to season.
Heat half the oil in a large dutch oven over medium high heat. Add half the lamb (so as not to overcrowd the pan) and cook just to brown the outside, no need to cook it through. Set aside and repeat with second half. Set aside.
In the same pan, add the remaining oil then throw in the onion and carrot with a dash of the stock. Scrape up the brown bits off the bottom of the pan then cook, stirring until the onion is translucent and soft.
Add the garlic and cook for one minute.
Add the wine. Bring it to a bubble and let it reduce right down until there’s only a thin layer of liquid left.
Add the flour and cook, stirring for a further minute.
Stir in the stock, tomato paste, vinegar and rosemary. Then add the meat back in. Stir well.
Bring the mixture to a boil, then turn down to a low simmer. Cover with a lid, stirring occasionally to stop it sticking for about 30 minutes.
You can skip ahead and make the pastry at this point while the lamb simmers.
Remove the lid and turn the heat up to medium. Cook on a high simmer for a further 15-25 minutes to reduce the gravy so it’s nice and thick. Make sure to stir every so often and turn the heat down as necessary so it doesn’t catch.
Transfer the mixture to a shallow bowl and let it cool to at least room temperature (or overnight in the fridge) before proceeding.
TO MAKE THE PASTRY: Put the flour and butter into a food processor and pulse until the butter is about lentil sized.
Add the water one tablespoon at a time and pulsing in between until the dough just starts to clump a little – it should still look quite crumbly but hold together when you press it between your fingers.
Tip the dough out onto a clean surface and, working quickly, pull it all together with your hands into a disk. Cut away ⅓ of the pastry and set it aside.
Lightly flour your surface and the top of the larger portion of dough. Roll it out to about 4mm/⅙ inch thick. Use a 12-13cm / 5inch cookie cutter (or cut around a small plate).
Gently press the rounds into the holes of a non-stick Texas muffin pan, pressing up the sides gently until it’s just shy of the top edge. Chill until required.
Roll the smaller portion of dough out and cut 6 smaller rounds about 9cm/3 ½ inches and place them on a baking tray lined with baking paper. These will be for the tops. Chill until required. The pastry can be made up to 2 days in advance.
TO MAKE THE PIES:Preheat the oven to 200C / 400F / 180C fan forced.
Using a slotted spoon, spoon the filling into the cold pie pastry cases, tucking it down so it’s in all the nooks. Drizzle a little of the gravy over the top of each one.
Use your finger to brush a light line of water around the edge of pastry in the pie tin and the edge of one of the small disks, then place the pastry top on so those two line joins (this will help to glue them together). Gently press down all the way around to stick the edges together.
Brush the top with the egg and milk egg wash, then cut a little steam vent in the top.
Bake the pies for 35-40 minutes or until the pastry is golden brown and cooked through.
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Notes
Tablespoons: I use a standard Australian 20ml tablespoon (equal to 4 teaspoons). Check yours before measuring.
Pastry: If you don't want to make your own pastry crust, you can use shop-bought (though the flavour won't be as amazing). I'd used shortcrust pastry for the base and puff pastry for the top.
Rosemary: You could swap the rosemary for fresh thyme leaves if you prefer and this would still be delicious.
Vegetables: Feel free to add a cup of peas right before you let the lamb filling cool. If you love parsnips, they go great in this, added at the same time as the carrots.
Butter: If you don't have salted butter on hand, you can use unsalted butter and just add 1 teaspoon of salt to the pastry dough.
Have you tried this recipe?Don't forget to leave a rating and comment below and let me know how it was! I love hearing from you. Nutrition information is approximate and derived from an online calculator. The brands you use may cause variations.