Granny Lawson's Lunch Dish

As I had some frozen flaky pastry to use up I was thinking to make a pie of some sort for dinner. I was actually dreaming of a chicken and mushroom pie until I realised I didn't have any more chicken breasts in the freezer. Then, as if by magic, several people on n.com suddenly started talking about this recipe from Nigella Bites and, as I had some beef mince, it seemed that I was destined to make it.

I made the filling earlier in the day, thinking it would be better to spoon it cold onto the pastry, and also spreading the load as it were. It was very easy to make and so dinner was a breeze. I served it with a parsnip purée, as I had some parsnips I wasn't sure what to do with, but something more colourful would have been better I feel from a purely aesthetic point of view. The filling could have had a deeper taste for us. If I ever make this again I think I would add a couple of anchovy fillets and maybe some tomato purée to enrichen the beef. We liked the addition of olives although I know many people are not so keen on them. Altogether a nice recipe but I don't think I would be in a rush to make it again.

Granny Lawson's Lunch Dish - Serves 6

for the pastry:
250 g plain flour, preferably Italian 00
50 g hard vegetable fat, such as Cookeen
75 g cold unsalted butter
4 tbsp chilled salted water, approximately
1 egg, beaten, with salt for brushing over

for the filling:
325 g (2-3) tomatoes, or same amount of drained, chopped, canned ones
200 g (about 2 small) onions
2 eggs, hard boiled
90 g pitted black olives
2 tbsp olive oil, not, extra virgin
250 g organic minced beef
1 fat pinch allspice
salt
pepper

To make the pastry, measure the flour into a dish that will fit into the deep-freeze (it doesn’t need to have a lid) and cut the Cookeen and butter into small — approx. 1cm —dice and toss them in the flour. Put in the deep-freeze for 10 minutes.

I tend to make pastry in my KitchenAid, but a processor’s fine too. In whatever contraption — fitted with the flat paddle in the one, with the double-bladed knife in the other — mix until you have a mixture that resembles coarse porridge oats. Now, dribble in the chilled salted water, slowly, with the motor still running, until the dough looks as if it’s about to cohere, but stopping short of it’s actually clumping totally. Turn out of the processor (though you could still do this in the bowl of the mixer) and squidge together with your hands until all the pastry forms a cohesive ball. Dribble in a little more water if you feel it needs it. Divide into two pieces of equal size and form into fat discs. Cover with clingfilm and leave in the fridge for 20 minutes. And this can be done a good day or two in advance if it helps.

Preheat the oven to 200ºC/gas mark 6.

Put the tomatoes in a bowl, cover with boiling water from the kettle and leave for 5 minutes. Drain, run under the cold tap, then peel, de-seed and chop roughly (or use tinned tomatoes, chopped and drained). Peel and chop the onions, hard-boiled eggs and olives, too.

In a large frying pan over medium heat, warm the oil. Cook the chopped onions until softened and beginning to colour, turning the flame down to low if they look as if they’re catching. Turn the heat back to medium and add the chopped tomatoes and cook, stirring for a minute or so before adding the mince. Stir well, breaking up the clumps of meat with your wooden spoon as you go, then, when the meat’s browned, stir in the chopped eggs and olives and season with the allspice and salt and pepper. Cook over gentle heat for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Get a baking sheet out, and flour a surface and rolling pin. Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll out one of the discs until you have a thin, but not exaggeratedly so, rough square that will fit on the baking sheet, then place it on the sheet. Now roll out the second disc and leave it there while you cover the layer on the sheet with the minced-beef mixture, leaving a margin of about 3cm all around. With a bit of cold water and your fingers, dampen this edge. Place the second square of pastry on top and press the edges together to seal. Now, roll these edges back on themselves once or twice, then get a fork and press it, the tines curved-side down, against this rolled border. Prong the top of the pastry to make air holes and then beat the egg with a generous sprinkling of salt and brush the top and edges of the pie with it to glaze.

Put it in the oven for 20 minutes, by which time the pastry will be golden and cooked. Slice it into fat oblongs and eat warm with a vegetable or salad, or cold, wrapped in a napkin and without ceremony or cutlery.