Some tasty recipes to celebrate British pie week

In medieval times, it was called ‘pye’ and fillings were mainly meaty. But nowadays, whether fish is your thing, you’ve got a taste for chicken or a sweet tooth, there’s a perfect recipe for you.

With British pie week beginning on March 9, it’s pie time to get baking...

Shallot, Chunky Steak and Mushroom Pie Serves 4

Preparation time: 45 minutes

Cooking time: 2 hours

You’ll need:

For the pastry: 110g butter 280g plain flour 1 ½ large eggs, beaten

For the filling: 8 shallots 40g butter 500g shoulder steak, trimmed and cut into 2cm cubes (or larger) 25g plain flour, seasoned with salt and pepper and a tablespoon of paprika I tbsp sunflower oil 100g streaky bacon in one piece, cut into lardons (short strips and approx. 5 mm thick) 200g chestnut mushrooms, halved 200ml red wine 200ml beef stock 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

What to do: Pre heat oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4.

To make the pastry, rub the butter, flour and a pinch of salt together in a mixing bowl until the mixture has the consistency of fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg and bring it all together. Knead dough lightly 3 or 4 times with floured hands. Cover in cling film and refrigerate for an hour. Pop shallots into a pan of cold water. Bring the pan to the simmer and gently cook for about one and a half minutes. Peel off the skin without cutting the ends off. Lightly shave off any root fibres but do not cut into the shallot.

Melt 25g of butter in a flameproof casserole dish. Add shallots and fry over a medium heat for about 10 minutes, until golden. Meanwhile, put the steak into a polythene bag with the seasoned flour and coat well.

Heat a large frying pan until very hot. Add sunflower oil, then bacon and fry for a few minutes until golden. Remove and add to shallots in the casserole dish.

Brown the mushrooms, then add to casserole dish. Add the remaining butter to the frying pan and brown the beef. Transfer to casserole dish.

Now add wine and stock to the frying pan, bring to the boil and scrape up all the brown bits. Pour this into the casserole dish, season and mix.

Cover the casserole with a tight fitting lid and bake for 1-1½ hours until the meat is tender and the sauce has thickened.

Stir in the chopped parsley, check seasoning and tip into pie dish to cool as quickly as possible.

Roll the pastry out on a floured surface to a thickness of a beer mat. Trim a strip long enough to go around the rim of a 20cm pie dish.

When the stew has cooled, line the rim of the dish with the pastry. Dampen the pastry rim by brushing with beaten egg. Cut a piece of pastry to fit across the top of the dish and place on top of the pie filling, sealing the edges. Make a hole in the centre of the pie by cutting a small cross with a sharp knife, then brush with beaten egg.

Put the pie in the oven and cook for about 35 minutes.

Serve with mash and mixed greens.

American-style Beetroot Pie Serves 4

Preparation time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 45-50 minutes

You’ll need: 250g shortcrust pastry 325g plain cooked (vacuum packed) beetroot, drained 3 eggs 75g soft brown sugar 2tsp ground mixed spice ½ tsp ground allspice (optional) ½ tsp ground ginger (optional) 250ml double cream

What to do: Preheat the oven to 200°C/Gas Mark 6.

Roll out the pastry and use it to line a 23cm loose bottomed pie tin. Line with greaseproof paper and fill with baking beans. Bake blind for 20 minutes.

While the pastry is baking, prepare the filling by pureeing the beetroot along with the eggs in a food processor.

In a small saucepan add the sugar, all the spices and cream and bring slowly up to a simmering point. Pour into the food processor and mix thoroughly with the beetroot puree.

Remove the pastry case from the oven and reduce the temperature to 180°C/Gas Mark 4.

Pour the filling carefully into the pastry case and bake for around 25-30 minutes. The edge should be puffed up a little and the centre will still be a touch wobbly. Allow to cool and chill in the fridge. Serve with crème fraiche.