Reflections on Christmas cooking …

… I needed a dessert for Christmas Eve.

The brief – it had to be plant based for two of us, the remaining four guests didn't have any dietary requirements.

You can go dizzy trying to split the atom – should I give in and buy a dessert or two? No! Then I realised go “plant based” for all.

Okey dokey, I want a combination of fruit, cream – may be ice, crunch or texture if you like and then a surprise.

Hmm, I have cooked apples and Swedish Glacé in the freezer, that's the fruit and ice cream sorted – uninspiring you might think.

Then I had a lightbulb moment - M&S Plant Kitchen makes Double Chocolate Chip Cookies (8 for £2 in the biscuit aisle) – I could bash them to a rubble in a food bag, clipped, using the end of a rolling pin.

I'm getting there … and then a lightbulb moment for the finale – sticky toffee sauce warmed to drizzle over – the bonus I can make it ahead and freeze. All that's required is a glass sundae dish to serve!

Here's the plan :

for assembly - using your sundae dish

a generous tablespoon of Swedish Glacé

a generous tablespoon of cooked apples

a generous handful of the cookie rubble

warm the Sticky Toffee Sauce in the microwave

(1-2 minutes) and drizzle generously over the top

I think I'll call it a Christmas Sundae!

The Pasties – the photos

Have a look at the results :

These are large pasties – they measure 22cms/8½” x 12cms/4½” over the middle. Cut in half or leave whole if you're feeding hungry hoards or have a very large appetite!

The bonus – you can make a batch of the pastry, divide, weigh and wrap and treat the filling in the same way. I took my own advice and made two pasties and popped the remaining portioned pastry and filling into the freezer, ready for when I needed a comfort food fix.

I should also say that authentic Cornish pasties are cooked with raw ingredients – I've “borrowed” the pastry, used my own filling and am very pleased that I did!

A small tip - pasties will keep warm for a long time - wrap them straight from the oven in either greaseproof or baking paper and then a clean tea towel. It does work and the pasty will stay warm – it definitely saves burning your mouth when you're itching to devour.

Ta dah – and economical too!

The Pasty – assembly and crimpinology

If you'd like to create a perfect circle of pastry the simplest way is to use a 20cm cake tin upside down, on top of your rolled out portion of pastry, using a round bladed knife trim off any excess and there you have it.

Edge your circle of pastry with the egg wash then place your filling in the middle of the circle. Here's where a cool filling comes into its own – you are able to mould it to suit the size of the pastry then fold to glue the edges and bring together. Press down the edges, giving yourself enough pastry edge to crimp – as a guide 1.5cms/½” approximately.

Here's the pastry folded over the filling and pressed down

firmly into a semi circle – sort of!

To crimp is to compress into small folds. To become a competent crimper takes lots of practice – be brave and have a go!

Have the pasty in front of you as illustrated in the photo above. If you are right handed begin on the right – on the left if you are left handed. Fold the corner end of the pasty over, place your thumb into the fold – this will help give you an even crimp, fold the pastry edge over and over towards you and continue until you reach the other end, tuck the end underneath and press to seal. Complete by making a small incision in the top of the pasty to release the steam.

They look like this :

Crimped and ready to egg wash

Egg washed and ready for the oven

You don't have to give yourself a hard time – it's not compulsory to crimp, edge the pasty with a small fork as an alternative option.

Place your past(ies) on a baking sheet lined with baking parchment. Bake in a pre-heated oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6 for 30 minutes.

Next – the epitome of comfort food!

The Pasty - the filling!

Cheese, potato and onion pie filling

gives generous filling enough

for four large pasties

700g of Maris Piper (or similar variety)

potatoes, boiled and then mashed

2 medium onions, finely diced and

sautéed with a knob of unsalted butter and

a drop of rapeseed oil until softened – 5 minutes

2 teaspoons of Dijon mustard

150g of Mature Cheddar cheese, grated

75g each of Red Leicester and Gruyere cheese, grated

Black pepper

1 egg, beaten for egg wash

Baking sheet, lined with baking parchment

Boil the potatoes until cooked – test by using a paring knife which will pass through easily. Drain and then mash roughly, add the Mature Cheddar cheese, mustard and black pepper. Add the sautéed onion and remaining grated cheese, mix well. Set aside to cool.

The advantage of using a rough mash and adding the cheddar cheese before the onion and remaining cheeses gives you a stiff filling and one that is easy to control which is essential when assembling and completing your pasty. You are able to mould the filling easily – it remains firm and doesn't spill all over your worktop.

Just in case you might be tempted – do not add any “liquid” i.e. milk or an egg – to the mash, it needs to be firm, adding liquid will turn your filling into mush!

Be patient, it's important to let the filling cool completely, you'll be pleased with the result.

Assembly and crimpinology ...

The Pasties - hints and tips

It may seem a bit of a faff but I'd recommend weighing both your pastry and your filling, you don't have to be obsessive about it – an “ish” will do.

As a guide you'll have 1lb 13oz or 840g of pastry – divide into four weighing approximately 7oz ish/210g each. Place each portion on a sheet of cling film, gather and wrap, moulding into a ball shape. Bag all four and fridge.

Treat your filling in the same way. It's much easier to deal with the filling when it has cooled – it won't interfere with your pastry and you won't scald your hands! You should have 1.346g of filling, divide into four portions of 11½oz ish/ 336g each, cling film and mould in the same way as the pastry.

Here's a couple of photos :

By weighing, wrapping and moulding your pasties are of a similar size so no arguments! 

Can be used for all manner of pastries pasties and whatever takes your fancy!

Now for the filling ...

The pasties – the pastry!

If you want a giant pasty “Cornish” style, for larger appetites, here's where we begin – with the basic pastry recipe :

Pasty pastry

This recipe will give you four eight inch (20cms) pasties

450g/1lb strong white bread flour

large pinch of salt

100g/4oz of margarine (or unsalted butter)

100g/4oz lard (or Trex or Cookeen)

175ml/3^rd pint water

cling film

Place the flour and salt into a large mixing bowl. Add 25g/1oz of lard and rub into the flour. Grate or slice the rest of the fats into the bowl and stir, using a round bladed knife. Pour all the water into the bowl and mix together with the knife. Keep the dough in the bowl and using your hand bring the dough together and knead using the heel of your hand. Tip the dough onto a sheet of cling film and use the film to bring the dough together in a fat circle. Wrap the dough twice in cling film, bag and fridge. Chill it for at least 30 minutes.

You don't have to use lard, for me and other vegetarians out there, use either Trex or Cookeen. The lard is part of the original recipe. I used unsalted butter instead of the margarine.

For those who are used to making pastry, no matter how basic, this will seem an odd method. I promise you it works. Not only does it work I'd say it's the best result I've ever had.

For example, it doesn't matter if you fridge it to chill for 30 minutes and, surprise surprise, you get distracted and remember two hours later. It does not affect the end result.

You can freeze the pastry if you want to make ahead. Take the frozen pastry out of the freezer the night before required and fridge it. It behaves impeccably – just as if freshly made.

Hints and tips anyone?

The pie filling and the fotos!

Serves 2

2 medium sized baked jacket potatoes

approximately 400g – peeled and cut into cubes

measuring 1.5cms/½”

1 medium onion, finely diced and

sautéed with a knob of unsalted butter and

a drop of rapeseed oil until softened – 5 minutes

add 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard to the onion

150g of grated cheeses – 50g each of Mature

Cheddar, Red Leicester and Gruyere

Black pepper

1 amount of Fast Flaky Pastry

1 egg, beaten for egg wash

1 circular foil pie dish – 18cms/7” in diameter and

4cms/1½” deep

Using a large mixing bowl add the potatoes and onions and mustard – season with black pepper. Fold in the cheeses.

On a lightly floured surface roll out your pastry – dust your rolling pin too. Roll out as evenly as you can turning the pastry as it takes shape – always roll backwards and forwards and quarter turns so that it keeps to a circle. If you roll side to side you'll stretch the pastry and it will shrink when cooking!

Tip the filling into the pie dish – it will seem like a lot – pack down firmly. Egg wash the rim of the dish and then gently lift the pastry lid on top of the filling. The egg wash will glue the pastry in place and you can press the lid onto the filling gently. You can use a sharp knife to remove any excess pastry then, using a pastry fork edge the pie. Egg wash the pastry and add two cuts in the centre of the pastry to vent the pie.

Bake in a pre-heated oven 180fan/200c/Gas 6 for 35 minutes.

Here are the final fotos :

the pastry lid, taken from the freezer

the filling in the portable foil tray

the pastry lid – rolled out, edged, vented

and egg washed

the pie straight from the oven

inside the pie

Scrumdiddlyumptious!