Wednesday 27 August - Steak, Mushroom and Stilton Pie

I'm currently signed off sick following surgery,  but starting to get bored with daytime TV. Thanks to a clever purchase from a local charity shop I have a comfy chair that I can sit in at the kitchen table so I can still cook - I shout instructions about washing up to other people so I don't have to move around too much. I'm wondering if I can keep this up for a few months....

The weather is now getting a little bit autumnal, and there are some lovely fruit and vegetables appearing in the shops, so a pie was called for.

I used some braising steak for this   - cubed and fried, and then added onions, garlic, mushrooms and a spoonful of seasoned flour.

For the sauce I used red wine, and a stock pot along with a dash of Hendersons Relish.

I popped the stew in the slow cooker for a few hours until the meat was tender.

I was aiming for a fairly dy pie, so I strained off the gravy which we reheated later on to serve with the pie, and to the cooled meat I added some crumbled pieces of stilton.

I used shortcrust for this pie, but added an egg to the liquid and also a large spoonful of mustard powder went in with the flour. I lined and filled the tin before topping it with more pastry, and glazing with egg yolk.

The autumn veg we had found were a beautiful green cauliflower, and some lovely fresh Kale - the first of the season for us.

The vegetables were steamed, and we also cooked up some of the potatoes from our allotment to be mashed and served with the pie and the reheated gravy.

We also spotted some fabulous British Strawberries and Raspberries in the farm shop, so these were used in a pavlova for afters, along with some nectarine slices, and some passion fruit.