HOWARD MIDDLETON

Chestnut, mushroom, parsnip and roasted nut pie

This tasty veggie version of a hot water crust pie proved to be very popular over the festive season; a highlight of the Boxing Day buffet, enjoyed with family... and with pickles.

For the filling

1 tbsp oil

1 red onion, finely chopped

250g chestnut mushrooms, roughly chopped

a knob of butter

3 cloves of garlic, chopped, crushed or grated

180g cooked, peeled chestnuts (I used a pack of Merchant Gourmet whole chestnuts), roughly chopped

250g mixed roasted nuts (such as Waitrose LOVE life), roughly chopped

leaves from a sprig of fresh rosemary, finely chopped

1 tsp dried thyme

3 medium-sized parsnips, peeled, cooked and mashed

120g quinoa flakes (or use oat flakes or breadcrumbs)

175g strong Cheddar, grated

salt and pepper

2 eggs, beaten

For the pastry (see note below)

85g unsalted butter

85g white vegetable baking fat (Trex)

200ml water

500g plain flour (I used Waitrose 00 grade pasta flour), plus extra for rolling

a pinch of salt

beaten egg to glaze

1. To make the filling, heat the oil in a large frying pan, wok or sauté pan and gently fry the onion until it softens.
2. Add the chopped mushrooms, a knob of butter and garlic and cook for a few minutes until the mushrooms have softened slightly.
3. Tip the contents of the pan into a large mixing bowl, add the rest of the filling ingredients and mix well. Leave aside while you make the pastry.
4. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6.
5. To make the pastry, heat the butter, Trex and water in a saucepan until it comes to the boil, then pour into a mixing bowl containing the flour and salt.
6. Mix well to create a smooth dough and leave aside until it's cool enough to handle but still warm. (I have asbestos hands so I'm happy to work with the dough immediately.)
7. Roll out three-quarters of the pastry and line a 6 inch (15cm) or 7 inch (17.5cm) loose-bottomed deep cake tin (or a similar sized game pie mould if you have one).
8. Pack the filling into the lined tin, then roll out a lid and press this in place.  Cut a steam hole in the centre using a small pastry cutter and fillet out this bit of pastry.  Use any leftover pastry to make decorations, then brush with egg.
9.  Bake on a baking sheet for 1 to 1.5 hours until golden brown. Test that the pie is cooked through by poking a thin knife or metal skewer through the steam hole - when taken out it should feel hot.
10. Remove the pie from its tin and brush the sides with beaten egg, then pop it back on the baking sheet and bake for another 10 minutes or so.
11. Leave to cool then refrigerate until you're ready to serve.

Note - I panicked about the large amount of filling I'd produced and hastily doubled the quantity of pastry to make a large pie and a small one, leaving me with some wasted pastry.  Alternatively you could use any leftover filling to make a small nut roast or nut burgers.