Don’t be put off by the amount of ingredients, to make the perfect spiced lamb pies you need to put in the effort. These are amazing and another great addition for Christmas snacks
Serves
4
Cooking time
1 hour
Ingredients
1 tbsp Olive oil
1 Onion, finely chopped
2 Cloves garlic, chopped
250g Lamb mince
Pinch of ground cinnamon
Quarter tsp cayenne
Half tsp ground cumin
Quarter tsp ground ginger
125ml Red wine
About 250ml beef stock
Half a tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tbsp Tomato puree
1 Carrot, peeled and finely chopped
Salt and pepper
3 tbsp Pine nuts, toasted
2 tbsp Sultanas
pinch of dried mint
300g shortcrust pastry (bought or homemade – click for recipe)
egg or milk to glaze
Method:
If making your own pastry, make it now using the recipe above and allow to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes before using.
To make the filling, heat the olive oil in a large pan, add the onion and cook until soft but not coloured. Add the garlic and cook for a few more minutes. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add the lamb mince to the pan and brown over a high heat. Return the onion and garlic to the pan along with the cinnamon, cayenne, cumin and ginger. Add the red wine and allow to bubble and slightly reduce for a few minutes. Then add the chopped tomatoes, tomato puree and enough stock just to cover the mince. Add the carrots and season. Bring to the boil, cover and reduce the heat right down. Simmer for about 40 minutes until the lamb is tender and the sauce has thickened and reduced – it shouldn’t be too wet, simmer for some of the time with the lid off if it is.
Remove from the heat, add the pine nuts, sultanas and mint and leave to cool. (To speed up the cooling process, tip the lamb out onto a baking tray and spread out).
To make the pies, grease your pie tins with butter – we used a 6 hole muffin tin. Roll out the pastry fairly thinly and cut 6 circles big enough to fit in the tins with a slight overlap. Keep the leftover pastry in the fridge until needed for the lids. Line the tins with the pastry and chill for 15 minutes.
Heat your oven to 180C. Fill the pies with the cooled lamb mince mixture. Cut out 6 lids. Brush water round the edges of the pies and seal the lids. Using a skewer or knife, make a steam hole in the top. Brush the pies with beaten egg or milk and bake for about 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Rest the pies for 5 minutes before serving.