Beef and leek pan haggerty

I have been meaning to write about Pan Haggerty for a while, this northern dish is a cross between a cottage pie and a hot pot. Frugal, delicious and warming its a great recipe popular with all the family, pan haggerty comes in several varieties including a vegetarian version of just potatoes, onions and cheese.

This recipe came about as I wanted to use the last of the leeks from the garden, so I set about creating a twist on this classic Northumberland dish. Its an easy dish and showcases simple wholesome ingredients.

What you need

• Minced beef - suitable quantity for number of people you are feeding
• Leeks - cleaned and finely chopped
• Beef stock - I used Essential Cuisine
• Thyme - fresh freshly picked
• Salt and pepper
• Cornflour or gravy thickener
• Brown sauce 
• White potatoes - peeled and finely sliced
• Cheddar cheese - grated
• A little rapeseed oil

What you do

• Heat a little oil in frying pan and fry off the minced beef until coloured , break up the mince in to small pieces, once well coloured then add the leeks to the pan.
• Continue to cook with the beef and leeks until the leeks are softened, add some of the freshly picked thyme, brown sauce and beef stock to the pan and bring to a simmer.
• Stir and simmer for 10 minutes or so then thicken the gravy to your desired consistency and allow to cool whilst you prepare your potatoes.
• Slice the potatoes very finely and start the dish by placing a layer of potatoes in the bottom of your dish, then pour on  a layer of the mince leek mixture.
• Then sprinkle with a little grated cheese, then another layer of potatoes, continue with mince, cheese and finish with another layer of potatoes and a sprinkling of cheese.
• Pre heat your oven to 180c
• Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes or so until the potatoes are soft, remove the foil and bake until golden and slightly crispy on top.
• Serve with a green vegetables

Gluten Free Beef brisket, carrot and celery pie - with a delicious pastry top

I recently cooked a small brisket of beef in the slow cooker and this pie is using some of the left over meat from the joint, I actually managed to stretch the meat to 3 separate meals, along with this pie I also served the meat simply with gravy like a roast dinner and in a pan haggerty (that's a post for another day).

Brisket isn't the cheap cut it used to be but its reliable easy to cook especially if you use a slow cooker like I do and it produces delicious gravy too. I just cooked the brisket for 6 hours on high after smothering the join in a mix of Dijon mustard, BBQ spice rub, tomato ketchup and maple syrup. I didn't add an extra liquid.

This is frugal dish as it used a fairly small quantity of meat, the leftover gravy and carrots and celery to bulk up the pie filling. I then created a gluten free pastry top and if I do say so myself it tasted pretty amazing.

Fresh out of the oven 

If you don't have left over brisket or roast beef then this pie could be made with minced beef or lamb and any suitable vegetables you have to hand. The gluten free pastry was very well behaved, the secret being allowing it to rest in the fridge for about half an hour before rolling out and a liberally brushing with an egg glaze before baking so you achieve a beautiful golden top.

What you need 

For the pie filling

• Quantity of left over beef -chopped into bite sized pieces
• Carrots and celery - parboiled until just tender
• Gravy - I used thickened cooking juices

For the pastry

• 225g Gluten free flour (I mix my own)
• 110g Butter
• 20g Parmesan cheese - finely grated
• 1 free range egg - beaten (reserve a little for glazing the pie)
• A little cold water
• Pinch of sea salt
• 1/4 tsp xanthum gum

What you do

• Preheat the oven to 180c
• Mix your pie filling and place in your pie dish
• Sieve the flour, xanthum gum, salt into a bowl, add the Parmesan cheese
• Rub the fat into the flour mixture until its resembles fine breadcrumbs
• Add the egg and enough water to to form a soft dough
• Once you have formed your dough, Wrap in clingfilm and rest in the fridge for 30 minutes
• Once rested roll out on a well floured surface and top your selected pie dish, crimp and trim and then glaze with a little beaten egg. 
• Make a couple of cuts in the pastry top to allow steam to escape. With some of your spare pastry why not form some creative pastry shapes.
• Bake for 35-45 minutes or so until golden and cooked through
• Serve immediately

The pastry is deliciously savoury,short yet flaky and undetectable as gluten free. The pastry does require slightly more gentle rolling out for its well worth the effort.

With an eye to Valentine's day I decorated my pie with hearts, as its made with love. 

Beef and Vegetable Cottage Pie topped with Rosemary Crushed Potatoes

A perfect dish for a Sunday tea or a a busy weeknight when you can't be bothered cooking, it has the perfect combination of roast crispy potatoes and cottage pie filling and the good news is that the vegetables are in the pie. 

The topping is inspired by Casa pie from Vanessa Kimbell's "Prepped" book and is something that I use a lot instead of mash to top fish pie and also chilli and bolognaise. Its an easy no fuss dish which freezes beautifully so you can batch make and the pie filling can also be used in pastry pies as well.

Its a pretty frugal dish too as you can use frozen vegetables in the meat filling and the herbs are from the garden plus  its also gluten free as well as I have used cornflour to thicken the gravy. Its a great way of adding more vegetables to your diet without really noticing and also for upping the fibre content of cottage pie as the crushed potatoes are still in their skins.

What you need

• Small washed new potatoes boiled until just cooked - halved if large
• Rapeseed oil
• Fresh rosemary- leaves removed and chopped finely
• Minced steak
• White onion - finely chopped into half moons
• Beef stock ( I use essential cuisine)
• Cornflour
• Salt and pepper
• Fresh thyme - leaves finely chopped
• Parsley - finely chopped
• Carrots - peeled and diced, or you could use frozen
• Peas - I used a good handful of frozen petit pois
• Tomato ketchup (ensure gluten free if necessary)

What you do

• Firstly heat a little oil in a large frying pan and saute the sliced onions until translucent 
• Now add the mince to the pan and fry off golden and well coloured
• Now add the thyme, parsley and a tbsp of tomato sauce to the pan along with enough beef stock to cover the meat, stir and then add the diced carrot to the pan.
• Simmer for 20 minutes until the meat is cooked and the carrot tender through, now using a little water to slake the cornflour and use to thicken the gravy. 
• Add the frozen peas to the meat mixture and place in ovenproof dishes 
• Top the pie mixture with the small potatoes crushing them slightly using your thumbs , sprinkle with the chopped rosemary and drizzle with a little rapeseed oil
• Bake in the oven at 180c for 40 minutes until the top is golden and crispy and the filling bubbling.
• Serve immediately

I'm linking this recipe up to extra veg created by Utterly Scrummy and Fuss Free Flavours and hosted by Elizabeths Kitchen this month.

We are also linking up to Credit Crunch Munch, created by Fab Food for all and Fuss Free Flavours hosted this month over at Maison Cupcake.

                                         

Wild garlic mash topped cottage pie - a English classic

It finally seems to be Spring here in Lancashire and the ramsons (wild garlic) is popping up in the hedgerow, later this week it St Georges Day, a celebration of all things English. So here's my contribution an English classic updated with a great foraged ingredient, the wild garlic mildly fragrances the mash and adds to the intense savouriness of the dish. Its also British Beef week as well and my cottage pie uses quality British steak mince as its base.

Ingredients

• British minced steak
• Onion
• Beef stock ( I used essential cuisine)
• Brown sauce / caramelised onion chutney
• Freshly chopped parsley - fine
• Slaked cornflour or gravy thickner (bisto or similar)
• White potatoes
• Butter
• Wild Garlic - chopped finely

Method

• Firstly make your mash in the usual way by boiling your peeled potatoes until soft, for the last few minutes of cooking add your wild garlic to soften.
• Once cooked drain through a sieve so as not to loose your wild garlic, add a good quantity of butter and mash until you have no lumps. Set aside.
• Dry fry the mince in a large frying pan, until all coloured, now add the onion to the pan and cook using the fat that has come from the mince until slightly softened.
• Add the beef stock to the pan until the meat mixture is just covered and simmer for 10 -15 minutes until the onions are soft, the meat is cooked and the gravy a little reduced, now add the gravy thickener to achieve the thickness of gravy you desire.
• Pour the meat mixture into the dish you wish to bake it in, leave to cool for 10 minutes or so and then top with the wild garlic mash, leave your pie craggy so that when it bakes it has some lovely crispy bits.
• Place on an oven tray and bake for 35-45 minutes at 180c until golden and bubbling
• Serve with any side vegetable to your hungry family.

Slow cooker Brisket of beef

I love beef brisket, this cheap cut of beef is awesome slow cooked so that it becomes melting tender. This recipe, if you can call it that is so simple, its actually an insult to call it a recipe to be honest.

To get a good brisket you will need to visit a butchers as most supermarkets don't stock brisket (Booths and Morrisons do normally have them however) not sure why I think they must think it a downmarket cut, more fools them as its great. Plus make sure you buy British Beef, look out for the Red Tractor mark.

Ingredients

• Rolled brisket of beef
• Tomato ketchup - 2 tbsp
• Demarera sugar - 1tbsp
• Wine vinegar 1 tbsp
• Salt and Pepper

Method 

• Make a paste of all the ingredients other than the brisket, rub onto the brisket, wrap in foil and place in slow cooker
• Cook for 8-10 hours, turn over half way through (not essential)
• When ready to serve, thicken juices in slow cooker with gravy granules or slaked cornflour
• Serve slices with gravy and usual accompaniments , it will be meltingly tender.

This would be a great dish to serve up in honor of St George ! its also great if you have any leftovers on a chunky sandwich with horseradish and salad, or stir fried with oyster sauce and egg fried rice.

#BoothsCheers - Beef in port wine

This weeks treats from Booths for their #BoothsCheers campaign include a delightful bottle of port. Also in the box was a letter with a "secret mission" (should I choose to accept it !), to come up with a great comfort food recipe to match one of the wines being provided.

Most people associate port with stilton cheese ( but its not from Lancashire and MR LF doesn't do Blue cheese so that's out) or rich dark fruit cake, yet its quite a versatile ingredient particularly in stews and casseroles producing a deliciously rich sweet edged sauce , its also excellent with or  in a chicken liver pate, with a rich chocolate dessert or even with a good chocolate brownie. As for cheese it works well with most, I particularly like goats cheese.

In this recipe its a great subsitute for a red wine, ale or beef stock, if you think its a bit decadent to use half a bottle of port in a stew, then mix and match depending on how frugal you feel.

Ingredients

• Beef skirt or beef shin- trimmed and cut into cubes (ask your butcher or Booths stock it if you ask)
• 1 large onion - chopped fairly finely
• 2 or 3 carrots - organic if possible as you can taste the different
• 1/2 bottle port ( or your frugal mixture - see above)
• Squirt of tomato ketchup
• 6 mushrooms - sliced
• Seasoned flour (flour , seasoned with salt and pepper)
• Oil

Method

• Preheat oven to 150c
• Tosh the cubed beef in the seasoned flour
• Heat a little oil in frying pan or if your lucky like me your cast iron casserole dish
• Fry off your beef in small quantities until well coloured, remove as cooked to a plate
• Now fry off your vegetables, soften without colouring
• Place the beef and vegetables in your casserole dish, add a squirt of tomato ketchup.
• Pour on your port / stock and put the lid on your dish
• Place in the oven and bake for about 1 1/2 hours , now add the mushrooms
• Continue to bake until the vegetables are soft and the beef falls apart and the sauce reduced
• Serve with mashed potatoes, chunky bread, rice and green vegetables

The port really makes a difference and the gravy was amazing, a delicious comfort food for #BoothsCheers

Baked Bean Chilli - frugal food for all the family

Its been a pretty bad weekend in our household , so I have turned to trusty beef mince for this weekends recipe and the store cupboard. I normally have some mince stashed in the freezer for an economical supper dish which I am sure would be popular with the whole family in your household. Its appeal is that it features the humble baked bean, for the vegeterians just substitute the mince for more vegetables such as courgettes and celery.

Serve accompanied with the usual trimmings, rice, tacos, tortillas, salad or a jacket spud or even chips, sour cream and guacoamole are also options.

Ingredients

• Minced beef
• Onion - chopped finely
• Red pepper - deseeded and sliced
• Can of tomatoes - chopped
• Tomato puree
• pinch of sugar
• Beef stock
• Chilli spice mix - I use Fox's Herbs and Spices
• Can of baked beans
• Clove of garlic - peeled and crushed
• Splash of worcestershire sauce

Method

• Soften the onion and garlic in a little oil in a large pan
• Soften the red pepper in the same manner
• Now add the mince to the pan and cook until coloured
• Add the chilli spice mix to taste
• Add the tomato puree, pinch of sugar and worcestershire sauce
• Now add the can of tomatoes and the beef stock, careful not to add too much liquid
• Simmer until the sauce starts to reduce and the meat is cooked
• Add the baked beans and continue to simmer to thicken the sauce further
• Serve accompanied by rice 

Slow Cooked Brisket of Beef

I use my slow cooker a lot in the winter, its an easy way to have a scrummy no messing evening meal waiting for you when you come home from work. They take a little getting used to, but once you have learned that you need to hold back on the liquid compared with oven cooking they are easy to use. A favourite recipe in our household is brisket of beef, tender melting well flavoured meat that can be used to create some delicious meals. I get my brisket from Spout House Farm which is near me, but any good butcher should have this for you and in a size of piece suitable for your family.

Its easy to ring the changes with this recipe and use whatever you have to hand, the main rules being the quality of the brisket and the quality of the stock.

Ingredients

• Beef brisket - rolled
• Flour - seasoned
• Onions - chopped
• carrots
• bay leaves
• mixed herbs
• Beef stock / Beer / red wine
• salt and pepper
• Balsamic vinegar or fruit vinegar
• Dijon mustard
• Oil

Method 

Firstly make your seasoned flour, roughly 1 tablespoon of flour on a plate and add salt, freshly ground pepper and some mixed dried herbs. Roll your brisket in this mixture until well coated and don't forget the ends. Fry off your brisket to seal it in a little oil and to give a nice golden crust. Now place in your slow cooker ( if you don't have one then you can use a casserole dish and the oven instead but its a bit more hassle), next fry your onions and carrots in the same pan, scraping up any brown bits from the meat as this is were the flavour is, until the onions are slighty softened. Next add to the pan the stock / wine/ beer, balsamic, mustard and bay leaves and bring to a simmer, stirring ever so often to again loosen any sticky bits on the pan. Then pour this over your brisket in your slow cooker or casserole dish, put on the lid and if using a slow cooker cook for at least 4 hours on high, but I just leave it all day and it always turns out fine, if using an oven cook on 150c for at least 4  hours, but check every hour or so to see if needs more stock or water as it can dry out. Your brisket is ready when it falls a part when gently crushed with a fork, your gravy  will be well flavoured, thicken if necessary with slaked cornflour and serve with your favourite vegetables. Enjoy !

Awesome beef stew & fluffy dumplings

My all time favourite casserole / stew is based on Jamie Oliver's Jules Beef stew, Jo had the idea of including butternut squash in his vegetables which cooks down to a satisfying mush in the gravy and not browning the meat. Both contribute to producing a casserole which has non of the bitter edges which sometimes result from slow cooking beef.

Ideally when sourcing you beef, buy from a good butcher or farm shop and go for beef skirt or shin which should ensure a great result if its available. I will be buying my from Spout House Farm, delicious local meat.

Ingredients

• Beef - stewing, shin or skirt, toss in seasoned flour
• Onions - chunky chopped
• Carrots - chunky chopped
• Butternut squash - chunky cubes
• Fresh sage 
• Fresh Thyme
• Beef stock
• Red wine or beer
• Tomato puree
• Other vegetables, maybe parsnip, celery, swede - chunky chopped

Dumplings

• 50g Suet - vegetable
• 100g Self raising flour
• Dried herbs
• pinch of salt
• Water

Method 

Preheat your oven to 150c, add all your non dumpling ingredients to a cast iron casserole, ensuring you only add as much stock / wine to just cover your ingredients, bring to a gentle simmer, cover and place in oven for anything from between 2 - 4 hours. I often use my slow cooker and simmer all day whilst at work. Be assured its better to cook long and slowly to achieve a good result, this is slow cooking at its best. You know its ready when the vegetables are beginning to fall and the meat is soft and tender.

Now to make your dumplings, mix all your dry ingredients in a bowl and then add enough water to make a soft dough, split the dough into small round balls - golf ball sized this mix makes approx 6 - 8 balls, be gentle with your mixture as over working makes your dumplings tough, pop into your casserole for 20-30 minutes until well risen and fluffy, serve and enjoy.

Spout House Farm

Today saw our first visit to Spout House Farm in Higher Wheelton, Chorley. We have been meaning to visit for  quite a while as this is a supplier to our favourite restaurant " The Red Cat", which is just down to the road from the farm. The farm shop also comes recommended by Phil from Slow Food Lancashire and Throughly Food. 

We were warmly welcomed and glad to see that this is a family affair with the emphasis on local produce and  Lancashire, the lamb and beef is produced on the premises and at a great price, also they have local free range chicken and pork, cheese vegetables and baked goods. 


Pay them a visit. I have some lamb shanks I am planning to slow cook, so I'll let you know the results.

UPDATE - The lamb shanks were awesome, slow cooked .