Homemade Recipes

Ingredients:

1 tbs olive oil

40g butter

1kg gravy beef, cut into 2cm pieces

750g small pickling onions or shallots (French shallots), peeled, ends trimmed

2 x 200g pkts portobello mushrooms

1 x 250g pkt bacon rashers, chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

40g (1/4 cup) plain flour

500ml (2 cups) dry red wine

500ml (2 cups) beef stock

2 sprigs fresh rosemary

6 sprigs fresh thyme

1 bouquet garni

2 sheets (25 x 25cm) ready-rolled frozen puff pastry, just thawed

1 egg, lightly whisked

6 sprigs fresh thyme, extra

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 150°C. Heat half the oil and 10g of the butter in a flameproof casserole dish over high heat. Add one-quarter of the beef and cook, stirring, for 3-4 minutes or until brown. Transfer to a heatproof bowl. Repeat, in 3 more batches, with the remaining beef, reheating the pan between batches.

2. Heat the remaining oil and 10g of the remaining butter in the same pan. Add the onions and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until golden. Transfer to the bowl with the beef. Add the mushrooms to pan and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until tender. Add the bacon and garlic and cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until brown. Transfer to the bowl.

3. Melt the remaining butter in the pan over medium heat until foaming. Add the flour and cook, stirring with a wooden spoon to dislodge any bits that have cooked onto the base, for 2 minutes or until the mixture bubbles. Return the beef mixture to the pan. Add the wine and stock and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until combined. Bring to the boil. Remove from heat. Stir in the rosemary, thyme and bouquet garni. Season with salt and pepper. Bake in oven, covered, stirring occasionally, for 2 hours or until the beef is tender and the sauce thickens slightly. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool.

4. Increase oven to 200°C. Spoon the beef mixture among six 375ml (1 1/2-cup) capacity ovenproof dishes. Use a 10cm-round pastry cutter to cut three discs from each pastry sheet. Brush the top edge of one of the dishes with a little of the egg. Top with a pastry disc and press the edges to seal. Repeat with the remaining egg and pastry discs. Brush pies with any remaining egg and decorate with leftover pastry. Place pies on a baking tray. Bake for 20 minutes or until pastry is golden and puffed.

5. Top the pies with the extra thyme sprigs and serve immediately.