Foodie Friday: Beef Pie

I had pastry in the refrigerator from the mini quiches I made a couple of weeks ago, I wanted to use up.  I had stew beef, and veggies so the logical choice was a beef pie. 

1 - medium onion chopped

3- stalks of celery chopped

6 - medium mushrooms chopped

1- pound, more or less of cubed beef 

1-2 cups red wine 

1-2 cups beef stock

2-3 medium potatoes peeled and cubed

3 carrots peeled and sliced 

butter

flour

seasonings 

Pastry 

This one take a while, start like three hours before you want to serve. 

Saute the onions, celery, and mushrooms in a little olive oil,  add the beef to lightly brown, salt, pepper and any other seasonings you want to add. Add red wine and stock, cover and put in a 350 (f) oven to braise for about two hours. You want the beef to be fork tender. 

After about two hours: 

Steam the potatoes and carrots until tender. 

Remove the beef, onions, celery and mushrooms from the liquid with a slotted spoon and set aside. Make a roux with butter and flour, add the about 1 to 1.5 cups of the braising liquid to make a very thick sauce. 

Leave the oven hot. 

Combine the beef, onions, mushrooms with the steamed potatoes and carrots, and add the sauce to make a thick mixture, allow to cool partially. I put it in a stainless steel bowl, with a slightly larger stainless steel bowl of ice under it. You want to get this down to about 100 (f) or so, or it may melt the bottom layer of pastry. 

Put in the bottom layer of pastry, fill with the mixture, put on the top pastry, seal the edges, and bake for 45 minutes at 350 (f). 

I baked this in a flat shallow dish, the filling was only 3/4 to 1-inch thick. Slice and serve.

Variations?  Add different veggies; peas, sliced green beans would be good. Add shredded cheese to the filling.  Make it with pork, veal, lamb, or chicken instead of beef. Very hearty food for a cold winter day.