Mum’s Cornish Pasties

My Nana’s family came from Cornwall to New Zealand many years ago and Mum has always enjoyed making Cornish Pasties for us when we were kids – it is not a traditional recipe or a traditional shape but to me they are always the best pasties because of all the happy memories I have of cooking and eating them with our family. Sometimes we would even make them for our school lunchboxes. 2 years ago I was able to visit Fowey in Cornwall where my family are from & eat a Cornish Pastie there which was a very special memory too. I hope you enjoy our Kiwi Aussie Cornish Pastie recipe & don’t forget to serve them with heaps of tomato sauce!! You can add extra veggies (or swap them out) try carrot, peas or turnips. You can make them vegetarian or just a potato & parsley filling.

INGREDIENTS

640g plain flour

250g cold butter cut into cubes

pinch salt

200g ice cold water

100g parsley

500g rump steak cut into 1 cm cubes

500g potatoes cut into 1 cm cubes

1 onion finely diced

1 swede peeled and cut into 1 cm cubes

Salt and pepper to taste

1 egg beaten with a pinch of salt

Tomato sauce to serve

METHOD

  1. Heat the oven to 220 degrees.
  2. Place the flour, butter and pinch salt into the TM bowl and chop for 5 secs speed 9.
  3. Add the water and using the kneading function knead for 1 min. the dough should hold together when you squeeze the mixture together, you can add a little bit more water if you need to and knead it again until it comes together. Turn out onto to a silicone mat or work surface bring the dough together into a ball & wrap with cling film and place into the fridge for 30 mins.
  4. Place the parsley into the TM bowl and chop for 3 secs speed 7. Place into a large bowl with the steak, potatoes, onion, swede, salt and pepper and mix it all together with a spoon.
  5. Remove the pastry from the fridge and place on to a floured work surface roll the pastry out to about 3mm thick. Cut out 20cm circles using a plate or cake tin as a guide. This recipes should make about 12 pasties. Leaving a 2 cm border pile the filling on to one half of the pastry. Brush the edges of the pastry with the beaten egg and bring the opposite edges together. (You can google how to shape them if you prefer a more traditional shape) Pinch the edges together like my pasties in the photo. Place on to a lined baking tray and brush with the egg. Continue until all the pastry and filling has been used up.
  6. Place the pasties into the oven for 20 mins. You may wish to rotate the trays in your oven for even cooking and then turn the temperature down to 180 degrees and cook for another 25 mins or until golden brown.
  7. Enjoy hot with lots of tomato sauce.

Family Favourite Lamb Pie topped with Sweet Potato Mash

Weekday family comfort food at it’s best & it’s hubby’s favourite dinner too, so I know how to get into his good books -just make this for dinner & some apple pie with custard for dessert 🙂

Lamb Pie

Family Favourite Lamb Pie topped with Sweet Potato Mash
Author: 
Recipe type: Family Comfort Food
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: 6 - 8 serves
 
Comfort food to keep the whole family happy - try different veggies or a combo of veggies for the topping, cauliflower, potato, parsnip, jerusalem artichoke.
Ingredients
  • 1kg lamb, cubed
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 2 each sprigs fresh rosemary and thyme leaves
  • 1 brown onion halved
  • 2 sprigs fresh flat leaf parsley
  • 400g tomatoes, diced, canned (or fresh cherry tomatoes)
  • 50g tomato paste
  • 100g frozen peas
  • 1 carrot halved
  • 1 celery stick cut in two
  • 1tbs Stock Concentrate
  • Salt & Pepper, to taste
  • 2 bay leaves, fresh, or dried
  • 10g cornflour (optional)
  • 20g olive oil
  • Sweet Potato topping
  • 1kg sweet potato cubed, no need to peel
  • 50g Good Parmasen cheese
  • 250g milk or cream
  • Salt & pepper to taste
  • 30g Butter
  • 1 clove garlic
Instructions
  1. TOPPING- Chop parmasean cheese (and garlic) for 5 secs speed 10.
  2. Set it to one side.
  3. Insert the butterfly whisk & add your sweet potatoes, milk or cream (or a mix of both) salt & pepper, cook for 15 - 20 mins 100 degrees speed 1 until cooked completely.
  4. Add the butter & mash for 20 secs speed 4.
  5. Place to one side while you make the filling (or you can make the filling first & then make the topping, your choice!)
  6. LAMB FILLING -Place garlic & herbs into TM bowl & chop for 5 secs speed 7.
  7. Add onion, carrot & celery & chop for 5 secs speed 4, you may need a couple of seconds longer depending on their size.
  8. Scrape down side of the bowl add the oil & saute' for 3 mins Varoma temp speed 1.
  9. Add lamb & cook 10 mins 100 degrees reverse speed 1.
  10. Add remaining filling ingredients except the peas & cook for 20 mins 100 degrees reverse speed 1. Add the peas & cook for another 5 mins 100 degrees reverse speed 1.
  11. Pour mixture into a large baking dish.
  12. Spread with your sweet potato topping & cheese.
  13. Bake in the oven at 180 - 200 degrees for 20 mins or until brown.

 

Lamb Pie with spoon

Arwen’s Black Forest Trifle

We made this delicious trifle at our recent INSPIRE Christmas cooking class

INSPIRED TRIFLE IDEAS:
This is a favourite recipe my friend’s Mum used to make for us. The original recipe used 2 packets of port wine jelly instead of using the cherry “juice” to make the jelly.
You may also like to add cherry liqueur to the jelly 🙂
There are so many different combos for a trifle, use any kind of fruit – fresh figs, pomegranate seeds, passionfruit, mango, berries, kiwi fruit, then make a jelly to go, with that fruit even a wine or sparkling wine jelly.
Match it with your style cake a plain sponge, or try chocolate, orange or pistachio.
Then flavour your custard to match or use a lemon or lime curd for something different.
Top with fresh whipped cream & something for a bit of crunch your favourite nuts, biscuits, toasted coconut, chocolate.

Arwen’s Thermo Pics | Hobart Thermomix Consultant - Arwen's Black Forest Trifle

Arwen’s Black Forest Trifle- This a picture of a smaller batch

Devil of a Cookbook Sponge Cake Recipe

Arwen's Black Forest Trifle
Author: 
Cuisine: Christmas
Serves: 12
 
The orginal recipe was one that my friends Mum made for us when were young - then we started having it for our family Christmas!
Ingredients
  • Black Forest Trifle
  • 1 chocolate cake or chocolate sponge
  • 1 x 600g jar morello cherries, keep the liquid
  • 2 teaspoons gelatine power
  • 1000g cream
  • 100g flaked almonds, lightly toasted or coconut flakes
  • 50g dark chocolate, or to taste
  • Chocolate Custard
  • 1000g milk
  • 100g Corn Flour
  • 150g dark chocolate, good quality (add more to taste)
  • 150g sugar, or to taste
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 40g unsalted butter
Instructions
  1. Black Forest Trifle
  2. Heat 100g of the liquid from the cherry jar for 3 mins/100 degrees/speed 1, add the gelatin & mix for 5 secs/speed 5.
  3. Add the rest of the liquid & mix for another secs speed 5.
  4. Using a strainer pour into your chosen glass trifle container or individual glasses (8).
  5. You can either add the cherries now & place into the fridge to set or place the cake in to soak up the cherry jelly & place the cherries on top & into the fridge to set. In a clean TM bowl whip your cream with the butterfly around 20 - 30 secs /speed 3.5-Time will vary depending on how fresh your cream is. Place the cream to one side & without needing to clean the bowl, place all the custard ingredients to the bowl. Cook for 15 mins 90 degrees speed 4 or until thick.
  6. Pour the chocolate custard on top of the cherry jelly & cake. Place into the fridge. Once it has cooled completely spread the top of the custard with cream & sprinkle with almonds & grated dark chocolate & or toasted coconut flakes & fresh cherries. Can be made the day before, although the cream is best done on the day of serving.
  7. I like to use the sponge cake from the Devil of a Cookbook replacing use 40g of cornflour with cocoa powder.

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