TIME TO COOK!

This recipe is suitable for vegetarians.


CHEESE AND ONION PIE

Serves 4

For the pastry crust:

12 ounces of flour
6 ounces of  cooking fat cut into small cubes
Pinch of salt
Water to mix

(Or you could substitute either frozen shortcrust pastry or a packet mix if you are short of time).

Put the flour into a bowl and add the cooking fat and salt.  Rub the fat into the flour until your mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.  Add enough cold water to make a stiff dough mix well.  Cover and put into the fridge to rest for half an hour or while you prepare your filling.

For the filling

12 ounces of mature cheddar cheese
2 large onions
1 tablespoon plain flour
¼ teaspoon English Mustard powder or ready made mustard
1 ounce of butter or margarine
About 2 fluid ounces of milk
Seasoning to taste

Firstly you will need to skin and chop your onions, you can either dice them or slice them, whichever your family prefers.  Melt the butter or margarine in a heavy based saucepan and throw in the diced or sliced onions.  Cook until transparent, stirring well - be careful not to brown them as this spoils the look of the pie filling.  Once your onions are cooked, remove your pan from the heat and stir in the plain flour.  Return to the hob and cook until the mixture is bubbling around the edges then remove again from the heat.  Add the milk, you will have a very thick mixture but don’t worry about this as it what you are aiming for.  Heat gently to warm the mixture through and then remove from the heat.  Add the cheese, mustard and seasoning and stir well.  Your filling mixture will look a bit lumpy at this stage but will smooth out when your pie is cooked and will give you a rich and creamy filling.

Divide your pastry into two pieces and roll them out remembering to dust your pastry board or work top with extra flour to prevent it sticking!  Line your pie dish with one of your pastry pieces and spoon your filling on top.  Brush around the edges of the pastry with cold water and place the reserved piece of pastry on to the top to form the lid.  Press down well around the edges, I use one of my fingers to do this which not only seals the pie crust but gives it a bit of a fancy edge too.  Glaze the top of your pie with milk or a mixture of milk and water.  Cut a couple of holes into the lid to let out the steam so that the pastry stays nice and crisp when it’s cooking and you’re ready to put the finished pie into the oven.  I use a medium oven for cooking most things and this is no exception.  Place the pie into the middle of a medium oven and cook for approximately 45 minutes or until the pastry is crisp and golden brown.

This is a really filling meal and needs nothing other than green vegetables or baked beans to complete it.  A bit time consuming but so much better than ready made!

Cheese available from Glossop Indoor Market

Onions and any other vegetables you wish to serve available from Glossop Outdoor Market

Flour etc., from your store cupboard.