I expect riots in Cornwall!!

[Guinevere]

So, exactly the same as a pie crust.

Scooter, you can make crust as delicate or not, from the same recipe. Most small pies with a top crust are perfectly able to be eaten with your hands. For a while "hand pies" we're gaining popularity around here, and they could be savory or sweet. Unfortunately, the stupid cupcake craze continues. I'd so much rather have a pie.

[Sue U]

Unfortunately, the stupid cupcake craze continues. I'd so much rather have a pie.

Amen, sister! Cherry or peach?

[The Hen]

BOTH!

I do have two hands.

[Guinevere]

Cherry! And something savory for the other hand ...

[Sean]

Steak & kidney dagnammit!

[Guinevere]

No organ meats, please! I'd like something with curry and veg, please. Like a pie version of a samosa!

[MajGenl.Meade]

Steak & kidney dagnammit!

[Gob]

Coat of arms pie



Ingredients

Pies:
1 sheet of ready rolled puff pastry
200g of kangaroo meat
200g of Emu leg meat
1 cup raw bunya nuts chopped in half
2 potatoes 2 carrots
1 stick of celery all cut into dice
1 x 500m1 bottle of Bush Tomato Relish (if you don't have this use a good tomato salsa).

Native Spice Mix:
2 tablespoon lemon myrtle ground
20g of whole bush tomatoes
2 tablespoons of Dorrigo pepper
6 aniseed myrtle leaves
4 tangy ironbark leaves
2 tablespoons of curry powder
3 tablespoons of instant gravy powder.
Mix all the spices together.

Method

Pies:

1. Dice the meat into 1/2 inch cubes and roll in the native spice blend with a little about 50ml of oil.

2. Heat your pot or grill plate until it is very hot, then brown off the meat and spices.

3. Drain off any liquid keep it for the sauce and place meat in a separate bowl.

4. Place the vegetables and the bunya nuts into the pot and sautee for a few minutes.

5. Add the meat to the vegetables in the pot alomg with the Bush tomato relish and the left over juice

6. If using a pressure cooker bring to pressure cook low heat for 1.5 hours OR if baking in the oven, cover over with foil and leave to braise for 2.5 hours or until meat is tender.

7. When meat mixture is tender place in a ramekin and top with puff pastry.

8. Return to the oven until golden brown.

Spice mix:

Combine all spices in a bowl and mix together.


Mary-Lou's Notes:

I was worried about cooking emu and wanted the roo to be really tender too so I left the meet and veggie mix in a slow oven for most of the day. The result was delicious and very tender.

Dale's tips for Bunya nuts:

If you drop the cone from knee height and it opens up and splits then the nuts are ready.

Shuck them (get the green covering off) then slit the nuts open with a ratchet - a very tough cutting device.

You can also slice the tip off before boiling or heat them on the fire and then hit them with a hammer.

Mary-Lou suggests you buy them already cut like she did. Much easier!


Serving suggestions

Serve on steamed lemon myrtle rice, your favourite crisp salad, and warm damper. Makes one large or four small ramekins.

[Lord Jim]

Like a pie version of a samosa!

There's an Indian restaurant we frequent that has really yummy lamb samosas....

Whenever we go, I always pick up a few extra orders to bring home to heat up later for snacks...

[dales]

Sweeny Todd's per chance?

[Sean]

Chicken balti pie...

[oldr_n_wsr]

No organ meats, please! I'd like something with curry and veg, please. Like a pie version of a samosa!

Just remember when in the wild foraging for your food, if you are on a mostly rabbit diet to eat the brains of the rabbit as that is where the most fat is. Rabbit meat is too lean to be you staple diet.

[Gob]

A Cornwall-based pasty producer is turning its warming cabinets back on after a fall in sales.

The firm switched off its cabinets after a 20% VAT charge was introduced on food kept hot.

But Warrens, which has 58 stores across south-west England, said customers were fed up with cold pasties.

Jason Jobling, from Warrens, said the decision to sell cold pasties had "really damaged the business" and had led to some customers walking out.

Mr Jobling said: "We [were] left with a dilemma on what to do really. We did some feedback and some surveys and the general feedback was that the customers were unwilling to pay the 20%."

Mr Jobling said the loss of sales had persuaded the company to reintroduce the warming cabinet and hot pasties.

He said: "We're not charging the full 20%, we've charged a percentage and we're taking a little hit as well.

"Generally it's been received really well. We've already seen an increase back to the original sales."

Plans to extend VAT to all food sold hot, with the exception of freshly-baked bread, were greeted with widespread protests.

In May the government altered the definition of what is a "hot" pasty to allow the reversal of its plans.

After the amendment, products such as sausage rolls or pasties sold on shelves - that is, cooling down, rather than being kept hot in a special cabinet - were not liable for VAT.