INDIVIDUAL GALA PIES

/ Makes 12

We Brits love our pies, in any shape or form, so it will come as no surprise that I’m very partial to them! I particularly love these mini gala pies with the hidden gem of a quail’s egg nestled inside each one. Perfect picnic food or served as part of a ploughman’s.

PREP: 35 minutes

BAKE: 40 minutes

for the filling:

300g good-quality sausage meat (or skinned sausages)

300g pork mince

150g unsmoked bacon, diced

2 banana shallots, finely diced

½ teaspoon ground mace

½ teaspoon nutmeg

½ teaspoon dried sage

salt and ground white pepper

12 quail’s eggs, hard-boiled and peeled

for the pastry:

450g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

100g strong white bread flour

75g cold unsalted butter

200ml water

½ teaspoon salt

100g lard, plus extra for greasing

2 beaten egg yolks, to glaze

for the jelly:

1 chicken stock cube

300ml boiling water

3 leaves of gelatine

equipment:

10cm round cutter

12-hole muffin tin

1. Preheat your oven to 200°C/Gas 6. Grease a 12-hole muffin tin with lard.
2. Begin by making the filling. Put all the ingredients, except the boiled quail’s eggs, into a large bowl. Season with salt and a pinch of white pepper. Use your hands to mix together thoroughly. Fry off a nugget of the mixture and taste to check the seasoning. Add a little more if required. Place the mix in the fridge whilst you make the pastry.
3. Place the flours in a bowl. Add the butter and rub in lightly with your fingertips. Heat the water, salt and lard in a small pan until just boiling. Pour on to the flours and mix together with a wooden spoon. Once cool enough to handle, tip on to a lightly floured surface and knead to a smooth dough.
4. Roll the pastry out to a thickness of about 3mm. Cut out twelve 10cm circles and use each circle to line a hole in the muffin tin. Cut twelve 7cm circles for the lids and set them aside.
5. Spoon a little of the mixture into each pie case, place a quail’s egg in the centre and spoon over a little more filling. Brush the edge of each pie case with a little egg yolk, place the lids on top and crimp the edges together to seal completely. Make a small hole in the centre of each pie and bake in the oven for 40 minutes, until the pastry is crisp and golden. Leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes, then remove and cool on a wire rack.
6. Make the jelly by melting the stock cube in the boiling water. Soak the gelatine in a little cold water until soft, then squeeze out any excess water and whisk into the warm chicken stock. Pour the jelly mixture into the hole in the top of each pie until the hollow cavity in the pie is filled. Allow the pies to set in the fridge overnight.