Busy Bee Cafe

This so very simple. Minimum ingredients if you cheat and just buy ready made shortcrust pastry like me

Ingredients:

1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
300g lamb, finely sliced – bite size
1 potato, peeled and diced
300ml lamb stock
1tbsp French mustard
500g ready made shortcrust pastry
1 egg, beaten

1. Preheat oven at 200C/gas mark 6.
2. Heat the olive oil on moderate heat and add the onion and lamb. Cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the potato, reduce heat and cook for another 2 minute until beginning to brown, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in the lamb stock and add mustard. Cover and let it simmer for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally until the potato and lamb are tender. Set aside to cool.
4. Divide the pastry into six and shape them into balls. Roll out each ball into 15cm diameter circle, about 5mm thick. Divide the lamb mixture into six and place in the middle of the rolled out pastry. Fold and pinch the pastry to seal it.
5. Place the pasties on a baking sheet and brush each one with beaten egg. Place the tray into the middle of the oven for about 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden and crisps.

I prepared the lamb mixture the night before and and rolled out the pastry and filled in the mixture first thing in the morning. This is to save time so when I get home in the evening with Little Bee, I just glazed the pasties with egg and bang them in the oven and gave Little Bee her bath, so they were ready by the end of her bath and cooled down when she’s all dressed in her pyjamas.

Hubby is on a diet, so Little Bee had to be the guinea pig to me experimenting with mini pies… And she seemed to like it. I’ll have a taste of one (or maybe two) of them when I break my fast today.

Ingredients:

2tbsp olive oil
1 onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 red pepper, diced
3 garlic clove, minced
500g minced beef
1/2cup frozen peas
1 pinch oregano
1/2 tsp brown sugar
300ml passata
300g ready made shortcrust pastry

1. Heat the olive oil in the pan and add the onion. Fry for 5 minutes and add the carrots. Continue to fry for another 5 minutes and add the pepper and garlic. Fry for another 2 minutes.
2. Add the mince and fry until brown. Add the peas, oregano, sugar and passata. Once the sauce has thickened, take it off the heat and let it cool.
3. Pre heat the oven at 180C or gas mark 4 and grease a muffin tray.
4. Roll out the pastry until about 2cm thick. Cut out about 6 circles at 18cm diameter, then press the pastry into the muffin tins.
5. Spoon the mince filling into each cup.
6. Roll up the left over pastry and cut into strips and make a cross on top of each pie.
7. Place the muffin tray in the middle of the oven for 15 minutes.