Steak and Guinness Pie

Instructions:

• Step 1.

  Prepare the Beef. Slice the beef patties into bite-size chunks and sprinkle with flour. Warm the vegetable oil in a large casserole dish or dutch oven set over medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering, shake off excess flour from the beef morsels and carefully place them in the pan. Fry until golden brown. Transfer to a plate and set aside. If you’re using the porcini mushrooms, cover them with 1½ cups boiling water for 20 minutes, then squeeze out and keep the soaking water. Set both aside.

• Step 2.

  Cook the Pie Filling. Heat the oven to 350°F. Lower the stovetop heat to medium and add 2 tablespoons of vegetable oil to the casserole dish. Add the onions, carrots, and mushrooms. Cook for 5 minutes until lightly browned. Add the soaked porcini mushrooms (if using) and cook for 1 minute. Add the sugar and flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour turns golden brown and smells nutty. Whisk in the Guinness, vegetable stock, and 1 cup of mushroom soaking liquid. Season the stew with salt and pepper to taste. Tie together the thyme, bay leaf, and parsley, and gently tuck the bundle into the stew. Bring everything to a simmer. Cover with a lid and place in the oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the carrots are tender.

• Step 3.

  Cool the stew completely.

• Step 4.

  Bake the Pie. When you want to make the pie, heat the oven to 425°F and slide a baking sheet in the oven to warm up. Generously grease a 10-inch pie dish or springform pan and dust with flour. Cut a third of the pie dough and set it aside. Roll out the pastry to a thickish round that will easily line the pie dish with an overhang, then carefully transfer to the dish. Add the cooled beef morsels and stew vegetables to the dish using a slotted spoon. Then pour just enough of the stew sauce so that the pie filling is barely level with the rim of the dish (you won’t use all of the sauce – keep the leftovers for gravy). Roll out the remaining pastry to a thick round big enough to cover the dish. Brush the edges of the pastry in the dish with the soymilk, then cover with the pastry lid. Trim the edges, crimp the pastry, then re-roll your trimmings to make a decoration (stripes or leaves, for example). Brush the top with soymilk. Make a few little slits in the center of the pie. Place on the hot baking sheet.

• Step 5.

  Bake for 40 mins or until golden. Leave the pie to rest for 10 mins while you heat up the leftover gravy. Serve the pie with the gravy.