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Braised beef and mulled wine festive pasties
Makes 6 Starters and mains
Ingredients
- 500g rough puff pastry
- 1 egg, beaten
For the filling
- 2tbsp olive oil
- 1 onion, finely diced
- 1 celery stick, finely diced
- 1 carrot, finely diced
- 200g swede, cut into 1cm cubes
- 1kg braising beef, diced
- 4tbsp stoneground white flour, plus extra to dust
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 1tsp rosemary, chopped
- 2 bay leaves
- ½ cinnamon stick
- 1 star anise
- 4 cloves
- 400ml red wine
- 2tbsp redcurrant jelly
- 150g cooked chestnuts, peeled and roughly chopped
Method
Heat 1tbsp of the oil in a large ovenproof casserole or pan with a lid. Add the onion, celery, carrot and swede and cook over a medium heat for 10 minutes until starting to soften.
Meanwhile, season the beef with salt and black pepper and toss it in the flour to coat. Remove the veg with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add the remaining oil to the pan along with the garlic, rosemary, bay, cinnamon, star anise and cloves, followed by the wine and red currant jelly. Use a wooden spoon to scrape and loosen any bits stuck to the base of the pan.
Bring to a simmer and season with salt and pepper. Put the lid on and cook in the oven for 1½ hours or until the meat is tender and the sauce is thick and glossy.
Pick out the bay leaves, cinnamon, star anise and cloves. Taste and tweak the seasoning, then stir in the chestnuts and leave to cool completely.
To make the pasties, preheat the oven to 180C/160C F/Gas 4.
Divide the pastry dough and the beef filling into 6 equal portions. Dust a work surface with flour and roll out each ball of dough thinly.
Use a plate (approx. 22cm in diameter) to cut each dough ball into a perfect circle. Place some of the braised beef on one half, leaving a 1cm gap around the edge, and bring the other half over to make a semicircle. Crimp the edges together. If you like, you can use the pastry trimmings to fashion some festive decorations. Repeat until you have completed all 6 pasties.
Sit them on a baking tray, brush with beaten egg and bake for 50 minutes or until golden brown and piping hot.
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