Squash and Mushroom Wellington

There are still two nights to go before Bonfire Night, but I can hear fireworks exploding above the houses as I type, and we went to a grand display down at the Marina on Saturday (where the bonfire was floating on the water and was lit from a rowing boat using a flaming stick. It was amazing), so I think that means I can start feeling really properly wintry now. And that means pies, lots and lots of pies.

                                                                                                                                    (c) Becca Thorne 2014

I've never eaten Beef Wellington. Or, if I have, it wasn't as memorable as it maybe should have been. It seems like the ultimate meat-eaters' winter feast - steak, pate, mushrooms, pastry - served with crispy roast taters and a big old pile of hearty cabbage, and smothered in warming gravy. This veggie version is a bit more rough to look at than its meaty forefather, but it still retains the underlying herby, mushroomy flavours that come from the classic duxelles layer and adds the delicious, comforting tummy-hug that can only come from something wrapped in pastry.

I miss having our own supply of squashes ready and waiting, but Lidl is still providing some tasty and varied winter varieties, all listed as simply 'Winter Squash'. The one I used for this was a Carnival-type I think (the one I used for the illustration might be a Buttercup?). I've previously used Honey Bears, which are an acorn variety and have lovely, tender, bright orange flesh which is great for roasting and were perfect for this. I imagine Butternuts will do the trick, but with so many different types out there, I say embrace the variety!

Serve as suggested above, with crispy roasters, steamed savoy cabbage, onion gravy and a good ale.


Serves 4

Ingredients
For the pastry:
8oz plain flour
4oz cold butter, cut into cubes
pinch of salt
A little cold water

For the filling:
1/2 medium sized winter squash, deseeded and peeled, cut into rough 2cm chunks
4 large field mushrooms, sliced
1 medium onion, diced
1 large clove garlic, crushed and finely chopped
1 bay leaf
2 sprigs rosemary, leaves only 
2 sprigs sage, leaves finely sliced
1 tsp horseradish sauce
1 tsp bouillon powder or 1/2 stock cube
100ml warm water
Tbs olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

First, make the pastry. Toss the butter cubes in the flour and salt and then, with your fingers, rub the butter into the flour until you have a rough breadcrumb consistency. Don't make it too fine, you want some larger lumps left so that the pastry will puff and flake a little in the oven. Add cold water a little at a time and combine until it comes together to form a firm dough.DOn't handle too much so as not to melt the butter. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for at least half an hour.

Preheat the oven to gas mark 7-8 or around 200-210C.

Next, heat the olive oil in a large pan with a lid and cook the onions over a medium heat with the bay leaf for a few minutes, stirring to prevent burning. Add the mushrooms and garlic with a good grinding of black pepper and continue cooking until the mushrooms have started to wilt and soften. Add the squash and herbs with a pinch of salt and stir well to coat everything, then allow to cook for 5 more minutes, continuing to stir frequently. Sprinkle on the bouillon/stock cube and add the water and horseradish. Stir well, cover, and cook until the squash is soft and the the water has become a small amount of thickened gravy.  Remove the bay leaf.

When the filling is ready, lightly oil a baking tray. Dust a work surface with flour and roll out the pastry to approx 30x25cm and place on the baking tray (it will probably hang over). Spoon the filling into the centre of the pastry in an oblong shape, leaving plenty of space around the edges so you'll be able to fold the pastry over. You should be able to fit all the filling in. Brush the exposed pastry with a little milk or water, then fold it over the filling, starting with the ends, then bringing the sides over to form a packet. Press the folds down lightly and brush all over with with milk, ensuring you get the joins to help secure them. Place in the centre of the oven for 15 -20 mins, or until the pastry is golden. Serve in slices.

Stilton, Leek and Sweet Potato Pie with Garlicky Carrots and Kale

And so autumn is upon us. Our recent move has found us just around the corner from a large Lidl with a surprisingly excellent veg section. While not huge, it's a lot better than the veg section at the Aldi we lived near in Leicester, and it's currently well supplied with seasonal delights - jazzy and delicious autumn squashes; ridiculously massive celeriac which I've not yet sampled for fear that they're so big they'll be woody inside; plenty of leeks - and not piddly little things, but proper, full grown, full-flavoured beauts; sprouts; cauliflower and sweet potatoes. I've somehow neglected sweet potatoes in the last few years. Every now and then I make Yotam Ottolenghi's scrumptious Sweet Potato Cakes, but otherwise I pretty much forgot they existed. More fool me. So now, as always happens when I rediscover a vegetable (it happened with aubergines too, earlier this year), I can't get enough of them. I love them as part of a big pile of roast veg or in a veggie stew with dumplings, but they were amazing in this pie with stilton and leeks. We had some carrots lurking about, and some fresh cavolo nero from Rowan's parents' garden. Drizzled with garlicky, fennely oil, they made excellent accompaniments to the pie, for a complete Sunday dinner.

                                                                                                                                                          (c) Becca Thorne 2014

Serves 2-4

Ingredients

For the pastry:
6oz plain flour
3oz cold butter or veg lard (eg. Trex), cubed
pinch of salt (a little more if you're using Trex)

For the filling:
3 medium-large leeks, trimmed and outer leaves removed, cut into 1cm thick rounds
1 good-sized sweet potato, peeled and chopped into 1-2cm chunks
1 large clove garlic, crushed and finely chopped
Approx 100g stilton, cubed
2-3 sprigs of sage, leaves only, finely sliced
Approx 1/4 pint ale
Plain flour
1 Tbs butter
Approx 300ml veg stock
A few drops mushroom ketchup or vegetarian Worcester sauce

For the sides:
2 carrots per person, halved and quartered
1 large clove garlic
Pinch of fennel seeds (optional)
Good bunch of cavolo nero leaves, or other dark green brassica (eg. kale or savoy cabbage)
Olive oil
Sea salt flakes (eg. Maldon)

Preheat the oven to around 220C. Start by making the pastry - combine the salt and flour, then rub in the butter cubes with your fingers to make a rough bread-crumby consistency. It doesn't need to be perfect. Add just enough cold water to bring the crumbs together into a dough, wrap in clingfilm and refrigerate for at least 30 mins.

Next, start on the filling. Heat a slug of olive oil in a large pan over a medium heat and cook the leeks, sweet potato, garlic and sage, stirring frequently to prevent burning. While this is cooking, melt the tablespoon of butter in a small pan over a low heat. When fully melted, remove from the heat and stir in just enough flour to make a smooth roux - start with no more than a tbs of flour. Add a little more if needed, or a little oil if you make it too dry. Return to the heat and add the stock and mushroom ketchup/Worcester sauce, a little at a time, stirring until it's all combined and you have a thick, creamy sauce.

When the veg is softened but still retains its shape, add a pinch of salt, a good grinding of black pepper and the ale. Stir to coat and allow the liquid to reduce. When nearly all the ale is gone, stir in the sauce and the stilton. Transfer to a pie dish.

Remove the pastry from the fridge and roll out on a flour-dusted surface to no more than 0.5cm thick. Place the pastry over the pie dish and gradually twist up the over-hanging edges up so that they create a raised, pasty-like rim around the edge of the dish, gently pressing them down as you go to create a seal. Using the tip of a sharp knife, make two small holes in the top of the pie to allow steam to escape and brush the lid with a little milk (I used Koko dairy free). Place in the centre of the pre-heated oven and bake for 20-30 minutes. You may want to place a baking tray on the shelf below to catch any drips that bubble over.

Check on the pie after about 10 minutes and, when it's starting to go golden, put the cavolo nero/kale on to steam (the younger the leaves the less time it will need, so take this into account). Five minutes after that the carrots can go into the water beneath the steamer. While the veg is on, heat approx 2tbs good olive oil in a small pan over a low heat, and add the garlic and fennel seeds. Watch it carefully to ensure the garlic doesn't brown, and after a few minutes you should start to smell the garlic beginning to mellow. At the first hint of it changing colour remove the pan from the heat.


Remove the pie from the oven when it's a good golden brown and allow torest and settle down a little before serving. The cavalo nero should be ready in 10-15 minutes and the carrots after 5. When they're ready, transfer them to a dish, sprinkle with a good pinch of sea salt flakes and toss them in the garlic oil, with all the seeds and bits included. Bon appetit!