There’s something about a pie

Of all the foods I enjoy, all the things I like to cook. There’s something about a pie that sets it above. If I’m running my eyes down a menu, they won’t seem to move on if I reach a pie. If I open a new cookbook or food magazine, it’s always the pie recipes that will grab my attention first. Making me stop and think, I wonder when I could try this.

It’s always been this way. I remember childhood trips to the fish and chip shop, when much to my mother’s bafflement, I would ask for pie rather than the cod everyone else was having. I have vague memories of being told a piece of fish would be better for me, although the batter the fish came coated in may well have put paid to that argument.

Another early pie memory is from when we lived in Malta. As a treat, I think after a dentists visit, Mum would take me to the wonderful Cafe Cordina, where I was introduced to Pastizzi. These are a small savoury pastry filled with either ricotta or curried peas, wrapped in crisp filo. I’m not sure the dentist would have approved, but the ricotta quickly became my favourite and if I ever make it back to Malta, the lure of these will have a lot to do with it.

My partner thinks pies are a ‘man thing’, professing herself quite unable to understand what the pastry crust adds to the ingredients which go into making the filling. Maybe she’s right. Perhaps we blokes are channelling our inner Desperate Dan whenever we order one.

When I first started to bake I saw it as a route to pie whenever I wanted it. What I hadn’t counted on was the perils and drama of making my own pastry. As basic as the ingredients are, often just flour, butter, salt and water, it proved far from easy to bake. Sometimes it was too crumbly, others too crisp, and then when it did work it would inevitably split and fall apart as I tried to transfer from the board I’d been rolling it on, to the pie dish ahead of baking.

But I persevered, learnt from my mistakes and finally, homemade pastry doesn’t feel so daunting anymore. I’m no expert but my tips would be

• always use as little water as possible when making the pastry.
• always thoroughly flour both the board you’re going to roll the pastry on and the rolling pin that you’ll be using.
• don’t be afraid to make too much pastry. There’s nothing worse than trying to stretch it out to fill a pie dish. You can always use the offcuts to make something else if there’s enough
• if the finished article doesn’t look quite as you were hoping, tell people it’s rustic.

I was prompted to write this piece after posting a picture of a pie I’d just baked, on Twitter at the weekend. I can’t remember the last time I go so much feedback on a baking post and it was a clear indication that I’m not alone in my obsession. It was a dauphinois potato and leek pie   recipe that I found in Delicious magazine and I can’t recommend it highly enough. It may sound a bit indulgent, with three kinds of cheese and double cream, but I promise you won’t regret it. Just for good measure, it’s a very easy pastry to make. So if you’re a bit of a pastry phobe, as I was, this might be the one for you.