How to Make the Ultimate Christmas Dinner Pie

Make 500g of shortcrust pastry (Calum Franklin recipe) and measure into a 350g and a 150g ball, put in fridge in cling film

Also put 7inch pan or cake tin in fridge, lined on the outside with foil

Wizz Parsnips, Carrots and dark meat, put in a mixing bowl

Dice (1cm) white meat and add to the bowl

5 grinds of salt, 10 pepper into the bowl

Add 100g cranberry sauce

Roughly chop sprouts with chestnuts and add

Crumble in stuffing

Add whole dried cranberries

Cover and save for later

Roll out 350g pastry big enough to cover pan/tin base and up (down while upturned) sides

Put a disc of parchment on pan/tin bottom

Lay pastry over the foil lined pan/tin folding any excess flat to the sides and pressing down with a little water, press tin onto worksurface to remove any excess pastry – put it with the 150g

Do first coat of egg wash

Put back in fridge for 20mins

Do second coat of egg wash

Put back in fridge for 10mins

Preheat oven to 180

Bake upturned pastry on tin for 20 mins

Remove from oven and allow to cool, upturned, still on tin

Roll out lid (150g) to a size enough to come over the edges by an inch (roughly) and don’t worry if it isn’t a perfect circle

Put back in fridge in cling film

Lift out tin once cooled, turn right way up and fill with filling. Press filling in as much as is possible without breaking pastry. If there is insufficient filling layer a little more white meat and stuffing. Top off with braised red cabbage and apple.

Wash edges of pastry lid with water and place over pie, turn down sides and press onto wetted pastry to seal.

Egg wash lid and sides and put in fridge for 20m

Egg wash again and put in fridge for 20m

Bake at 180 for 20 mins on fan with heat from above

Useful Links

https://www.waterstones.com/book/the-pie-room/calum-franklin/9781472973610