roast mushroom and caramelised onion pie with quick flaky pastry

… we’re off to Cologne this week for a fashion and technology event.   I’ve never been to Cologne before and to be honest it’s not a place i’d ever really considered as a destination and even though we’re mostly going to be stuck inside one of those vast exhibition halls all day i’ve done a little research and it looks as though there’s a healthy restaurant and food scene and so i’m hoping it will be more than just sausage and pickled cabbage… we should have a few free evenings to go off exploring and our hotel is in the heart of town so I am keen to seek out a few special places.

Isn’t it funny how we think of ‘food first’, before all else the question of ‘but what and where shall we eat?’ will be muttered.  Of course most of the time it’s in anticipation of culinary delights and perhaps trying something local and new to the pallet but with a vegetarian in tow I always have a little panic about what The Viking will be able to eat without it impacting on the above… like taking the preverbal ‘coals to Newcastle’ you really shouldn’t take a vegetarian to the sausage capital of Europe…

roast mushroom and caramelised onion pie with quick flaky pastry
i’m so glad we’re finally coming up to pie season… it seems like a long summer without pie but now the evenings are starting to draw in and despite the current late Indian summer we seem to be experiencing there’s enough of a chill in the evening air to call for pie, so I thought a nice, hearty and very simple vegetarian classic was in order… this is my favourite go-to veggie pie… dark and rich with a red wine reduction and the promise of colder more autumnal flavours in mind… but to be honest any vegetables you have in the fridge will work… plus a nice and quick flaky butter pastry which obviously has the power to heal all ails and restore body and soul…

… and yes, whilst I may be criticised for the slipped pastry, I adore the rustic look of this pie and I have to tell you that that pastry was phenomenally good!

for the flaky pastry
250g strong bread flour
250g slightly salted butter – room temp cut into cubes
3 or 4 tablespoons water to mix

for the filling
3 medium onions – roughly diced
300g closed cup mushrooms or button mushrooms – quartered
fresh rosemary and thyme
1 pint good quality vegetable stock
1 teaspoon plain flour
1 large glass of red wine
a large handful of frozen peas
seasoning and olive oil

pre-heat the oven to 180C

start with the pastry by placing the flour and butter into a large bowl and rub together with your fingertips… you want it to be well rubbed in but still with large pieces of butter rather than breadcrumbs

add the water and bring together into a ball of dough, flatten out, wrap in going film and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes until completely cold

whilst you’re waiting for the pastry to chill place your mushrooms into an oven-proof dish, drizzle with a little olive oil, season well and sprinkle with plenty of fresh rosemary and thyme.  cover in foil and roast for 20 minutes until tender, then remove the foil and roast for a further 10 minutes until they begin to turn golden – set aside

now the pastry is ready for it’s first roll… flour your rolling surface generously and then roll out the pastry nice and thin, then gate-fold the pastry together (fold the top half over towards the centre and the bottom half over to the top) then roll flat, wrap and refrigerate once again until very cold

meanwhile, heat some oil and butter in a pan and very gently sauté the onions with a dash of sugar until they begin to caramelise… this can take up to 30 minutes… then turn up the heat, add the wine and let it bubble away and reduce by half, then add the stock and do the same

time to take the pastry out of the fridge and repeat the roll out and fold, pop it back into the fridge for the last time

take the mushrooms out of the oven and stir them into the onions along with a large handful of frozen peas and then pour the whole lot into your pie dish

take the pastry out of the fridge and roll out… we like our pastry nice and thick in this house, you have to cook it for longer and slower but it’s so beautifully buttery it really doesn’t matter…

using an egg and milk wash, brush the edges of the pie dish, then cut some pastry strips and fold then along the edges of the pie dish, then brush these strips with the egg wash and lay the main sheet of pastry over the top, brush with milk and score your pastry

bake for 30 mins on 170C until golden

using the rosemary and thyme gives this pie a little Mediterranean flavour so i’m entering it into the Cooking with Herbs and Tea Time Treats bloggers challenges… Cooking with Herbs is hosted by Karen from Lavender and Lovage and Tea Time Treats is also hosted by Karen alongside Jane from The Hedge Combers

eat and of course, enjoy!