Melton Mowbray Lamb Pie

Total Time: 2 hrs 35 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins Cook Time: 2 hrs 15 mins

Ingredients

• 2 lbs diced lamb shoulder, cut into 1/4" cubes
• 1 teaspoon salt and pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon ground sage (or 2-3 leaves)
• 1 pinch dry mustard
• 1 pinch allspice
• lamb bone
• veal bone
• 2 onions, chopped
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 -3 sprigs marjoram
• 2 -3 sprigs thyme
• 8 ounces lard (yum)
• 1 lb flour
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/3 cup milk, combine with the water

Recipe

• 1 1 egg, lightly beaten mix the meat, salt, pepper, herbs and spices and set aside.
• 2 to make the stock, boil bones, onions, bay leaf, herbs salt and pepper in 4 cups of water for two hours or until the liquid is reduced to 2 1/3 cups.
• 3 cool, degrease and refrigerate until it starts to jell.
• 4 to make the pastry, rub 2 oz of the lard into the flour mixed with a teaspoon of salt until it is the consistency of breadcrumbs.
• 5 boil the rest of the fat with the milk and water.
• 6 make a well in the mound of flour and while stirring with a wooden spoon, mix in the boiling liquid.
• 7 knead and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
• 8 to make the casing or"coffyn", roll out three-quarters of the dough into a circle 3/4" thick.
• 9 flour the outside of the tin and stand it in the centre of the dough.
• 10 work the dough up the sides of the tin and then gently remove the tin leaving you with a pie casing.
• 11 fill it immediately with the meat mixture as it is likely to collapse.
• 12 roll out the remaining dough into a circle slightly larger than the diameter of the casing, to form the lid.
• 13 preheat the oven to 400f degrees dampen the top edge of the pie and gently press on the lid.
• 14 crimp the edge.
• 15 make a hole in the centre of the lid and decorate it with pastry leaves.
• 16 place on a baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes and then reduce the heat to 300 degrees f and bake for 1 3/4 hours.
• 17 if necessary place some aluminim foil on the top to prevent burning.
• 18 remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
• 19 pour the chilled stock through the hole in the lid and refrigerate serve cold.