Preheat the oven to 180˚C / 360˚F.
Remove 2 frozen sheets of shortcrust pastry and puff pastry and leave them on the bench to thaw.
2 shortcrust pastry sheet, 2 puff pastry sheets
Heat the olive oil in a large pan and throw in the onions and garlic. Stir them around and cook until nicely fragrant and you just want to eat them all up (around a minute or so). You know, that amazing “Oh my god as if that’s only onions and garlic” smell.
1 onion, 2 tbsp olive oil, 2 cloves garlic
Add the beef mince and cook until nicely browned, then pour over with red wine and sprinkle in the smoked paprika and nutmeg. Next, add in the mushrooms and grated carrots. Cook down until all the liquid has evaporated, stirring occasionally so nothing sticks and burns.
500 g beef mince, 4 mushrooms, ½ cup red wine, ½ tsp smoked paprika, ½ tsp nutmeg, 2 carrots
Now reduce the heat to medium and add in the tomato paste, beef stock and that glossy brown gravy. Give everything a good stir. Remove from the heat and start working on those pie crusts!
¼ cup beef stock, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 2 tbsp instant gravy
Use a large circular jar or bowl to cut out circles roughly 12 cm / 4.5 inches in diameter for the shortcrust pastry bases, and 8 cm / 3 inches for the puff pastry tops. Note: Sizes may vary slightly depending on the size of your muffin tray.
2 puff pastry sheets, 2 shortcrust pastry sheet
Press the shortcrust bases out into a muffin tin, then scoop in some of the beef filling until they’re full to the top. Don’t overfill, as this will cause the pies to leak while cooking and pop the tops off.
Next, place the puff pastry lids over each pie and press around the edge of each lid with your finger to seal them.
Baste with the beaten egg and pierce the tops 4 times with a skewer. Pop them in the oven to bake for around 25 minutes or until the tops are flaky and golden brown.
1 egg
Serve hot with your favourite sauces such as tomato sauce/ketchup, bbq sauce, Worcestershire sauce or takoyaki sauce.
tomato sauce/ketchup, bbq sauce, Worcestershire sauce, Takoyaki Sauce