Week 43 - English Pork Pie
In week 43 I decided to make English Pork Pie, from the cookbook "Magic with Leftovers" by Lousene Rousseau Brunner, published in 1955.
I have been very intersted in trying this book since I bought it earlier this year. Initially I purchased it for the fantastic cover illustration, but upon looking through the book, I realized it had some great ideas for using leftover ingredients.
"Magic with Leftovers" by Lousene Rouseau Bunner, published in 1955. I love this fun cover illustration.
I had made pork tenderloin a few days earlier and I wanted to use up the leftovers. So, I chose the recipe for English Pork Pie. In addition to the pork, this recipe called for apples and spices, which I thought sounded delicious.
The ingredients for English pork pie
The recipe was relatively easy. After making a soft pastry dough, I lined a casserole dish with half. I then layered the pork and apples in a casserole dish. The recipe did call for gravy made from the original pork roast. Since pork tenderloin doesn't really generate enough juice to make gravy, I had to make a substitute using meat stock, flour, salt and pepper. The gravy was poured on the layers and sprinkled with nutmeg and cloves.
The bottom crust
The apple layer
The final pork layer
With the layers in place, I added the rest of the dough on the top. I had a bit of extra dough, so I had fun making little decorations for the top. The whole thing went into the oven until the mixture was bubbling and the crust golden brown.
The pork pie, ready for the oven
A close-up of my fun crust decorations, which were almost too cute to eat.
The finished pie was very good. The apples and pork were perfect together and the spices added a nice flavor. The pie crust was nice and buttery and flaky. I didn't have a lot of leftover pork, so I had cut the recipe down to make just enough for two people. I think this recipe is perfect for using up leftover meat and I could see it being used for chicken and beef as well.
The final pork pie
Cookbook: "Magic with Leftovers" by Lousene Rousseau Brunner, published in 1955
Recipe: English Pork Pie
Difficulty: Easy
Alterations: I did cut the recipe down and had to make a substitute for the gravy
Results: Very tasty
Make Again: Yes. I think this would be good to try with chicken as well.