Beef & Guinness Pies

with Roasted Honey & Cumin Pumpkin, Smashed Rosemary Potatoes & Steamed Beans with Garlic Butter

Well Saturday night was a another birthday dinner for me with my  gorgeous daughter Amy & her fiancé Ant. And as it was SO freezing I decided on a nice warm dinner full of comfort food :) 




Beef & Guinness Pies 
SERVES: 4 
PREPARATION: 15 MINUTES 
COOK: 2 1/2 HOURS


Ingredients 
1/4 cup (40g) plain flour
800g beef chuck steak, cut into 3cm pieces (I used gravy beef)
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 large brown onions, cut into thick wedges
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
440ml Guinness Draft Beer
1 1/2 cups (375ml) beef stock
2 dried bay leaves
8 fresh thyme sprigs
1 25cm sheet ready rolled puffed pastry
1 egg, lightly whisked

Method
Place flour in a large bowl and season well with salt and pepper. Add beef and toss to lightly coat. Heat half the oil in a large flame-proof casserole dish over high heat . Add one quarter of beef and cook, turning occasionally, for 5 minutes or until browned. Transfer to a heatproof bowl. Repeat in 3 more batches


Heat remaining oil in pan over medium heat. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes or until lightly golden. Add garlic and cook, stirring for 1 minute or until aromatic. Add beef, beer, stock and herbs and bring to the boil. Reduce heat to very low and cook, covered, stirring occasionally, for 1- 1 1/2 hours or until beef is tender and sauce thickens slightly. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. Set aside for 30 minutes to cool slightly. 


Preheat oven to 200C. Spoon beef mixture evenly amongst four 1 1/2 cup (375ml) oven-proof dishes. Cut the pastry into quarters and lightly brush with egg. Place piece of pastry over each dish and use a small sharp knife to cut a small slit in the top of each pie to help release steam. Place on an oven tray and bake for 15 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden. 

My Notes 
I found there was far too much liquid in this recipe and had to thicken at the end, I would definitely make some version of this pie again, I have heard the Jamie Oliver recipe for Beef & Guinness pie is sensational! this one just lacked a little depth of flavour but it was still really good!


Reserve the left over gravy from the beef & Guinness mixture to serve over the vegies! 

This recipe came form a free magazine www.taste.com.au that I picked up when I bought another food magazine (I know I just have to stop! I bought 4 this week......) I have made a few things from this little mag this week, and nothing from the 4 new magazines that I paid for lol. 


Roast Honey & Cumin Pumpkin
SERVES: 4 
PREPARATION: 10 MINUTES
COOK: 45 - 50 MINUTES

Ingredients
1kg Queensland Blue pumpkin, peeled, de-seeded, sliced into 1cm thick wedges
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons cumin seeds


Method
Preheat oven to 200C. Place pumpkin in a slightly greased roasting pan. Combine oil, honey and cumin seeds in a jug, pour over pumpkin. Season with salt and pepper and turn to coat. Roast pumpkin for 45 - 50 minutes or until golden & tender. Serve. 


My Notes 

Well I didn't have Queensland Blue pumpkin I had butternut so that is what I used for this recipe, I also by accident used 2 tablespoons of honey...this is because I didn't have my glasses on lol. But it was really yummy! Oh also I microwaved the oil honey & cumin seeds for 30 seconds before I poured it over. 


This recipe also came from the www.taste.com.au freebie book and will also be a repeat dish on our table :) 


Smashed Rosemary Potatoes
SERVES:4
PREPARATION: 10 MINUTES
COOK: 2 HOURS

Ingredients
4 large new potatoes
tablespoon sea salt flakes 
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary, chopped 
1/2 cup olive oil


Method
Scrub potatoes until clean.


Boil potatoes in large pot until a skewer passes easily through potato (my potatoes were quite large and took around an hour) 


When cooked strain and set aside until cooled.


Preheat oven to 200C


Once cooled place potatoes onto a lined baking tray and gently smash and flatten potatoes until 2 - 3 cm thick with a potato masher.


Pour over olive oil


sprinkle with sea salt flakes & rosemary 


Place in oven and roast for 45 - 50 minutes or until golden and crispy

My Notes 
These potatoes have been a firm family favourite for over 20 years now but I hadn't made them in such a long time! I think I originally got the idea from Jill Dupleix many moons ago 




Steamed Green Beans with Garlic Butter
SERVES: 4
PREPARATION: 10 MINUTES
COOK: 5 MINS


Ingredients 


250g string-less green beans
50g butter
1/2 glove garlic, finely chopped 
1 teaspoon parsley, finely chopped


Method
top and tail green beans


mix butter, garlic and parsley together


place green beans into double steamer and cook until beans turn bright green


remove from heat and serve with garlic & parsley butter