Ragout & sweet potato pie with crispy cheese topping

Ingredients

Pastry:

• 750	gr	Bakers or plain flour
  250	gr	Anchor Unsalted butter
  250	gr	Suet or vegetable shortening
  1	tsp	Salt
  1	tbsp	Anchor Cream
  2	ea	Egg yolk
  100	ml	Warm water to bind
  1		Egg yolk, beaten, for glaze
  150	gr	Filling of your choice (we have used lamb Ragout)

Sweet potato mash:

Grated cheese topping:

Method

Pastry:

1. Combine flour, chopped thyme, rosemary and salt.
2. Pre-heat the oven to 200°C and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Cut four strips of greaseproof paper, about 5cm deep and 25cm long, to wrap around the pies.  You’ll also need four pieces of cook’s string to secure the paper.
3. For the filling, divide into four portions and mould into balls and refrigerate while you make the pastry.
4. To make the pastry, heat water, salt, butter and shortening or suet in a saucepan until just boiling. 
5. Meanwhile, put the flour in a mixing bowl. Pour the hot liquid onto the flour and mix together with a spoon. Once cool enough to handle, tip onto a floured surface and knead until you have a smooth dough.
6. Divide the dough into four equally sized balls. Roll out each ball to an 18cm circle, about 5mm thick.

Sweet Potato Mash:

1. Boil sweet potato in salted water until soft. 
2. In a saucepan reduce the cream, butter and herbs by 1/3
3. Puree the cooked sweet potatoes and cream reduction until smooth.

Grated cheese topping:

1. Mix together grated cheese, panko crumbs and parmesan.

To build the pie:

1. Place a ball of filling on each large circle of pastry. Gather the pastry around the meat and bring up the sides to form the shape like a pork pie. 
2. Keep stretching the pastry so it comes above the meat by around 2cm/1.75in. Wrap a strip of greaseproof paper around each pie and secure with string if you choose (to make sure the pie holds its shape when cooking).
3. Pipe on kumara mash and top with grated cheese topping.
4. Put the pies on the baking tray and cut a steam hole in the centre of each.
5. Brush pastry edges with beaten egg yolk and transfer to the fridge to rest for 30 minutes. 
6. Bake for 35–40 minutes, or until golden-brown. Serve hot for best results.