From Johnson & Wales student intern, Abbey!
This recipe is very nostalgic for me. My grandmother made this meal every winter for my mom, and my mom made it for me. It’s a simple and cozy dish that you can make with ingredients already in your pantry and Wild Harmony Farm beef!
Yield: 6-8 servings
Cook time: 2 hours
For the filling:
- 2 cups chopped onions
- 4 cups cubed potatoes
- 1.5-2 lbs Wild Harmony Farm Stew Beef
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic
- 1 tsp Italian seasoning
- 2 1/2 cups hot water or hot beef stock
For the topping:
- 2 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
- 3/4 cups cold butter
- 5-6 Tbsp cold water
- Pinch salt and sugar
Directions:
Start by making a pastry crust for the top of the pie. Gather all the ingredients, and have a large bowl ready. Add flour, sugar, and salt to the bowl then using a cheese grater, grate the cold butter into the bowl of dry ingredients. Using your hands, coat all the pieces of butter with the flour mix until it resembles coarse crumbs. This can also be done using a food processor if you have one available. Gradually add in the water, tablespoons at a time, and knead lightly until it comes together into a round ball. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit while you make the filling.
For the filling: Gather all ingredients, chop onions and potatoes, and trim the beef to your liking. In a deep cast iron pan or Dutch oven, saute the onions in olive oil, remove from the pan, and set aside. Add the cubed beef to a bowl and toss with flour and all seasonings. With the pan on medium heat and an extra drizzle of oil in the pan, add the dredged beef cubes and saute until lightly browned. Deglaze the pan with hot water or beef stock, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes. Uncover and let simmer for another half hour or until the beef looks tender and the liquid has slightly reduced. Add cubed potatoes to simmering liquid, cover, and cook for 10 minutes. Pour the filling into a greased deep baking dish, and sprinkle the cooked onions on top. Roll out the pastry dough to 1/4 inch thick, and lay it on top of the pie filling. Optionally brush with egg wash before going into the oven, and bake for 35-40 minutes until the crust is golden brown. This will be piping hot straight out of the oven so let the pie sit for at least 10 minutes before serving.
Fun tip: This pastry dough makes more than you will need for this pie recipe, you should have about a quarter of the dough or less left over. I like to make a design or lattice with the scraps on top of the pie or roll them up with butter and cinnamon and bake them like my mom and I used to as a snack or dessert.
