A Different Kind Of Pie

I made a different kind of pie for dinner last night and it was a HUGE hit. It was definitely kid-friendly food, so if you're looking for something fancy and gourmet you'd better click away somewhere else. But if you want somehting that will have the kids cleaning their plates and asking for seconds give this a go.

Free-form Lamb Bolognese Pie
from Super Food Ideas, September 2011

Serves 4

1 tablespoon olive oil

500g lamb mince

45g sachet Maggi bologese pasta bake recipe base

1 medium carrot, peeled, grated

2 tablesooons pine nuts, toasted (confession time: I thought I had pine nuts in the pantry. Turns out I didn't. While they would have added to the pie it was just fine without them.)

1/3 cup frozen peas

2 sheets frozen puff pastry, partially thawed

olive oil cooking spray

1. Heat oil in a large frying pan over high heat. Add lamb and recipe base. Cook, stirring, with a wood spoon to break up mince, for 6 - 8 minutes or until browned and cooked through. Add carrot, pine nuts and peas. Season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally for 2 -3 minutes. Set aside for 20 minutes to cool.

2. Preheat oven to 200C/180C fan-forced. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Place one sheet of pastry on tray. Spoon lamb mixture onto centre of pastry, leaving a 2cm border. Brush border with water. Place remaining sheet of pastry ontop. Pinch edges together to seal and form decorative pattern. Using a small knife, cut 3 slits in top of pastry to allow steam to escape during cooking.

3. Spray top of pie with oil. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes or until golden and puffed. Stand for 5 minutes. Serve. (We had it with a salad).