Don’t fall prey to ‘pie-dough-phobia’
THIS CROWD-PLEASING SLAB PIE HAS AN EASY OLIVE-OIL BOTTOM CRUST
THROUGHOUT MY cookbookauthor travels, I have witnessed “doughphobia” — the dread and worry over making pie dough that afflicts what seems to be a significant percentage of home cooks. Here’s my advice: don’t let it keep you from offering up a crowd-pleasing slab pie at your next get-together.
A slab pie can be made in a rimmed baking sheet with inch-high sides. For the accompanying recipe, I use a 9-by-13-inch baking sheet. This pie is generously topped with a cloud bank of mashed potatoes, like a shepherd’s pie.
That classic dish can be magnificent, but without a bottom crust it is a casserole with a top hat. To qualify as pie, a bottom crust is crucial, as the crust allows the pie to be served by the slice rather than by the spoonful. When it is nuanced and spiced, this crust complements the filling, adding to the overall pie experience.
Doughphobics, meet my olive-oil crust. Mixed together with a fork, it is then gathered into a soft dough and — get this — just pressed into place. Yes! The dough is not rolled out, but it does require methodical work: gathering small bits of dough, and pressing them first along the sides and corners of the pan, then finishing by firmly forming the thin bottom layer. I have found that working in the typical order of dough assembly (bottom, then sides) consistently results in thin, crumbly sides that fail to reach the top of the pan.
When is a topping of mashed potatoes a bad thing? “Never” is the right answer. When I serve mashed potatoes that sit beside slices of turkey, I make sure they are creamy and light as air. But for mashed potatoes destined to become pie topping, they need to hold a peak. Resist the urge to add more milk and butter. The more pretty little peaks top the pie, the more crispy browned bits there will be on the finished dish.
And when a pie is covered in luscious mashed potatoes, the filling needs to be especially savoury or an individual bite might be bland. So I jazzed up the standard “mince” (as the Brits would say) by turning to the international aisle at the grocery store. Harissa is a chili-delivery system that functions like fiery tomato paste. Each manufacturer’s harissa is different, so taste and adjust my recipe to suit yourself.
I’ve also created an easy spice blend for the ground lamb and carrots that is based on the seasoning used in merguez sausage. Remember, the potatoes can dull the pie’s overall flavour. As a rule, because it is surrounded by both crust and topping, a savoury pie filling needs to be just a little more: more salty, more spicy, more assertive. Taste the filling before assembling the pie and make any adjustments necessary.
Each part of this slab pie can be prepared in advance, which makes it a solid, back-pocket recipe for the coming season of entertaining. I like to parbake the crust, several hours or even a day ahead. Having it ready to go means dinner can be ready in a snap. The filling can be frozen and defrosted. The mashed-potato topping — which needs last-minute attention to reinstate its fluffiness — can be refrigerated for a day or two.
Now, as we head into the baking months, is the time to overcome your doughphobia. This pie’s a fine place to start: press in a crust and you’ll be on your way.