Recipe OF THE WEEK

GAMES OF THRONES BEEF AND BACON PIE

Serves 6 † 450g stewing beef, cubed † 2 tbsp olive oil

† 10 strips thick-cut bacon † 2 carrots, chopped † 1 onion, chopped

† 235ml red wine

† 235ml beef broth † 150g raisins

† 2 bay leaves

† 1 tsp chopped thyme

† ½ tsp ground allspice † 500g shortcrust pastry † 1 tbsp flour, for dusting † Salt and black pepper METHOD 1 Preheat oven to 170C/325F and season beef. 2 In a casserole dish, brown beef in olive oil. Remove and set aside. 3 Add diced bacon and cook until crispy. Remove and set aside, leaving fat behind.

4 Add carrots to bacon fat, sauté until they are softened, then add onion. Keep cooking until onion is soft and beginning to caramelise.

5 Add beef, red wine, beef broth, raisins, herbs and spices.

6 Cover casserole dish with lid. Put in oven to braise for 1–2 hours until beef is tender.

7 Break beef into smaller pieces and stir in bacon.

8 Increase oven to 190C/375F and roll out pie dough on a lightly floured surface. Grease and line two 12oz ramekins with pie dough. There should be enough dough left over to top them. Trim away excess. 9 Spoon beef mixture into each ramekin. 10 Roll out dough again and top each ramekin with a layer of dough. Crimp edges of pie to seal and cut vents into the centre. 11 Bake pies for about 25 minutes, until crust is golden brown.

Geeky Chef Strikes Back! by Cassandra Reeder. Published by Race Point Publishing, £12.99.

This warming pie inspired by Game of Thrones mixes salty bacon with sweet dried fruits