Comforting dish is easy as pie

By Neil Forbes at Cafe St Honore, Edinburgh THIS is one of our best sellers at the restaurant. It’s rich, homely, comforting and a great-tasting dish. If you can’t find venison mince, replace with grass-fed beef mince.

I pipe my ridiculously buttery mash on to the pies at Cafe, but my mother used to spread the mash over the cooked mince and make a tartan pattern with the back of a fork … who remembers that? Serves 4 400g of venison mince 4 tbs cold-pressed rapeseed oil 150g of mixed diced vegetables 1 bay leaf A sprig of thyme 1 litre of very good beef or game stock 1kg potatoes 200ml double cream – heated 100g butter 1 egg, beaten Salt and pepper 1 Heat the oven to 160°C. 2 Heat a large ovenproof pot (with a lid) on the hob. Add half the oil and add the venison mince. Keep stirring until the mince is nicely browned, this should take seven to eight minutes. Drain through a sieve and reserve. 3 Bring the same pot back up to a high heat and add the remaining oil. Fry the veg for around six to eight minutes. The more colour you add, the more flavour your pie will have. Then add the thyme, the bay leaf and the drained venison mince. Combine while still on a high heat and season with salt and pepper. Next add the stock and any leftover gravy and bring to the boil. 4 Once boiling, remove from the heat and cover with a lid. Then place the pot in the oven to simmer for two hours, stirring every half hour or so. Then remove the lid and cook for a further hour, stirring every 15 minutes. It should reach a rich, thick stew consistency. Remove from the oven and transfer to a serving dish. 5 For the mash, boil the potatoes in salted water, drain and pass through a potato ricer. Stir in the hot cream and butter. 6 Top the pie with the mash. Use a piping bag to create a decorative design, or spread the mash with a palette knife and use a fork to create ridges. 7 Brush all over with a beaten egg and brown under a piping hot grill. Serve at once with some cabbage or greens cooked with a little beef fat left over from Sunday lunch. In association with Taste Communications.