Now that autumn is here, many of us are adapting our cooking to include more hearty dishes. There isn’t anything much more comforting than a pie on cold, dark evenings.
Thankfully, Mary Berry has just the recipe that has been branded simple and easy to follow. Her Humble Pie is packed with flavour and can even be made ahead of time. The TV chef branded her recipe: “Hearty, warming and a real treat!”
Mary’s recipe, which has been shared by Happy Foodie, is described: “A hearty and warming vegetarian pie packed with a creamy, cheesy cauliflower, mushroom and petit pois filling. As seen on Mary Makes It Easy on BBC2.”
The pie has received positive reviews from home cooks who have given it a try. One said: “It’s fabulous, but I did another pie adding chicken, and that was lovely. It’s a great recipe and so easy, thank you, Mary!”
Another added: “I made the filling the day before, then put the pastry top on today just before baking. I served it with green beans and hasselback potatoes. Absolutely yummy, this recipe doesn’t need tweaking in any way. Highly recommend this.”
Someone else commented: ” Made this and it was delicious, I added some cooked ham hock with it the second time, and we preferred it with the addition of the ham. Will definitely be making it again.”
Mary Berry’s Humble Pie recipe for six people
Ingredients
- One large cauliflower
- Two leeks, trimmed and cut into 2cm slices
- 115g frozen petit pois
- 375g packet ready-rolled puff pastry
- Knob of butter
- 200g button mushrooms, halved
- One egg, beaten
Cheese sauce ingredients
- 55g butter
- 55g plain flour
- 450ml hot milk
- Two tsp Dijon mustard
- 115g mature Cheddar, grated
- 55g Parmesan, grated
Home cooks say the pie is ‘delicious’ (Image: Getty)
Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C Fan/Gas 6. You need a deep 28cm diameter dish or a three-pint dish.
Break the cauliflower into small, even-sized florets.
Boil a large pan of salted water. Add the leeks and boil for four minutes. Add the cauliflower florets and leaves. Bring to a boil for three minutes, until just tender. Drain and run under cold water. Drain well and set aside.
Make the cheese sauce by melting the butter in a large saucepan over a medium heat. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for a minute. Gradually add the hot milk, whisk until thickened. Stir in the mustard, Cheddar and Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper. Leave to cool for five minutes.
In a pan over high heat, warm the butter and fry the mushrooms for three minutes until golden and seasoned with salt and pepper. Set aside to cool.
Add all the cold vegetables and frozen peas to the cheese sauce and stir. Check the seasoning before spooning it into the pie dish.
Unroll the pastry and remove a 7cm strip from the short side to chill in the fridge. Roll out the remaining pastry so it is slightly bigger than your pie dish. Brush beaten egg around the edge of the dish, then place the pastry on top. Press down the edges to seal. Trim and excess pastry and make a small slit in the centre for steam to escape. Brush the top with beaten egg.
Roll out the reserved strip of pastry to be thinner. Use a sharp knife to make long, thin strips. Dip them in egg wash and arrange on top of the pie in a random pattern.
Bake in the oven for around 40 to 45 minutes, until the pastry is golden and the sauce is bubbling around the edges.