![]() Rosie: Not always but 99% of the time I would say yeah, interestingly things like Cornish pasties and pies with mince fillings often all go in raw. Should pie fillings always be already fully cooked when they go into the oven? Nicola: We made a jam roly poly at work once (head chef loved old school puds) and it looked like a dismembered arm (I will not include the photo). ![]() But it’s definitely better to use veggie in those. It is easily replaceable! Since the British book I also love suet puddings, like jam roly poly and spotted dick. Rosie: You might notice a subtle beefiness like dripping potatoes, but nothing intense. Also suet doesn’t actually taste that beefy right? We used to make mince pies with it at Little Bread Pedlar. Nicola: It is an old fashioned ingredient - my nanny used to make me suet dumplings and beef stew, the best. ![]() I styled this best of British food cookbook so I’ve been really into the olden vibes, but I am always here for modernisation/accessibility and suet does put people off. And you don’t need to worry about a soggy bottom cos that’s the point. Rosie : Exactly - it’s a dual purpose pastry. Rosie : Yes! Also why I love a suet pie option is that it becomes v doughy in the base, like a built-in dumpling…It soaks all the gravy! That way you get crunchy and forgiving in one pie. Interestingly all suet crust recipes seem to contain raising agents… I’ll have to figure that out. Nicola: Alright I’ll get a box and investigate. And veggie suet works well too! It makes an incredibly CRUNCHY crust on top - not super flaky and delicate like puff. I’ve always thought some of these old school crusts are just relics of old British tradition, kind of like how Cornish miners used to use the crusty pasty edge as a handle? My main question is… it actually more delicious or is it just traditional?! And I have to admit that I kind of have a fear of super old British cooking, boiled meat puddings and the rest. Nicola : I agree - it shall have a bottom! To be honest, I don’t have any experience with either hot water crust pastry OR suet crust. And in terms of British tradition you can’t ignore suet crust or hot water- they both have such different effects and great flavour! Rosie : I think by definition a pie has to have a bottom, unless it’s a pot pie. This means making a few types of pastry (rough puff-pie dough / a shortcrust / depending on the filling, should it be flavoured?! Should we use some wholewheat?!) and then also whether it should be single or double crusted. This week it’s all about the crust for me. At its heart this newsletter is always about recipe development and the thought process that goes into creating a final recipe so I hope this chat gives you insight into how we brought this recipe to reality: We’ll kick off this week’s edition with a conversation between Rosie and I as we figured out how to approach the testing for this week’s classic chicken pie. They are cute, they are sharp and may finally turn the non lemon-meringue-pie believers among us: Over on KP+, I’ll be sharing the recipe for delightful lemon meringue mini pies. As well as this, Rosie is so wonderfully approachable and has such joie de vivre that you hardly even notice the level of serious technique you’re assimilating when you learn from her! Truly, having her collaborate on this week’s newsletter is a total joy - you are in for a treat! If you’ve never made her recipes before, you’re missing out! They always deliver - her version of mac and cheese, for example, is one of the best things I’ve ever made. Rosie is a home economist, food stylist, recipe developer and all round cuisine savant. Although I do love savoury cooking (I always say baking is my job, cooking is my hobby!), I thought it best to get some expert help from one of my favourite recipe developers and chefs out there: Rosie Mackean. ![]() I do feel pretty confident about intrepidly exploring the pastry side of things, I wanted to make sure the filling is the absolute best it could be. ![]() We’ve covered pies together before and deep dived into the flaky-style crust ( read it here along with an interview with my pie hero Nicole Rucker!) so I wanted to go in a different direction this week - a jolly to the land of savoury pies. ![]()
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