Creepy Kooky Face Pies
An Original Recipe by Lorraine Elliott
Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 90 minutes
Makes 2 large pies
- Oil
- 2 red onions, peeled and diced
- 4 cloves garlic, peeled and diced
- 1kg turkey mince
- 3 beetroot
- 275g/9.7ozs. cranberry sauce
- 1 sprig thyme
- salt and pepper
- 4 teaspoons cornflour mixed with 4 teaspoons water
- 4 sheets shortcrust pastry, thawed in the fridge
- 1 egg yolk whisked with 1 teaspoon water
- White on white colouring
Step 1 - Preheat oven to 180C/350F. Wash and scrub the beetroot and then trim and quarter them. Wrap them up in a large sheet of parchment with a drizzle of oil and roast until tender (around 30 minutes depending on how large the pieces are). Reserve four quarters and process the rest.
Step 2 - Heat oil in a large pot on medium heat and saute the onions until soft. Add the garlic and fry for a minute. Add the mince and brown it cooking it through. Add the processed beetroot, cranberry sauce and thyme and then season with salt and pepper to taste. Add the cornflour mixture to thicken the juices. Then remove from heat and allow to cool completely.
Step 3 - Take two sheets of pastry and cut out rounds to fit 2 pie tins reserving the scraps to make features with (place the scraps in the fridge). Line the pies with parchment and fill with dried beans or ceramic baking beads and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and beads/beans and bake for 5-8 minutes or until the base is cooked through.
Step 4 - While the base is baking cut out two rounds to fit the pies for the faces. Using the extra pastry shape a nose. To make the eyes roll out small balls of pastry and then cut out a semi circle for the eyelid. Using a small brush, draw some blood around the eyes, nose and mouth using the reserved beetroot juice. Then brush with egg wash and refrigerate until needed.
Step 5 - Remove the base from the oven and fill with the turkey mince mixture. Add two rounds of beetroot for the cheekbones (see above). Increase oven heat to 200C/400F. Cover with the face and use a fork to press down the edges. Bake for 30 minutes. Use a little white on white colour to make the eyes more realistic.