Lamb Curry Pie

By stancec44

Ingredients

• Filling:
• 7 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2 lg. carrots, peeled & coarsely chopped
• 2 lg. celery stalks, ditto
• 1 lg. MacIntosh or Jonathan apple, peeled, cored & diced
• 1/2 c. flour
• 3 Tbsp. tomato paste
• 1 garlic clove, peeled
• 4 c. chicken stock, heated
• 3 lbs. boneless leg of lamb, cut into 1/2" pieces
• 1 small onion, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 c. good curry power
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme, crumbled
• 1/2 c. whipping cream
• Additional Layers:
• 7 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 2 Lg. MacIntosh or Jonathan apples, peeled, cored, halved and thinly sliced
• 7 oz. mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 2 c. cooked long grain rice, well chilled
• 3/4 c. raisins, soaked 1 hour in 1/2 c. dry sherry & drained
• 1 c. chopped peanuts
• 1 egg yolk mixed with 1 Tbsp. water
• 1/2 c. flaked coconut (opt)
• Crust:
• 2 c. flour
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 3/4 c. chilled unsalted butter in 1/4" cubes
• 1 //4 c. (about) ice water

Preparation

Step 1

For filling:
Pre-heat oven to 400. Heat 4 Tbsp. oil in heavy large skillet over med-high heat. Add lamb in batches (don't crowd) and brown well on all sides. Using slotted spoon, transfer meat to Dutch oven. Reduce heat to med-low. Add vegetables to skillet and cook until onion is translucent, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Add apple and cook 5 minutes. Return lamb to pan. Stir in flour, curry powder, tomato paste, bay leaves, garlic and thyme. Add stock and bring to boil, stirring constantly. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened, about 5 minutes. Transfer veggies to Dutch oven. Cover and bake in oven until lamb is just tender, about 45 minutes.

Drain lamb, reserving sauce. Remove bay leaves. Mix sauce in blender or processor (in batches if necessary) until smooth. Pour sauce into heavy large skillet and simmer until reduced by 1/3, about 45 minutes.

Add cream to sauce and simmer until very thick and smooth, stirring frequently, about 15 minutes. Season with salt & pepper. Pour into a bowl and dot with butter to prevent skin from forming. Cool completely.

For Crust:
Combine flour, sugar and salt in large bowl. Cut in butter until mix resembles coarse meal. Stir in enough water so dough just holds together. Gather dough into ball. Turn dough out onto lightly floured surface. Using heel of hand, smear dough a little at a time to blend buyer and flour thoroughly. Wrap in plastic; refrigerate 30 minutes.

Roll half of dough out on lightly floured surface to 1/8" thick. Fit into 9" springform pan. Trim edges. Refrigerate 30 minutes.

For additional layers and assembly:
Melt 3 Tbsp. butter in heavy large skilled over med. heat. Add apples and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Remove using slotted spoon.

Melt remaining butter in skillet. Add mushrooms and cook until softened, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Remove using slotted spoon.

Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 450. Press rice firmly in shell. Stir lamb into sauce and spoon mixture atop rice. Spread with layer of 1) mushrooms, 2) apples, 3) raisins. Sprinkle with peanuts.

Roll remaining dough out on lightly floured surface to 1/8" thick. Drape over pie, trim and flute edges. Cut a few tear drop vents in surface for steam. Gather scraps and re-roll. cut out decorations if desired. Affix to pie with glaze, then brush surface with glaze. Set pie on baking sheet.

Bake 15 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 and bake 20 minutes. Reduce oven temp to 325. At this point, you can brush crust with glaze again and sprinkle with coconut (optional). Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool 15 minutes before serving.