A WARMING WINTER PIE

This pie is a family favourite,comfort food at it,s best,low calorie it ain’t but it will certainly warm you up after a cold journey home. Serves 4 large portions.

1 Ham hock......cost about £2.00

2 large leeks

5 medium sized potatoes

600 ml double cream

1 blade of mace

1 bay leaf

1 small onion

1 pkt puff pastry

2 oz butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

fresh ground black pepper

Soak the hock in cold water over night. Next morning rinse and place in a large saucepan with the mace,bay leaf and onion. Add enough water to cover the hock then bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the meat is falling off the bone.

Remove the hock from the pan setting aside the water in which it cooked to cool,this will make the base for at least a couple of soups and will freeze until needed. Skin the hock and discard the skin and fat,set the meat aside.

Peel the potatoes and boil until almost cooked. In a frying pan cook the sliced leeks in the butter and oil. The leeks should not be browned.

Heat the oven to 200oC. Add the cream to the leeks and butter and heat gently. Grease a large oblong pie dish and add the meat and cooked potato. Pour the creamed leeks over the potatoes the add the pastry lid. You may find a pie funnel handy for this pie. Glaze with beaten egg then cook in the over for thirty minutes or until the pastry has puffed up and the pie is hot right through,

Serve alone or with mushy peas or perhaps a salad.