It’s 1942. The world is at war.
A young handsome Canadian chap with sticky-out ears and a great big cheeky smile has been posted to a military base on the south coast of England. There he falls in love with a beautiful young English woman who looks like Queen Elizabeth. She is driving a bakery van. She returns his love and when the war finishes they get married and he takes her back home to Canada.
These were my grandparents on my mother’s side. I never knew my grandmother has she sadly passed away long before I was born, but I was named Elizabeth because my grandmother looked like the Queen. I don’t know anything else about her other than where she came from in England and that she drove a bakery van, but when I immigrated back across the pond in 1999 I brought with me a handwritten copy of her pie crust recipe.
While growing up my mother used to make meat pies out of leftover roast beef and her mother’s pie crust recipe, written in her own note book as ‘Mum’s Pie Crust’. She had been given my grandmother’s electric meat grinder and in it would go cold, leftover roast beef, a carrot and an onion. Any leftover gravy (always made with Bisto gravy granules!) would get poured into the resulting minced meat and spooned into a deep pie dish lined with pastry.
Any leftovers would get made into little sausage rolls, and oh my, the combination of this lard-filled pastry crust encasing the minced meat mixture…. pure childhood heaven. If we were lucky we’d get a slice of this pie, cold, in our packed lunches and it was like Christmas every time this happened.
I stopped making the pie crust years ago, preferring a lighter, flakier butter shortcrust pastry, but I still have this recipe in my notebook. Recently I had some leftover cold roast beef in the fridge and I thought I would try and recreate this recipe from my childhood, with a few of my own adaptations, of course. The original recipe is double what I’ve written for here and calls for lard, but I have a suspicion my mother used to use Crisco shortening in hers instead. If doubling, use a whole egg instead of two yolks (as written in the original recipe).
Here’s what I made, just as I remember, and my family loved it (although they do prefer a butter shortcrust pastry as well)! Serve with potatoes, veg and some Cape Breton Chow Chow for an authentic Canadian childhood taste!
- 450 grams plain flour
- 226 grams lard
- 2 tsp light brown muscovado sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- fat pinch of salt
- 2 tsp white vinegar
- 1 egg yolk (reserve white for glaze)
- 1 tsp ice water
- 350 grams leftover roast beef, finely chopped (or ground)
- 1 onion, finely chopped (or minced)
- 1 carrot, finely chopped (or minced)
- 100 ml leftover gravy (see here for recipe)
- salt and pepper, to taste
Prep time: Cook time: Total time: Yield: Serve 8
Mum of three, daydream adventurer, OU Life Sciences graduate, occasional crafter, ex-pat Canadian & quite possibly Britain's most northerly food blogger.
Jennifer Bonnici says
Dear Elizabeth,
I loved your story of your grandparents, my story is similar , my father was a Canadian Army man, stationed in London, met my mother Kathleen , they married in my mothers back garden in 1945. Then he brought home to Canada. I grow up on British food here in Canada. I am proud to be part English . I really enjoy your stories and recipes .
Best wishes,
Jennifer
bev says
Looks delicious!
rebecca nisbet says
cant beat a meaty pie!
Heather Haigh says
I just know my hubby will love this pie.
Tracy Nixon says
Lovely idea! We always have left over beef!
Heather Haigh says
Never actually thought of putting leftover beef in a pie – looks absolutely scrummy.
Elizabeth says
I’m big on not wasting food so most leftovers get remade into a completely different dish! Leftover beef is so versatile 🙂
Alison says
What a great story and a brilliant way to use up leftovers.
MamaMummyMum says
What a great idea, love not wasting food!! #tastytuesdays x
Elizabeth S says
Thanks! 🙂
Kirsty Phillipson-Lowe says
This sounds deicious! I love leftover meals, they are always so flavoursome #tastytuesdays
Elizabeth S says
Leftovers can certainly be made into something quite lovely, but I assure you I’ve made quite a few failed recipes too! 😀
Javelin Warrior says
I want a slice, Elizabeth! I’ve never had a roast beef pie (or any meat/pastry pie before), but this sounds so good, especially in cold winter months. And I’m with your family – I prefer a butter pastry over lard…
Elizabeth S says
Ooh nothing beats a good meat pie. You simply have to try it to believe it! 🙂
Honest Mum says
Oh wow, this pie looks incredible as does your blog, thanks so much for linking up to #tastytuesdays please do join us again when you can!
Elizabeth S says
Aw thanks! So glad you enjoyed it, and I do hope to link up again!
Christian Halfmann says
I love a good pie and just reading your post makes me want a pie. I think, I didn’t have enough pie in my life so far. This pie sounds delicious. Thanks to you, it is already automatically bookmarked in Bloggers Around the World.
Elizabeth S says
Everyone needs pie! Get yourself into the kitchen and make yourself a pie! 😀
Corina says
I love reading about recipes that are recreated from childhood memories. I remember some really good pies my mum and grandmother used to make but I don’t make them myself nearly as often as I should.
Elizabeth S says
There’s something about childhood recipes which evokes such pleasure. Everything tasted so much better back then. 🙂
Anonymous says
this sounds so good – thank goodness for grannies!
janet
Elizabeth S says
It really is quite scrummy, but then I think I might be a little bit biased! 🙂
The Beach Hut Cook says
Sounds delicious. Wonderful back story too. Elinor x
Elizabeth S says
It’s the ultimate comfort food for me 🙂 Thank you for your lovely feedback! xx