My chicken and leek pie
That Pukka pie tempted me to make my own, but I decided on chicken and leek rather than chicken and mushroom. This is because I had some spare leeks, but no spare mushrooms. I made shortcrust pastry using plain flour (4oz), bran (1 dessert spoon), baking powder (half a teaspoon) and goose fat (about 2oz). I used a fork against the inside of the bowl to make it into a crumble, then added just enough cold water to make it cohere into a dough. I lined a foil dish with pastry, and filled it with pieces of chicken and slices of leek. I made a sauce with a third of a chicken stock cube, a level teaspoon of cornflour and a quarter cup of water. I mixed this all up, then heated it to make it thicken before pouring it into the pie filling. I put on the pastry lid after wetting the rim, and crimped it shut, making a small hole in the centre before brushing with beaten egg. I baked it for half an hour at 180, covering the top with foil for the last 10 minutes. I ate it with carrots and baked potato, plus some chicken gravy made from Bisto’s gravy powder. Which won? Well, mine was delicious, and I liked it better than the Pukka pie…