Winter vegetable pie

Serves 6

Preparation: 20 min

Chilling: 30 min

Cooking: 50 min

• 250 g butternut, cubed

• 5 turnips, cubed

• 5 carrots, chopped

• 3 leeks, chopped

• 30 ml (2 T) oil

• 2 ml (½ t) nutmeg

• 4 sweet potatoes, cubed

SAUCE

• 40 g butter

• 1 onion, chopped

• 40 g flour

• 500 ml (2 c) milk

• pinch of nutmeg

• salt and pepper

• 50 g Cheddar cheese, grated

• 4 thyme sprigs, chopped

PASTRY

• 125 ml (½ c) flour

• pinch of salt

• 30 ml (2 T) oil

• 25 g butter

• about 15 ml (1 T) water

ASSEMBLY

• 125 ml (½ c) grated Cheddar cheese

• 1 egg, whisked

Preheat the oven to 180 °C.

1 Arrange the butternut, turnips, carrots and leeks on a baking sheet. Drizzle the oil over and rub the vegetables to make sure they’re well coated with oil. Season with the nutmeg. Roast for 10 minutes, add the sweet potatoes and roast for another 10 minutes.

2 Sauce: Melt the butter in a frying pan over medium heat, add the onion and cook for 5 minutes, stirring. Stir in the flour until smooth then add the milk a little at a time, using a whisk to incorporate and remove lumps. Season with the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Simmer for 5 minutes, then stir in the cheese and thyme. Set aside.

3 Pastry: Sift the flour and salt into a bowl. Using your fingertips, rub the oil and butter into the flour. Sprinkle about 15 ml (1 T) water over and mix the pastry with your hands until a smooth dough forms. Cover with clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

4 Assembly: Preheat the oven to 200 °C.

5 Mix the vegetables with the sauce and transfer to 23 cm ovenproof dish. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top.

6 Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface so it’s a little bigger than the dish. Cut out a circle to form a pastry lid for the dish. Roll it onto the rolling pin then roll it onto the dish. Seal the edges. Make a hole in the centre of the pastry lid to let steam out, and brush the pastry with whisked egg.

7 Put the dish on a baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes or until the pastry is golden.

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