Parish Cake - Spring 2020

Let’s Cook!
In the
Garden
CEPHALONIAN
MEAT PIE
I have been making
this Greek pie for
more years than I care
to admit. It is great
in the winter straight
from the oven and
just as good cold in
the summer with a
side salad. You can use
beef, pork or lamb or
just two of these. Be
warned the mixture
has to be rested
overnight before
cooking for a great
flavour!
INGREDIENTS
Serves 8
740-800g lean meat
4 tbsp Greek olive oil
2 medium or one large
onion finely chopped
4 large cloves of garlic
Quarter tsp ground
nutmeg
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 level tsp fennel seeds,
pounded
1 tsp dried oregano
100ml (3 fl oz) dry white
wine
1x400g tin chopped
tomatoes
75g paella rice
20g chopped parsley
75g provolone or
Gruyere cheese
2 medium eggs
1x500g pack of puff
pastry
Salt and freshly ground
black pepper
You will need a baking
tray measuring 17.5 x
25.5cm
1 Heat two tbsp of oil in
a large frying pan, fry the
meat in batches, spoon
off any fat but retain the
meat juices. Set aside.
2 In the same pan add
the remaining olive
oil and fry the onion
gently until soft. Add
garlic, spices, fennel
and oregano and stir.
Pour in the wine and let
it bubble for a minute
or two then add the
tomatoes, rice and
reserved meat juices. Stir
and simmer for about
15 minutes until rice
has plumped up. Add
parsley. Set aside to cool.
3 Cut the meat into very
small chunks. When the
tomato and rice mixture
is cold, mix in the
meat, cheese and one
beaten egg. Cover and
refrigerate for at least
two hours or preferably
all night to let the
flavours develop.
4 When you are ready
to cook the pie, set
the oven at 200C (fan),
400F gas 6. Roll out the
pastry into two squares,
one slightly larger than
the other. Beat the
remaining egg. Put the
meat mixture into the
centre of the smaller
piece of pastry leaving a
quarter of an inch border
brushed with beaten
egg. Put the other piece
of pasty on the top and
carefully press the two
edges together then
trim. Make three slits on
the top of the pie and
glaze with remaining
egg.
5 Put the pie onto a
baking tray and pop
into the oven. After 20
minutes reduce the heat
to 180C (350F or gas
mark 4) for a further 30-
40 minutes. The pastry
should be golden brown.
Bon Appetite!
Emma Fraser
AS WE teeter on the edge
of spring – the snowdrops
already becoming a
memory – it is a great time
to look at the garden and
ask oneself “what needs
improving?”
When Christmas gave
way to 2020, I marvelled
at the resilience of many
of the winter flowering
plants and vowed to increase my collection.
Winter can be such a bleak time but believe it or not there are
many ways of brightening up a corner or two with colour and
scent.
Perhaps my favourite winter shrub is Sarcococca, an
evergreen whose tiny white flowers have a strong, sweet scent;
just a couple of sprigs will fill a room with a delightful aroma.
With box blight sweeping the country, Sarcococca – also known
as Christmas box or sweet box – is an excellent alternative.
There are several varieties but the one I grow is S. confusa
whose maximum height at maturity is around 6ft. Grow it free
standing or as a low hedge.
Believed to be a native of China, this winter beauty is easily
grown in a multitude of positions from full sun to part shade
and is not fussy about soil. After the flowers have bloomed
come the black berries which are loved by birds and the plant
has rightfully gained an RHS Award of Garden Merit. Prune it
lightly to keep its shaped immediately after it has flowered or
leave it to do its own thing.
A very close second to the sweet
box and entirely different is a real
favourite of mine, Garrya eliptica
“James Roof”. A leathery-leaved
evergreen tree, it enhances its foliage
in mid-winter with a riot of amazing
silver-green silky catkins at least 1ft
long. James Roof, a male plant, has
the showier flowers while the female
has smaller tassels followed by
purple-brown fruits in the autumn.
Grow in well-drained soil in a
sheltered position and while they
will put up with shade a sunny site will produce the best
catkins. A native of California and Oregon it can grow to 16ft at
maturity. It really needs no pruning but, if you must, carry out
surgery immediately after flowering as catkins are born on the
previous season’s wood.
I know it seems ages until we will be seeing our winter
flowering favourites again but now is a great time to give them
a flying start. Penny Royal
Parish Cake • Spring 2020 43