Vegan Scotch pies

These are delicious plant based scotch pies with a hot water crust pastry with a mushroom, chestnut and walnut filling.

Begin by making the hot water crust pastry.

Bring the water to a simmer and add the plant based shortening and stir until dissolved.

Put the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the middle. Now pour in the hot water mixture

Use the wooden spoon to bring together the flour and liquid into a rough dough.

Turn out onto a floured surface and push together into a uniformed dough, without overworking and kneading but mixing on the dry flour with the oil mix.

Now cut the dough into a third (for the lids) and two thirds (for the bases) and wrap them in cling film and place in the fridge to cool for 1 hour.

Now make the filling.

Finely chop the onion and mushroom and cook in a little oil in a pan to colour and reduce.

While they are reducing, blitz in a blender the walnuts, sun dried tomatoes and chestnuts.

Once the mushrooms and onions have reduced, add the blitzed walnuts, sun dried tomatoes and chestnuts together with the herbs and garlic and continue to cook and stir.

Add a tablespoon of dark soy and several grinds of black pepper – stir and continue to cook for 1 more minute. Remove off the heat and allow to cool completely.

Now assemble the pies

First preheat the oven to 170C Fan

Take the dough out of the fridge and using the largest piece roll out to a thickness 3mm (about the thickness of a British pound coin) and cut out 4 circles large enough to go into the pie tins and travel up the sides. You may have to re-roll to get the last one after taking 3 circles.

Grease the pie tins and line them with the pastry so the pastry forms a shallow cup in side the pie tin.

Roll out the smaller piece and cut out 4 lids, these should be larger than the pie tins

Make the pastry wash by melting the plant based butter and mixing in the agave and the soy milk. take off the heat.

Next take out the chilled pie filling and fill all the pies, patting down the contents to firm it up, leaving a pastry border showing as this is the pastry the lids will be crimped to.

Now take a pastry lid and brush a border with the melted butter mix. Lay the lid onto the pie and use the back of the pastry brush crimp around the pastry lid to the pastry border that’s showing.

Do this for the remaining pies and lids.

Now use the remaining melted butter mix and brush the pies lids.

Make a hole in the centre of each pie lid, this will allow the steam to escape.

Place the pies onto a metal roasting tray and place in the oven for 45 mins at 170. Everyone’s oven is different, so around 40 mins check they browning, and once they are all nicely coloured they are ready.

Take out of the oven and allow to cool for 15 mins before removing from the tins and serve.

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