Beef & Guinness Pie

Serves 4-6   
Preperation Time - 15mins 
Cooking Time - 2½hours

Ingredients

2 tbsp olive oil
3 med onions (sliced)
200g mushrooms
1½kg casserole steak pieces (try with Dexter - fantastic!)
2 tbsp plain flour
350ml guinness
350ml beef stock
100g stilton (optional)
salt & pepper
375g ready rolled puff pastry (cut into 2 squares leaving a generous lip over the size of your pie dishes)
25g butter (melted) or a beaten egg

Method

•Pre-heat oven to 150 C
•Heat oil in a casserole dish and sweat onions & mushrooms over a low heat with lid on for 10 mins. Remove & set aside
•Turn up the heat and brown meat in several batches. Add oil as required
•Return all meat to dish. Sprinkle with the flour and stir for 2mins until all the fat is absorbed.
•Pour in guinness & stock and bring to boil. Return the mushrooms and onions to the dish. Replace lid and set in the pre-heated oven for 2 hours.
•Check that the meat is very tender. If not return to the oven for a further half hour
•Season if necessary.
•Turn the oven up to 200oC
•Pour contents into a pie dish
•Cover with the pastry and cut around the edges with a sharp knife
•Baste with beaten egg or melted butter and seal edges with a fork
•Cut a small slit in the pastry to let the steam escape
•Bake in the oven for about 20mins until golden brown