Savory Meat Hand Pies

I have never been a meat-in-pastry fan. But like many things I thought I didn't like, it's about finding the right recipe and preparation to turn you into a convert. My meat pie gateway was turkey pot pie I made with Thanksgiving leftovers, which I further refined the next year based on my resdient pot-pie-lovin'-husband's requests.

Empanadas and hand pies fall into the same category. I have some good ones, but nothing I would order off a menu. But Chris sure loves meat pies, and in searching about for good hearty quick bites for a game night we were hosting, I decided to surprise him and concoct a hand pie recipe I thought even I might like. Even wilder? I USED LAMB. I never use lamb. I used to hate lamb. Now I find that when in a meat blend--like a meatball or meatloaf--it can be that subtle *something* you can't quite put your finger on. The mouthfeel changes; there is a flavor there that beef or sausage doesn't impart, alone or together. So I decided to include it in my recipe. And since I was using lamb, I decided to pop some cinnamon in there as well.

I am in love with my recipe. And I didn't write it all down when I made it! I could cry. So here is my attempt to write down what I remember, and when I make it again, I will come back and edit as needed.

Note: this makes a LOT of little pies. By my count, this entire batch would make about 80+ pies depending on how thin you roll your dough out. I made the entire recipe, then divided them out in rough thirds, using one immediately and freezing the other two. Making them in batches, this most recent batch made 26 pies and there was some filling left over for maybe a half dozen more. Sorry I am not more precise than that!

There are two opportunities to make these ahead. The first is to make the meat mixture, portion and store until you want to continue to the pie making stage. The second is to fill and prep the pies and hold them until you intend to bake them. I have marked each optional hold step with HOLD below.

INGREDIENTS

• 1 lb lean ground beef (I used wagyu, 11%)
• 1 lb ground sausage
• 1 lb lamb
• 2 cups low sodium chicken stock (used home made)
• 1 medium onion, finely diced
• 5 cloves garlic, minced
• 8-10oz mushroom of choice, finely dice (I used cremini)
• 2 Tbsp cumin
• 2 Tbsp thyme
• 1 Tbsp cinnamon
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 Tbsp flour (for thickening)
• 1 package of prepared pie crust PER BATCH (3-4 packages total)
• 1 egg white, mixed with 1 Tbsp water PER BATCH

INSTRUCTIONS

PREP MEAT MIXTURE

1. In a Dutch oven over medium heat, add all meat and cook, rendering fat until most of all pink is gone. Drain out most of the fat, leaving just enough to keep meat from sticking, and continue browning until a fond (layer of browning) builds up in the bottom. Deglaze pan with a cup of the chicken stock, scraping up all the brown bits as best you can. Transfer browned meat to a bowl and set aside.
2. Add onion and garlic to the pan, season with a couple pinches of salt, and cook until translucent. If you need to use a little oil to keep things from burning, do so as needed. Remove onion and garlic to the bowl with the meat.
3. Add mushrooms to the pan and cook over low heat until they are softened and a little glossy, releasing a little of their moisture and shrinking in size a bit. Add meat mixture, all spices, and the other cup of stock. Cook over medium to medium-hight heat, stirring frequently and reducing and thickening the mixture, about 5 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Add the flour are stir in thoroughly then remove from heat.
4. HOLD!

At this point you can portion out  and label meat for storage, allowing to cool in the fridge before putting in the freezer. To use later, simply defrost the mixture in fridge before using. If you want to make any or all now, make sure your filling is thickened and not too hot, so you don't just melt right through your pie crust as you're filling them. Room temp is ideal. When you're ready, proceed to next step.

PREP THE PIES

This is the outline for a single batch; simply repeat for additional batches. 

1. Line two baking sheets with foil.
2. Prepare a surface with some all purpose flour and roll out one of the crusts to desired thickness. I roll mine until JUST before being transparent. Any thinner and they will tear, any thicker and they tend to overpower the filling.
3. Using a 4" circle pastry cutter, cut out disks from the dough and set aside. (I used a small round twist n' loc Ziplock container for mine. You can use a small bowl or whatever is on hand, tracing the edge with a knife). When you run out of space to cut more, ball up remaining dough and roll it out to make more until you run out of dough. Repeat with second crust.
4. Working on a clean surface, lay out a single round and spoon a heaping tablespoon of the meat mixture into the middle of the round. Don't overfill or you will get exploding pies. They should be plump, but not tearing open from the stress of the filling. Brush edge with a small amount of egg white mixture, lift and gently press edged together. 
5. Use the tines of a fork to seal edges, or whatever pretty method of sealing edges you prefer. Place pies about 1 inch apart on the foil lined baking sheets. Using scissors or a knife, make one or two small vents in the top of each pie.
6. HOLD!

At this point you can refrigerate or freeze your hand pies. To refrigerate, cover baking sheets with plastic wrap and hold for up to 48 hours before baking. Any longer and the pastry tends to dry out and it won't bake up as well. If freezing, freeze individually on baking sheets first, then transfer to a bag or other container. This will keep them from sticking together during the initial freezing step. They will keep well up to 3 months. You can bake straight from the freezer, but add 5-10 more minutes to your cook time.

COOK THE PIES

You can cook as many or as few of these pies as you like. We cook up two per person for a quick lunch or snack. We will cook up two to three per person to pair with some sides (mashed potatoes!) for dinner.

1. Preheat your oven to 400 degrees
2. If you are baking from frozen, prep a baking sheet by lining it with foil. If cooking right away or from the fridge, remove plastic wrap from your already-prepped baking sheet full of pies and you're good to go.
3. Brush the tops if each pie with a little egg white/water mixture
4. Bake for 12-15 minutes or until tops are golden and glossy. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes or so before serving.
5. DONE!

Baked pies can also be frozen for simple reheating later. As with unbaked hand pies, freeze individually on a tray and then put in another bag or container for longer term storage to keep them from sticking together.

Variation options:

• Add some veggies to the meat mixture, like peas or chopped carrots.
• Substitute the pie crust for puff pastry, simply adjust cooking times and temps according to your puff pastry instructions.
• Add or subtract different meats for varying flavors. Beef and bacon is a popular option on the interwebs.
• Some recipes call for fruit in them, making for interesting flavor options, such as minced fig, dates, or raisins with a higher ratio of lamb for a Mediterranean spin. Maybe some diced apple and a higher ratio of sausage. Lots of options to play with here.
• Play with umami flavors by substituting some of the chicken stock with Worcestershire, fish, or soy sauce. Use beef stock instead of chicken stock for a beefier flavor.
• In Australia, beef-based hand pies are known as "party pies", and are often dipped in ketchup. Some sort of dipping sauce that suits your meat filling sounds like a great option!