Ingredients
- At least 1kg mince
- 2 medium sized potatoes or 1 can of potatoes
- 1 large onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 stick cinnamon
- 1 small egg
- Store bought puff pastry. This comes in packets of varying numbers of sheets. For this recipe you will need two to three sheets.
- Vegetables to taste (canned peas or fresh diced carrots are nice)
- Salt and pepper to taste
Preparation
Puff pastry should always be kept in a deep fridge. About 15 minutes before beginning, take out two or three sheets of puff pastry (depending on how many pies you intend to make) and leave at room temperature on a clean surface to thaw. Grease an oven tray lightly and pre-heat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius (if a gas oven) or 180 degrees Celsius if electric.
Heat a tablespoon of oil or margarine or butter in a saucepan or pot on medium heat. Crush the garlic clove and break the cinnamon stick into small pieces and add to pot. Chop onion and fry until yellowish. Add the mince and stir until brown and well cooked trough (should take about 7 minutes on a gas stove). Add salt and pepper to taste. Add peas and carrots (or other vegetables) and turn off heat but leave pot on stove and stir vegetables into meat.
Cut pastry using a butter knife or the back of a spoon as shown below.
Take one small rectangular section (out of the eight shown below) and place in the palm of your left hand. Spoon in enough mince and vegetable mixture to cover half the rectangle, leaving about 4mm spaces around all the edges. Do not heap the mince up too much. Fold the other half of the pastry over the half with the mince and press the two edges together with your fingers. Make sure all edges are firmly sealed; the puff pastry should stick together easily.
Do this for all the little rectangular segments on all the sheets of puff pastry. Place pies on greased oven tray. Break the egg into a bowl and whisk lightly until yolk mixed with white. Use a pastry brush or tea spoon to place egg over the top of the pies as a glaze. Bake in the oven until golden brown, which is roughly 30 minutes. You will be able to smell the pies when they're done! Allow to cool slightly before removing from tray, so that the bottom of the pies don't break as you remove them.
