Wild mushroom and shallot pie

Dominic Franks shares a recipe for a favourite winter warming pie featuring sweet shallots.

I recently visited a local farm at Tumby Woodside, where they’ve just been harvesting my favourite vegetable, the shallot. Sweeter and mellower than a regular onion, they caramelise beautifully adding so much flavour to dishes, like this gorgeous pie.

I love a pie. It’s not just the divine topping or the luscious fillings, it’s the feeling of nostalgia that it brings.

Pie reminds me of cosy nights by the fire, being with family and loved ones and for me acts as a reminder to take the time to do things you love, understand that the world can slow down for a moment or two.

This pie is a celebration of that flavour and everything I love about this time of year.

I hope that I can bring just a little bit of this feeling from my kitchen to yours.

METHOD:
• Pre-heat the oven to 190°C (170ºC fan/375°F/Gas 5)
• Place the shallots into a bowl and drench with olive oil and season with thyme and salt and pepper, lay them onto a large roasting tin and roast for 30 min or until lightly golden.
• Place a large sautéing pan onto a medium heat and add a splash of olive oil and a little butter. Add the mushrooms and allow them to sauté for 8 minutes, on a gentle heat for the first 4 minutes, then throw in the chopped garlic and rosemary and plenty of freshly ground pepper, turn the heat up and allow them to turn golden for the last 4 minutes.
• Add half the shallots to the pan with the mushrooms, stir in the flour, wine and the stock. Allow it to bubble gently and thicken for roughly 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside whilst you parboil the potatoes.
• Pour the pie filling into a large oven-proof pie dish or roasting tin. Arrange the slices of potato and shallots on top. I like a random flower pattern in concentric rings from the inside out, with the edges of the potatoes and shallots sticking out, so they get all golden and gnarly as the pie roasts in the oven.
• Roast for 20 minutes, or until the top of the pie is golden. Serve with some green beans.

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