Steak and kidney pie

Wash leeks, and quarter and slice the white part.

In a high-sided frypan with a lid, fry leeks in 1 Tbsp of olive oil till golden but not brown (about 5 mins).

Add chopped capsicums, celery, sliced mushrooms, thyme, garlic and 1 Tbsp of olive oil. Continue frying until mushrooms are softened (about 8 mins).

Transfer vegetables to a plate.

Cut any larger steak pieces so all are around 3cm in length. If kidneys are not already chopped, slice them into 2cm sizes, removing any fat.

Mix flour, salt and pepper on a plate and toss steak and kidney pieces through the flour mix, so they are lightly but evenly coasted.

Add last tablespoon of olive oil to the frypan, and over a medium heat brown steak and kidney (about 3 minutes). Do this in two batches.

Once browned, return the vegetables to the frypan, add the red wine and beef stock. Turn down heat to low and cook on stove top for 45-60 minutes or until steak is soft but still holds its form. If the sauce is too runny, mix cornflour with 3 tablespoons of water so you have a runny paste and add to sauce mixture, stirring to avoid lumps forming (TIP: add a bit of warm sauce to the cornflour mix first). Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

TIP: alternatively for the steak to be really tender, you can pop all this in the crockpot and cook on low for 4 hours.

If time allows, cool completely. If short on time, cool until steam has evaporated (20-30 minutes).

Stir parsley through meat mixture.

Turn oven to 200°C.

Using a 20cm pie dish, roll out one sheet of pastry on a lightly floured bench to cover the bottom and sides with some pastry hanging over the edges.

Brush the overlapping edge with a little egg wash (whisk egg with a fork).

Fill the pie with the filling.

TIP: if your pie dish has deep sides you may need to use 1 1/2-2 sheets of pastry for the base.

Roll the second sheet of pastry big enough to cover the top of the pie, place on top and crimp edges, it’s a rustic pie so simple thumb presses is fine. Turn any excess pastry into some decorative shapes for the top.

Brush top of pie with egg wash and sprinkle over poppy seeds. Make a small slash over the top of pastry (for steam to escape).

Bake for 20 minutes or until pastry is puffed and golden.

Serve with your favourite vegetables.