Some Scottish Treats for Ya

On Sunday we decided to make one of my favorite Scottish dinners. I have to confess considering my penchant for fresh ingredients, this is one meal that uses two prepared ingredients, sorry. But it is delicious and easy. The main dish is Steak Pie and I almost always serve it with Roast Tatties and cheap and easy frozen peas. This week we added Neeps (Turnips) to the mix although I found out that the Neeps I have been using are the wrong ones. I guess they use Rutabagas which are yellow in Scotland. Och well.

Here it is.

Steak Pie

3/4 - 1 lb Steak, something tender- Top sirloin is good, sliced into strips like fajitas
1 package of Brown Gravy mix, go with a good brand, if you can find Bisto (Scottish Brand) then by all means.
1 Sheet of Puff Pastry, thawed according to instructions
1 Medium Onion
Salt, Pepper, Spices (Garlic granules)

Its real simple. Cut up the onion how ever you like. I usually do thin rings. It doesn't matter. Fry that in a wee bit of olive oil until it gets soft and starts to brown. Add your meat and cook to desired doneness. Salt and pepper and add any spices you would like. Now mix up the gravy according to instructions. Its usually a cup of cold water to the packet. Pour the Gravy over and cook until it starts to thicken.

Pour the Meat and gravy mix into an 8 X 8 or similar dish and cover with puff pastry. Bake at 400 until the pastry puffs adn browns. Then its time to tuck in. This is seriously amazing.

The potatoes are pretty easy too. I put them in the oven about 15 minutes before the pie.

Cut some potatoes into nice bite size cubes. Boil in salted water until they yield but are not soft enough for mashed potatoes. Drain and empty into a mixing bowl. Pour enough oil to to coat the potatoes and mix them around to get oil all over them. Pour them onto a baking pan (I think metal is best but anything works), salt and bake at 400 until the bottoms are crispy. Yum.

The neeps are easy as well. I just boiled them until they were tender and drained them, added some salt and butter. Good Scottish comfort food. Now if I could only get some Haggis.