Recipe: Chef Kevin Belton’s Cottage Pie, Citrus Whiskey Pie
Cottage Pie
Ingredients
2 pounds. beef stew meat or ribs
2 tbsp. sea salt
2 tbsp. vegetable oil
2 carrots, peeled and diced
1 onion, diced
2 celery ribs, diced
1 tbsp. tomato paste
half a bottle of port or red wine of your choice
2 cups of beef broth
1 C. black pepper, freshly ground
1 tbsp. sea salt
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup of water
Parsley for garnish
Potatoes
3 pounds. Yukon Golden Potatoes
1 1/2 cups Gruyère or white cheddar cheese, grated
4 tbsp. butter
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 heavy cream
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
2 tbsp. sea salt
Directions
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Generously season the beef with sea salt and heat the vegetable oil in a large non-stick frying pan. Fry the beef in batches on all sides until browned, set aside.
Heat a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot over medium heat and add the carrots, celery and onion. Cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add the tomato puree and stir then deglaze with the port.
Add the beef broth and return the beef to the pot. If you like your stew extra thick, at this point mix a slurry of 3/4 cup flour mixed with 1/2 cup water. Bring to a boil and season generously with salt and pepper.
Cover the pot with an airtight lid and cook for about 5 hours in the oven, skimming off the fat that occasionally rises to the surface. Hopefully the beef will now be very tender. Trim some more fat and shred the beef. Reduce the liquid if necessary to make a thick sauce.
Meanwhile, boil the potatoes in salted water until tender. Mash them and while the potatoes are hot, mix them with the cheese.
Meanwhile, heat the butter in a small saucepan and gently sauté the garlic. Pour it also into the mash, then the whole egg and the egg yolks. Season with more salt.
Spoon the mash mixture into a large piping bag fitted with a star tip. Pipe the mashed potatoes over the beef mixture.
Turn the oven up to 400 degrees and bake the pie for another 30 minutes or until the mash begins to brown slightly. Garnish with parsley and serve.
Citrus Whiskey Pie
Ingredients
1-1/2 cups granulated sugar, separated
1 C. orange zest, freshly grated
1 1/4 cup Yukon Gold potatoes, mashed
8 c. butter, melted, and more to prepare the mold
4 tbsp. almond powder
1 C. pure vanilla extract
1 C. pure almond extract
1/2 tsp. orange extract
6 large eggs (5 eggs separated, one whole)
2oz. whiskey, preferably Irish
1 credit
Directions
Set oven rack to middle position; heat the oven to 375 degrees. Brush bottom of 9-inch springform pan with melted butter; line bottom with parchment. Brush the round of paper and the sides of the mold with melted butter. Put aside.
In a small bowl, using your fingertips, rub together 1 1/4 cups sugar and the zest, then set aside.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat 5 egg yolks and 1 egg on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes, scraping down sides of bowl as needed. Reduce the speed to medium and slowly add the reserved zest-sugar mixture. Then defeat the just combined unit.
Stir in the mashed potatoes, then add the melted butter, almond flour, extracts and finally the whisky. Whisk until fully incorporated, pour into a large bowl and set aside.
Clean the mixing bowl and whisk the attachment thoroughly to remove oil stains. Return to stand mixer, on medium speed, beat egg whites until frothy, about 1 minute, add remaining 1/4 cup sugar and beat on medium-high speed until fluffy. firm, about 2-3 minutes.
Add about 1 cup of egg whites to the egg mixture, using the whisk, stir to combine and lighten the mixture. Whisk in remaining egg whites until fully incorporated.
Immediately pour into prepared springform pan and bake for 40-45 minutes, until set. Remove from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool completely. Pies will fall as they cool. Serve dusted with icing sugar or sweetened whiskey whipped cream.