Jamie Oliver Cheese And Onion Pie Food

STICKY ONION TART

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/gas 7. Peel the onions and halve across the middle. Place the butter in a 26cm non-stick ovenproof frying pan on a medium heat. Strip in the thyme leaves and add the bay, shake the pan around and get it bubbling, then add the sugar, vinegar and 100ml of water. Place the onion halves in the pan, cut side down. Peel and halve the garlic cloves and place in the gaps, then season generously with sea salt and black pepper. Cover, turn the heat down to low and leave to steam for 10 minutes to soften the onions slightly, then remove the lid and cook until - very importantly! - the liquid starts to caramelise, gently shaking the pan occasionally to stop it from sticking.
• Place the pastry over the onions, using a wooden spoon to push it right into the edges of the pan. Bake for 35 minutes, or until golden brown and puffed up (it will look quite dark, but don't worry!). Using oven gloves to protect your hands, pop a large plate over the pan and confidently but very carefully turn out.
• Delicious served with goat's cheese, a simple salad and a cold beer.

JAMIE OLIVER'S WORLD'S BEST BAKED ONIONS

Steps:

• Boil the onions in plenty of water for 15 minutes or until slightly tender.
• Remove the onions from the pan and allow to cool.
• With a sharp knife, remove the top inch of each onion, finely chop and place to one side.
• Slightly trim the stalk end of the onions so that the onions will sit flat on a roasting tray.
• Taking care to keep the outside of each onion intact, cut about a heaped tablespoon of onion out from the inside of each onion.
• Finely chop these removed sections of the onion and add to the rest of the chopped onion.
• Preheat the oven to 400°F.
• Heat a saute pan and add a little olive oil, the garlic, the chopped onions, and just a little of the chopped rosemary.
• Saute for a couple of minutes until the garlic and onion have softened, then turn the heat down, add the cream and remove the onions and garlic from the heat.
• Stir in the Parmesan and season.
• Wrap a slice of pancetta around the middle of each onion and spike it in place with a sharpened twig of rosemary or a wooden toothpick.
• Place the onions on a roasting tray and spoon some of the chopped onion mixture inside each one.
• Bake in the preheated oven for around 25 minutes until the onions are soft and tender.
• How long this takes is, of course, dependent on the size of the onions. "It's cool to experiment with different cheeses, so give it a bash," says Jamie.
• I presume he is suggesting topping the baked onions with cheese.
• When the onions are cooked right through, remove and serve.

MINI CHEESE & ONION PASTIES

Steps:

• First, make the pastry. Tip the flour into a bowl. Holding the block of butter in its wrapper, grate it directly into the flour (you may need to dip the end of the butter into the flour occasionally if it becomes sticky). Add the cayenne pepper, mustard powder and half the beaten egg, and season with a pinch of salt. Bring everything together with your hands until the mixture starts to clump together. Tip the pastry onto the work surface and knead very briefly into a smooth ball, adding up to 3 tbsp cold water if it's too dry. Squash the pastry into a disc. Wrap and chill while you make the filling.
• Heat the oil in a frying pan and cook the onions and thyme leaves for 8-10 mins until the onions have softened and started to caramelise. Tip into a bowl and leave to cool. Once cool, mix in the grated cheese, mustard and spring onions.
• Heat the oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and line a baking tray with baking parchment. Roll the chilled pastry out on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin. Cut out as many 10-12cm circles as you can (you can use a cup or mug as a template), then re-roll any off-cuts and repeat. You should get about 10-12 circles in total.
• Spoon a mound of the filling into the centre of each pastry circle, leaving the edges clear. Working with one circle at a time, brush a little of the remaining beaten egg around the edge, then bring two sides up to meet in the middle in a half-moon shape. Pinch the pastry together, crimping the edge to seal. Transfer to the baking tray and repeat with the remaining pastry circles and filling. Brush all the pasties with some beaten egg. Will keep frozen for two months.
• Bake the pasties for 20-25 mins (or 40-45 mins from frozen) until the pastry is deep golden brown. Leave to cool for at least 10 mins before eating warm, or cool completely and pack into containers for a picnic. Will keep in an airtight container for up to three days.

CHEESE & ONION PIE

Steps:

• First, make the pastry. Tip the flours into a medium bowl with the cayenne, onion seeds, parmesan and a generous pinch of salt. Rub in the butter until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs, then pour in half the egg and 2 tbsp cold water and bring everything together using your hands. Knead a couple of times until smooth. Flatten a third of the dough into a disc, then do the same with the remaining dough. Wrap both pastry discs and chill in the fridge for at least 30 mins. Will keep chilled for up to two days.
• Meanwhile, make the filling. Heat the butter in a saucepan over a medium heat until sizzling, then scatter in the onions, bay, thyme, a large pinch of salt and good grinding of black pepper. Stir, then cook slowly for 10 mins until the onions have cooked down and started to caramelise. Stir in the sliced potatoes, cover and cook for 8-10 mins more, stirring occasionally until the potatoes are soft and starting to break down. Stir in the cream, remove the pan from the heat and leave to cool. Once cool, remove and discard the bay, then fold in the cheese.
• Roll the smaller pastry disc out on a lightly floured surface to the size of a dinner plate and lift onto a baking sheet lined with baking parchment. Roll out the remaining pastry disc along with any offcuts to a circle about 5cm wider than the first. Spoon the filling into the middle of the smaller circle on the baking sheet, leaving a 4cm border. Brush the exposed border with some of the remaining beaten egg, then drape over the larger pastry circle. Tuck the edge around the filling to enclose it, as if making a giant ravioli. Trim the edge to neaten, then crimp with a cutlery knife handle or fork to seal. Brush the pie all over with most of the remaining beaten egg, and use any trimmings to make decorations, if you like.
• Heat the oven to 210C/190C fan/gas 7. Bake the pie for 35-40 mins until deeply golden, brushing with the rest of the beaten egg halfway through. Leave to cool on the baking sheet for at least 20 mins before cutting into wedges, or leave to cool completely and serve cold.