Not tacos but tamale pie

My menu plan is as always a fluid document, more of a guide than a map I suppose.

Tonight we got home from clarinet lessons and I just didn't feel like honey mustard chicken. I did feel like tacos but I can't eat tacos without avocado and we didn't have one (most unlike us because we go though one or two a day but of course sometimes we run out).

So I thought Tamale Pie. We've had it before as in we had it four years ago. I did some googling and adapted a couple of recipes to suit my needs and ingredients.

Tamale Pie

1 cup cornmeal or polenta
2 cups chicken stock (real, bought or consomme or veggie stock)
1 teaspoon butter
1 cup grated tasty cheese (cheddar I suppose elsewhere)

1 onion, diced.
500g mince meat/ground beef
1 sachet taco seasoning (35g)
120g tinned corn
1 200g tin tomatoes
(If vegetarian you could substitute vegetarian chili).
Crust
1. Bring chicken stock to the boil and then over a low heat gradually add polenta in a thin stream stirring till smooth. When smooth and glossy stir in butter and then 3/4 of cheese. leave to cool a little.

Filling.
1. Soften onion in a little oil in a fry pan. Add mince/ground beef and brown. When browned add taco seasoning, tomatoes and corn. Let simmer 10-15 minutes.

Assembly
1. Spread 1/2 the polenta mix on base of casserole or pie plate.
2. Layer in filling.
3. Top with remaining polenta mix.
4. Sprinkle with reserved cheese.
5. Bake in moderate oven 40 minutes.

Serve with traditional taco toppings, chopped tomato, grated cheese, shredded lettuce, sour cream, jalapenos and of course avocado if you have it.

Note: You could add sliced jalapenos to the pie crust (I don't because I'm allergic to chili and end up with lips that look like I have had bad implants...not a good look).

A meat pie for Australia Day

January 26th is Australia Day, obviously if you're Australian you know this, but unlike Bastille Day or 4th of July I doubt anyone else on the planet is aware of the date. It signifies the date the First Fleet led by Captain James Cook sailed into Sydney to set up the penal colony of New South Wales.

Australia's indigenous population refers to the day as Invasion Day.

On this day Australian's go to the beach, throw bbq's and hang out with family. It happens to also
co-incide with the end of the Australian summer holidays/vacation. Basically school goes back straight after Australia Day.

On our Australia Day 2012 my husband has worked this morning and it was pouring with torrential rain. We were invited to a lunch at my mother-in-laws which we do usually attend because she lives across the road from a beautiful beach. Unfortunately for me I really get rather agitated when a lot of people are crammed together in a small space and my mother-in-law lives in an apartment. Needless to say I had to decline the invitation because the twenty something people in that little space would have been too much for me.

So instead today my daughter and I are making an Australian Meat Pie and a pavlova. The meat pie is the traditional Australian fast food. It is to Australians what the hot dog is to Americans. Every suburb has a bakery selling meat pies and sausage rolls and most have more than one.

Here is my version of a family meat pie. It's a really yummy meal and it's easy on the budget. I made this family pie for under $5. I use a regular pie plate.

Australian Meat Pie - serves 4
1 quantity of shortcrust pastry or one pie shell (I'll post my recipe soon)
olive oil
2 small or 1 large onion diced
500g beef mince
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons of soy sauce
1 beef stock cube
2 cups hot water
2 tablespoons cornflour
2 tablespoons water (extra)
1 sheet puff pastry
1 egg yolk.

1. Heat oil in pan and add onions, cook stirring until soft. Add mice, cook stirring until browned.
2. Stir in sauces, stock cube and water (I dissolve the stock cube in water first) simmer 15 minutes. Stir in cornflour and extra water. Stir over high heat until it boils and thickens. Cool.
3. Grease a pie plate with butter or olive oil and roll pastry to fit pie plate. Cover pastry with baking paper, fill with dried beans or pie weights and bake in moderate oven 8 minutes. remove beans and cook a further 8 minutes.
4. Fill pie shell with meat mixture. Brush edges or pastry with egg yolk and press puff pastry on top. Cut to fit. You can use any scraps to decorate. Brush pie with more egg yolk. Bake in oven 20-25 minutes until golden.

Enjoy!