Homemade Pasties Recipe

My mum used to make the most delicious pasties for us and whenever I make them I can still picture mum in the kitchen getting them ready to put in the oven. Often she would make just one large one in a baking dish as with a family of seven to feed it was much easier than making individual ones. Most times mum made them with homemade shorcrust pastry but sometimes when she made individual ones she would make them with puff pastry.
I sometimes make individual ones with half of them puff and the other half with shortcrust pastry. This way you can have one of each.

INGREDIENTS:
frozen shortcrust pastry sheets to make 8 circles
500g good minced steak
1 large brown onion - peeled and chopped
1 carrot - peeled and chopped
1 swede or turnip - peeled and chopped
2 potatoes - peeled and chopped
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 egg - slightly beaten
sea salt and black crushed pepper to taste

METHOD:

Preheat oven to 200C.
Combine vegetables and mince steak in a very large bowl. Add seasoning to taste.
Cut pastry into 8 circles, using a bread & butter plate as a guide.
Divide mixture up and place in the middle of each circle. Brush some beaten egg around the edges of the pastry.
Fold edges together, joining in the middle. Pinch together so it is sealed well.
Place on oven trays that have been lined with baking paper. Brush remaining egg over the top of each one.
Bake for about 10 minutes at 200C then reduce heat to 180 and cook for another 35 minutes.
Serve hot with homemade tomato sauce or sweet chilli sauce.

Any left over shortcrust pastry, mum would always make dad a jam tart as he loved them so much. I often turn the leftover into an apple strudel. For this I just slice up a couple of granny smith apples, a little raw sugar and some raisins. I like to put the apples and raisins in a dish and cook slightly for about 1 1/2 - 2 minutes in the microwave. Roll out the remaining pastry, sprinkle with a little raw sugar, place the mixture in the middle of pastry and roll over and pinch the pastry together to hold it in place while cooking. Cook for about 20 minutes in oven at around 200C.