MELTON MOWBRAY PORK PIE

Steps:

• 1 Egg, lightly beaten Mix the meat, salt, pepper, herbs and spices and set aside.
• To make the stock, boil bones, onions, bay leaf, herbs salt and pepper in 4 cups of water for two hours or until the liquid is reduced to 2 1/3 cups.
• Cool, degrease and refrigerate until it starts to jell.
• To make the pastry, rub 2 oz of the lard into the flour mixed with a teaspoon of salt until it is the consistency of breadcrumbs.
• Boil the rest of the fat with the milk and water.
• Make a well in the mound of flour and while stirring with a wooden spoon, mix in the boiling liquid.
• Knead and leave to rest for 10 minutes.
• To make the casing or"coffyn", roll out three-quarters of the dough into a circle 3/4" thick.
• Flour the outside of the tin and stand it in the centre of the dough.
• Work the dough up the sides of the tin and then gently remove the tin leaving you with a pie casing.
• Fill it immediately with the meat mixture as it is likely to collapse.
• Roll out the remaining dough into a circle slightly larger than the diameter of the casing, to form the lid.
• Preheat the oven to 400F degrees Dampen the top edge of the pie and gently press on the lid.
• Crimp the edge.
• Make a hole in the centre of the lid and decorate it with pastry leaves.
• Place on a baking dish and bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes and then reduce the heat to 300 degrees F and bake for 1 3/4 hours.
• If necessary place some aluminim foil on the top to prevent burning.
• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely.
• Pour the chilled stock through the hole in the lid and refrigerate Serve Cold.