March 27, 2019 – Recipe

For this pie, two pastries are nice—a regular and a rough or quick-puff pastry—but not necessary.


Regular Pastrymakes three 10-inch crusts

  • 2 sticks butter, sliced in pieces
  • 3 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup cold water

Cut up cold butter into a food processor. Add flour and salt and pulse until you have a crumbly mixture. Add cold water through the top of the food processor with processor on; process until the dough forms a ball. Turn out on a floured board. Form into a round and let rest for an hour.


Rough Puffmakes two 10-inch crusts

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour 
  • 1 teaspoon salt 
  • 3 sticks of cold butter cut in pieces 
  • ½ cup to ¾ cup ice water

First, make the pastry. In the bowl of a food processor (or in a mixing bowl with a pastry blender, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment), mix together the flour and salt. Add the butter pieces and mix until the butter is the size of peas. Add the ice water all at once and mix just until the dough begins to come together. Shape the dough into a disc, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Roll out pastry and line a pie or tart pan with it.


For one 8-inch pie filling

  • 2 small leeks, cleaned and thinly sliced 
  • 1 onion, thinly sliced  
  • 2 to 3 good-sized potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes 
  • ¼ cup milk 
  • 2 tablespoons butter 
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 
  • 1 tablespoon thyme leaves, chopped 
  • ½ cup mature Cheddar cheese, grated

To make the pie filling: melt the butter in a wide-based saucepan or a deep frying pan; add the leeks and onions and fry over high heat for 2–3 minutes. Cover with a lid, turn heat to low, and cook for 10 minutes or until tender but not browned. Cook potatoes until tender and then mash them with milk and butter. Add mustard and thyme leaves. Add tender onion and leek mixture and combine and then add cheddar cheese.

Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and set aside until the filling is cold.

Put cold filling on top of prepared pastry shell using a regular pastry crust.

Then make a puff pastry lid to finish the top. Bake in a 350º F oven for 40 minutes until crusts are nicely brown and potatoes are bubbly hot. Cool slightly before serving.