I thought I would break up all these food posts with a recipe! Clever. I’ve been meaning to post this for a while so apologies to those who have been waiting with baited breath (I know you’re out there).
For those who missed the earlier post I wanted to try and recreate the Best Pie I’ve Ever Eaten from a bakery in Esperance, WA, the cauliflower, broccoli and cheese pie. Whilst my version is delicious, I think these pies work better in small form because the filling isn’t very structurally sound and it ends up a bit of a mess. What you will need:
– Broccoli
– Cauliflower
– Short crust pastry
– Butter (about 75g)
– Plain flower (about 4 tablespoons)
– Milk (about 3 cups)
– Grated cheese
Lightly grease a pie dish and line with the pastry. I pre-baked (or blind baked) my pie crust for about 10 minutes at 180 degrees celsius This stops the pastry from becoming soggy. I used rice to weigh down the pastry (which stops it from puffing up) but of course I forgot to put some baking paper between the pastry and the rice to stop it from sticking. So I spent a while flicking rice grains off the pastry and onto the bench/floor/into the sink. Fail.
Put the broccoli and cauliflower in a pot of boiling water for a about 5 minutes to soften, but not completely cook.
Drain and put to one side. Now it’s time to make the piece de resistance: the cheese sauce.
Melt the butter in a saucepan and then add the flour and stir, once combined add the milk and whisk. Keep whisking for about 8 minutes until the sauce becomes delightfully thick.
Then throw in a handful of the cheese. I believe I may have also accidentally on purpose thrown in some cream we had in the fridge. Shhhh. Season with salt and pepper.
Put the broccoli, cauliflower and cheese sauce into the pie crust and sprinkle with more cheese.
Bake until the top is golden and crispy, I think it was about 20 minutes from memory.
Soggy but scrumptious. Perfect with a dollop of tomato sauce/ketchup.
This recipe would go perfectly in a small pie maker. My friend Andrew had one and used to make cheeseburger pies on special occasions.
What’s the best pie you’ve ever had?
My Bloggable Day 
Oi…what about me…
Are you hankering for some pie Brendo?
Oh my golly gosh. I cannot wait to try this one out !!
Love your blog, Bec 🙂
Chell!! How the devil are you?! I didn’t know you had a blog, it’s wonderful! xx
Waaat! This looks amazing! Have to try it.
It is SO good! Perfect for winter.
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I’ve had one like this but with pepper? Which version do you think I should try, and if I do continue with pepper how much do suggest I put in? 🙂
I can’t wait to make this in the mini version in our pie maker! How much broccoli and cauliflower did you use?
For the big pie I used one head of broccoli and one head of cauliflower. So I reckon that would make at least 6 small pies?
Awesome, thank you 🙂
I made this pie last weekend and it was scrumptious! I am making it again tonight because my husband and I are just obsessed with it! The only thing I changed was I added a punnet of brussels sprouts cut in half because i only had a small head of broccoli and half a head of cauliflower and I needed more veggies to fill the pie. It worked AMAZINGLY. Mmmmmm
This recipe is a keeper.
So glad you enjoyed it Gianna! Thanks for leaving me a comment, I love reading when people make my recipes 🙂