Author Notes
The weather has cooled down. That means less stress on the pigs so it is time to butcher them. That also means it is sausage making time which is one way to preserve the large amounts of pork scraps from the pig. This pie is a great way to end a day of hard work. It is a way to say good-bye to Summer, the clams, and hello Fall, the pork. Pork and clams are actually a classic Portuguese combination that I took and made into this pie. While it doesn’t contain a lot of vegetables it is meant to be served with a salad of mixed greens and a nice vinegarette. The dough is more like a short dough so it is tender and needs a gentle hand. Don’t fret save the scraps and patch any would be holes. The egg wash is meant to give the crackle crust and this won’t happen unless you let the crust rest after coating it with the wash. Notice also it is baked in a nine inch round and two inch deep pie pan, I want more filling to crust when it comes to a savory pie. A nice chenin blanc would be great with this. —thirschfeld
Ingredients
- For the crust:
-
2 cups
unbleached all purpose flour
-
1/2 cup
barley flour
-
6 tablespoons
unsalted butter left in a stick and frozen solid
-
3/4 cup
Spectrum non-hydrogenated vegetable shortening
-
5 to 10 tablespoons
ice cold water
- For the filling:
-
extra virgin olive oil
-
1
onion, peeled and diced, with a medium dice
-
1 1/2 teaspoons
fresh garlic, minced
-
1 pound
Italian, chorizo or linguica sausage
-
1 teaspoon
aleppo pepper
-
2
heavy pinch of smoked paprika
-
1/2 cup
dry white wine
-
1 1/2 cups
clam juice
-
3
dried bay leaves
-
5
yukon gold potatoes, peeled and slice about 1/2 inch thick
-
3/4 cup
fresh tomatoes, diced, peeled if you feel like, I do just because it is ingrained in me
-
1
10 oz. can clams with juice, about 1/2 cup of juice and 3/4 cup of clams
-
1 tablespoon
double concentrated tomato paste
Directions
-
For the filling: In a large Dutch oven add the olive oil and place it over medium heat. Add the onion and season them with salt and pepper. Sweat them until they become tender and then add the garlic. Scoot the onions and garlic to the side and add the whole sausages and brown them on both sides taking care not to burn the onions
-
Remove the sausages and slice them into half inch rounds.
-
Add the aleppo pepper, paprika, bay leaves and the white wine. Burn off the alcohol and then add 1 1/2 cups of clam juice and the tomato paste. Bring to a boil and add the potatoes and tomatoes.
-
Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are just soft. About 15 minutes. Using a potato masher or a spoon crush the potatoes.
-
Add the slice sausage and simmer until the sausage is just cooked. Turn off the heat and add the clams. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Let the mixture cool. Remove the bay leaves.
-
For the crust: Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the top rack about 1/3 from the top of the oven. Place the grater attachment into the bowl of a food processor and grate the frozen butter into the bowl. Immediately remove the grater and put the plastic dough or metal chopping blade in place. Add the flours, salt and shortening.
-
Pulse the mixture until you have coasre crumbs. Start adding the water and pulse until the dough just starts to come together. It will still be partly floury crumbly with some wet cous cous looking dough in the center.
Dump the dough onto the counter. It will be crumbly still. Kneed it until it is smooth and hydrated, adding sprinkles of water if necessary. Divide the dough in half. Flatten it, then dust both sides with flour. Dust the countertop too. Roll out the bottom crust by setting your pin in the middle of a round and roll forward. Pick up the pin and place it back in the center and then roll backward.
-
Turn the dough 90 degrees and place the pin in the middle and roll away from you and then lift the pin and place it back in the center and roll it pulling backwards. Don't be afraid to dust the countertop with more flour if necessary, remember the counter top side of the dough will be down so the flour will be absorbed by the filling. If you are applying the same amount of pressure on each push of the pin you should wind up with a round dough bottom.
-
Using the rolling pin as the center gently roll the crust around the pin and the place it onto the nine inch round and two inch deep pie pan. Gently push, pull and adjust the crust so that you have overhang all the way around the edge of the pan. Fill the pie with the filling. Roll out the top crust just the same. Brush some of the egg wash around the edges of the bottom crust to act as glue. Unroll the top crust and using the rolling pin gently roll it across the top of the pie to seal it. Using a sharp knife run it around the outside edges of the pie tin cutting off the excess crust. Crimp the edges of the dough, brush the top with the egg wash and then slice a couple of small vents in the middle of the pie.
-
Slice the vents after the egg wash otherwise you will seal the vents. Let the pie sit for 3 to 5 minutes so the crust absorbs the wash.
-
Place the pie on a sheet tray in case it overflows and then place it into the oven. Bake for 25 minutes.
-
Rotate the pie, turn the heat down to 325 and then bake for another 35 minutes. Remove from the oven let it rest for 5 minute then serve.
See what other Food52ers are saying.