This week is British Pie Week, a perfect opportunity to celebrate the wide variety of pies to be savoured in the UK. Of course in Scotland we have the traditional Scotch Pie, a firm favourite in the world of Alexander McCall Smith’s 44 Scotland Street novels. In our book The 44 Scotland Street Cookbook, Anna Marshall has developed a stunning array of recipes mentioned in these beloved books, including the (in)famous Pure Dead Brilliant Scotch Pies. Find the recipe below and have a go at making your own!

PURE DEAD BRILLIANT SCOTCH PIES (NAE MESSING)
FORMERLY KNOWN AS INCLUSIVE PIES

These mutton pies are consumed only in Scotland. They are made in a hot-water pastry mould, with space between the rim of the pie and the pastry lid, below which the meat is to be found. The calorific content of the dish can be increased by filling this space with baked beans or mashed potato. In the case of the pies sold by Nicola’s pie company, this space is taken up with extra grease.

Serves: 4
Prep: 1 hour
Cook: 40 minutes

INGREDIENTS
For the hot-water pastry
1 tbsp sunflower oil
120ml (4 fl oz) water
250g (9oz) plain flour
100g (3 ½ oz) lard, chopped into small cubes

For the meat filling
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 tbsp sunflower oil
½ tsp mace
1 tsp mixed herbs
4 tbsp lamb stock
300g (10 ½ oz) lamb mince (or mutton if you can get it)
Salt and pepper to taste
Additional equipment: 4 small pie tins approx. 10cm diameter (or you could use smooth ramekins to make mini pies)

METHOD
For the hot-water pastry

• Oil the pie tins with the sunflower oil.
• Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl and make a well in the centre.
• Put the water and lard into a small pot and heat gently until the lard has melted.
• Gradually pour the water/lard mixture into the well in the middle of the flour and mix with a wooden spoon. Add only enough liquid to make a soft dough. You may not need all the liquid.
• Tip the dough mixture onto a hard surface and knead briefly (the dough will harden as it cools, so you will need to work reasonably quickly).
• Divide the dough into four equal pieces, and set aside a quarter of each piece to make the pie lid.
• Using a rolling pin roll the dough pieces out until they are 5mm thick and place in your pie tins, moulding the dough to the shape of the tins.
• Roll out the lids so that they are slightly smaller than the pie tins and place on oiled cling film.
• Place pie cases and lids in the fridge to harden.

For the filling

• Pre-heat the oven to 180°C (350°F, gas mark 4).
• Gently fry the onion in a frying pan with 1 tablespoon of oil for 5–6 minutes.
• Add the mace, mixed herbs, salt and pepper, and two tablespoons of stock. Leave to cool.
• Once cool, add the minced lamb and mix well. Add some of the stock if the mixture looks too dry, but don’t make it too wet or the pie crust will become soggy. You may not need all the liquid.
• Divide the lamb mixture between the pie cases and press in down firmly. The pie cases should now be three-quarters full.
• Place the pie lids on top of the lamb mixture and cut a small hole in the centre of each one to allow the hot air to escape while cooking.
• Cook in the centre of the oven for 40 minutes, until the pie crusts are golden brown.
• Serve with baked beans or mashed potato (or extra grease).