Meat Pie, Southern Version

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a 9x13-inch dish with cooking spray.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and stir in ground beef and ground pork. Cook and stir until meat is crumbly, evenly browned, and no longer pink. Drain and discard any excess grease. Stir in onion, bell pepper, and celery. Cover and reduce heat to medium; cook, stirring frequently, until vegetables have softened and onion is translucent, about 5 minutes.

3. Make a well in the center of the skillet and place minced garlic directly on the bottom of the pan. Cook for 30 to 60 seconds or until fragrant; blend garlic into meat mixture. Add carrot, potato, bay leaf, thyme, parsley, Worcestershire sauce, seasoning blend, and salt and pepper.

4. Dissolve bouillon cubes in hot water in a bowl, and pour it into meat mixture; mix well. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until carrots are soft, 10 to 15 minutes.

5. Lay one sheet of puff pastry in the prepared baking dish. Gently press pastry into the corners and up the sides of the dish. With a slotted spoon, transfer meat into crust and spread evenly trying to avoid adding liquid. Top with Cheddar cheese.

6. Whisk together egg yolk and 1 tablespoon water. Brush edges of the bottom puff pastry sheet. Lay second sheet of puff pastry over the baking dish, pressing with a fork to seal the edges. Brush surface with egg wash and pierce with a fork several times to vent crust.

7. Bake in the preheated oven until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbling, about 50 minutes. Check after 15 minutes to prevent over-browning (tent with aluminum foil, if necessary). Remove pie from the oven and let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Tips

I use a Pyrex dish and bake it with the convection setting of my oven. If you use a convection oven, lower the baking temperature to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). Tent pie with a sheet of aluminum foil for the duration of the baking time. Remove foil during the last 5 to 10 minutes of baking to brown the crust.

To make this dish ahead of time, allow filling to cool before assembling pie. Refrigerate before baking, or freeze it, well-wrapped in aluminum foil. Store up to 1 month. Thaw before baking, or increase the baking time by about an hour.