If you ask someone else to describe my Dad, they’ll say “he’s a grafter”. He puts his head down and gets on with it. When I was growing up he was out early, working, doing physical stuff every day. And when he got home, he’d probably be doing jobs on the house. Painting, mending, building a first floor extension… the usual things, you know. He grafted. As far as I know, he’s always busy.

Very suddenly, Mum passed away last year. And despite his grief he did not lose his spirit. He’d lost his best friend, and had every chance to crumple. But within 4 months he’d sorted the paperwork, setup his finances, cleared their house and moved. Rather than stop and wallow in his grief, he picked himself up and got his life moving again.

He’s still going strong. He’s planned holidays, he practically renovating every inch of his new house, and he still does his day job.

I can’t do much for him that he can’t do himself, but I do like to keep him fed. One of his most favourite things in the world is a rich, meaty pie with a golden crust and packed with goodies. A pie like the one below is right up his street.

This post is part of a Hampergifts Father’s Day promotion.

Beef and mushroom pie (serves 6):

1kg beef brisket

2 red onions, sliced

500g mushrooms, halved

1 sprig of rosemary, leaves picked and finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, peeled

½ pint boiling beef stock

3 tablespoons mushroom ketchup

For the pastry:

300g plain flour

100g suet

100g butter

1 egg, beaten

1. Get your slow cooker on to warm up, and a frying pan over a high heat.
2. Season the brisket well all over and add to the pan. Sear on all sides then transfer to the slow cooker.
3. Add the onions, rosemary and garlic to the pan with a splash of oil and as they start to colour add to the slow cooker along with the rest of the ingredients. Leave to tick away for 7 hours, or until the beef falls apart. Leave to cool for half an hour in the pot to relax.
4. For the pastry, combine the flour, suet and butter with a pinch of salt and rub together to form breadcrumbs. Add 125ml cold water to bring together, wrap in clingfilm and pop in the fridge until needed.
5. Preheat the oven to 180°C. Remove the meat and strain the liquor off into a saucepan. Shred the meat with two forks, discarding any fatty bits, and pop into a pie dish along with cooked onions and mushrooms. Roll out the pastry to 5mm thick and layer over the pie filling. Brush with the egg and bake for 30 minutes or until browned and luvverly.
6. While the pie cooks, put the strained sauce over a high heat and get bubbling. Check for seasoning. If it looks like it’s not going to be as thick as you would like, whisk in a beurre meunière (a tablespoon each of butter and flour mixed together). Carve up the pie, ladle over gravy and serve with mash, carrots and broccoli.