Tourtière à la Spice Station

Tourtière is the classic holiday meat pie of Canada’s Québécois people.

Traditionally, matrons of huge French Catholic families would make dozens of these pies and then tie them in a sack in the frozen outdoors during the weeks before Christmas.

The festive pie has delicate, nuanced aromas of nutmeg, savory, cinnamon and cloves, reminiscent of the happy holidays.

Makes 1 large or 2-3 smaller pies. For those wanting a leaner, meat-free pie, a vegetarian version is also provided.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds (900g) lean ground pork (ground beef works, too)
• 2 onions, diced
• 1-2 TB Spice Station Tourtière Blend
• 2 cups (500 mL) peeled potatoes, diced
• ¾ cup (175 mL) stock
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Extra salt and pepper to taste
• 1 large, deep pie crust (with enough extra pastry to make a “lid”)
  – use your favorite recipe

Fry meat in a Dutch Oven or other deep skillet on medium-high, mashing with spoon until no longer pink. Drain excess fat.

Add onion, potato, garlic, salt, stock and 1 ½ TB Tourtière spice.

Turn down heat, cover and simmer for another 20-30 minutes, until almost all the liquid is gone. Add salt, pepper, and more spice to taste.

Allow to cool, then put into the pie shell. Wet edges, cover  with a layer of pastry about ¼ inch thick, trim and flute.

Decorate if desired with holiday shapes of pastry, brush with egg wash, bake in 400 F oven about 40-50 minutes until golden brown.

Vegetarian version:

in place of the ground meat and stock, use:

• 2 cups of TVP (vegetable protein bits),
• 3 cups hot vegetable broth,
• and 2 tsp of soy sauce.

Fry onions on medium heat, in olive oil or butter, until they start to get translucent.

Add potato, 1 TB spice, salt and TVP. Stir and fry a bit, then drizzle tamari and broth over the sauté. Stir well, bring to boil, then cover and reduce to a simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring regularly.

Once done, test if spiced enough to your taste. Continue as per regular version.

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