Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Beef & Celeriac Pie

This is comfort food at its very best. Meltingly tender beef, with delicious herbs, covered with a crispy golden crust. I recently got a tip from an amazing chef, Daniel Galmiche – to rub the herbs between your fingers before using them. This releases the aromas and flavours even more and gives you a moment of pure bliss as you anticipate the eating!

gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, seed-free, citrus-free

Serves 4     Preparation time 25 minutes, plus 30 minutes chilling the pastry     Cooking time 45–50 minutes

Ingredients:

Pastry:

• 100g/3½oz/heaped ½ cup rice flour
• 50g/1¾oz/scant ½ cup gram flour
• 50g/1¾oz/⅓ cup maize flour
• ½ tsp sea salt, crushed
• 1 tsp xanthan gum
• 125g/4½oz chilled dairy-free margarine, diced
• 1 large egg, beaten

Filling:

• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion, finely chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 500g/1lb 2 oz casserole steak, fat removed and cut into bite-sized pieces
• 2 tbsp rice flour
• 1 small celeriac, about 600g, trimmed, peeled and finely diced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp finely chopped thyme leaves
• 1 tbsp finely chopped rosemary leaves
• 350ml/12fl oz/scant 1½ cups gluten-free & dairy-free beef stock
• dairy-free margarine, for greasing
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. To make the filling, heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan or wok over a medium heat and add the onion. Fry for about 3–4 minutes until starting to turn golden, then add the garlic and fry for about 30 seconds. Remove with a slotted spoon and leave to one side. Roll the steak in the rice flour then add the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil to the pan and heat over a medium-high heat. Add the steak and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5–6 minutes until lightly browned. Return the onion and garlic to the pan, add the celeriac, herbs and stock and season lightly with salt and pepper. Cover with a lid, bring to the boil over a high heat, then turn the heat down to low and leave to simmer gently for 1 hour until the beef is tender.
2. Meanwhile, to make the pastry, sift the flours, salt and xanthan gum into the bowl of a food processor with the dough blade attached and blend to mix together. Add the dairy-free margarine and blend until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg and blend for 20–30 seconds until the mixture comes together to form a sticky dough. There should be a little extra moisture at the base of the bowl. If it is too dry, gradually blend in 1–2 tablespoons chilled water. If too sticky, add a little rice flour.
3. Shape the pastry into a ball, wrap it in cling film and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
4. When the beef is almost ready, preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/Gas 6 and grease a medium-sized casserole dish, about 1.5 litres size, with dairy-free margarine. Liberally dust a large chopping board with rice flour and roll out the pastry into a shape about 3mm/1/8in thick and 3cm/1¼in wider than the casserole dish. Be careful as the pastry will still be slightly sticky.
5. Remove the bay leaf from the filling and transfer into the casserole dish. Ease the pastry onto the top of the casserole and cover the filling. If the dough seems too fragile to lift, simply turn the chopping board over to drop the pastry onto the casserole. Press the edges of the dough down gently around the edges and neaten the edges with a sharp knife. Cut a small cross in the centre to let the steam out.
6. Bake for 35–40 minutes until the pastry is a rich, golden brown and serve hot.

Gluten-Free & Dairy-Free Tarte Tatin

Create a little piece of French-patisserie heaven in your own kitchen.

There really is something very heart-warming about making and eating Tarte Tatin. Do buy local, organic apples as these will really add to the meltingly sweet taste of the tart, and if you can find xanthum gum, it will make a difference to the pastry, (but don’t worry if you can’t as the pastry will still work without it). I made this for my friends Nichola and Alex when they came round for dinner – and Nichola, who normally never touches desserts, had 2 helpings. Result!

gluten-free, wheat-free, dairy-free, yeast-free, seed-free, citrus-free

Preparation time 20 minutes, plus 30 minutes chilling time     Cooking 40–55 minutes     Serves 6

Ingredients:

• 75g dairy-free margarine
• 100g fruit sugar
• 7 apples, peeled, cored and cut in half
• rice flour, for dusting

Pastry:

• 75g rice flour
• 50g gram flour
• 50g ground almonds
• 50g fruit sugar
• 1 tsp xanthan gum
• 75g chilled dairy-free margarine
• 1 large egg, beaten

1. Sift the flours and the ground almonds into a large mixing bowl and stir in the fruit sugar and xanthum gum. Cut the margarine into small pieces and, using cold fingertips, rub it into the dry ingredients until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs.
2. Make a well in the centre and add the egg, mixing lightly with a round-bladed knife so that the mixture begins to hold together. Continue adding the egg gradually until it is all mixed in and the mixture begins to come together to form a sticky dough.
3. Shape the pastry into a ball. Wrap in greaseproof paper and put in the fridge for at least 30 minutes. This amount will line a 25cm tart tin, 3cm deep, or 5 x 12cm tartlet tins, 2cm deep.
4. The pastry can also be made in a food processor. Simply tip the sifted flours, ground almonds and sugar into the bowl, add the margarine and blend until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg and blend for 20–30 seconds until the mixture comes together to form a sticky dough, adding more water if needed.
5. Heat the margarine gently in a 20cm heavy-based frying pan with an ovenproof handle until melted. Sprinkle the sugar over the top, then arrange the apple halves, cut-side down, in one layer.
6. Cook over a gentle heat for 20–30 minutes until the apples are soft and golden and the liquid has caramelized. Remove from the heat.
7. Preheat the oven to 220°C/425°F/Gas 7. Roll the pastry out on a surface liberally dusted with rice flour into a round that is slightly larger than the frying pan. Be careful, as the pastry will still be slightly sticky. Trim the pastry neatly into a circle with a knife. Carefully lift the pastry with a metal spatula and place it on top of the pan, completely covering the apples.
8. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 20–25 minutes until the pastry is golden brown. Take the tart out of the oven and leave to cool in the pan for 2 minutes. Place a serving plate, upside-down, over the top of the pan, then, holding the pan and plate together, turn them over so that the tarte tatin turns out onto the serving plate with the caramelized apples on top, and serve.