Egg and Bacon Pie

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •23cm deep metal pie tin
• •Rolling pin
• •Large frying pan

Instructions

1. 1

   Make the pastry

   Tip the flour and salt into a large bowl. Add the cold butter and rub it in with your fingertips until the mixture looks like rough breadcrumbs. Some larger pieces of butter are fine, welcome even. They'll make the pastry flaky. Add the egg yolk and enough cold water to bring it together into a dough. Don't knead it. Just press it until it holds, wrap it in cling film, and let it rest in the fridge for at least thirty minutes. The pastry needs to be cold when it goes into the tin, or it will slump and sulk in the oven.

   Cold hands and cold butter. If the kitchen is warm, grate the butter on a box grater straight from the freezer. It makes the rubbing-in quicker and keeps everything cool.
2. 2

   Prepare the bacon

   While the pastry rests, lay the bacon rashers in a dry frying pan over a medium heat. Cook until the fat renders and the edges start to colour and crisp, but stop before they go brittle. You want them cooked through with a bit of give still. Lift them onto a plate and let them cool. Cut or tear into large pieces. The bacon will finish cooking in the pie, so don't push it too far now.

3. 3

   Line the tin

   Set the oven to 190C/170C fan. Cut the pastry roughly into two pieces, one slightly larger than the other. Roll the larger piece out on a floured surface until it's about the thickness of a pound coin. Lift it into a deep 23cm pie tin or dish, pressing it gently into the corners. Let the excess hang over the edges for now. Roll the smaller piece for the lid and set it aside on a floured board.

   A metal pie tin conducts heat better than ceramic and gives you a crisper base. If you only have a ceramic dish, put a baking tray in the oven while it heats and set the dish straight onto it.
4. 4

   Build the filling

   Scatter half the bacon pieces across the pastry base. Crack six of the seven eggs directly onto the bacon, spacing them so they sit in a rough single layer. It doesn't need to be neat. Some yolks will settle between others; that's what you want. When you cut into the pie later, each slice should reveal a yolk. Scatter the remaining bacon over and around the eggs. Grind over a good amount of black pepper. Beat the last egg with the cream and the parsley, and pour this gently over everything. The cream mixture should settle around the eggs without covering the yolks completely.

5. 5

   Seal and glaze

   Brush the pastry rim with beaten egg. Lay the lid over the top, pressing the edges together firmly. Trim the excess with a sharp knife, then crimp with a fork or pinch it between your fingers, whichever feels right. Cut two small slits in the top to let steam escape. Brush the whole lid with beaten egg. If you've got a scrap of pastry left, cut a leaf or two and press them on. Or don't. The pie doesn't care.

6. 6

   Bake the pie

   Bake for forty to fifty minutes, until the pastry is deep golden and the filling has set. You'll know it's done when you give the tin a gentle shake and the centre barely moves. If the pastry is colouring too quickly, lay a piece of foil loosely over the top for the last ten minutes. Let it rest in the tin for at least fifteen minutes before you attempt to cut it. Warm from the oven, the yolks will still be slightly soft in the centre. Cold, they'll be set and firm, and the pie will slice cleanly. Both are good. Different, but good.

   For a picnic, let it cool completely in the tin, then refrigerate. It cuts much better cold. Wrap the whole tin in a tea towel and take it as it is.

Chef Tips

• •The number of eggs depends on the size of your tin and the size of your eggs. Six fits comfortably in a 23cm dish. If you can squeeze in a seventh, do. Each slice should have its own yolk, or near enough. That's the whole point of the pie.
• •Smoked back bacon is what you want here. Streaky will work but it shrinks and crisps too much. You need pieces with some substance, some chew, something that holds its own against the pastry and the eggs.
• •Don't salt the filling. The bacon carries enough salt for the whole pie. Season with pepper only, generously, and let the bacon do the rest. If you salt it as well, the first bite will make you wince.
• •This pie is better on the second day. The pastry firms, the flavours settle, everything tightens up. If you're making it for a picnic, bake it the evening before and refrigerate overnight. It will reward your patience.

Advance Preparation

• •The pastry can be made a day ahead and kept wrapped in the fridge. Bring it out twenty minutes before rolling so it's firm but not rigid.
• •The whole pie keeps refrigerated for up to three days. It improves overnight as the pastry and filling settle into each other.
• •Slices well straight from the fridge. No need to bring it to room temperature first, though you can warm individual slices in a low oven for ten minutes if you prefer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 200g)