Hot water crust pastry

450g of plain flour

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg, beaten

200ml of water

80g of butter

80g of lard

For the stuffing

1 onion, finely chopped

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 apple, cored and grated (no need to peel)

1 handful of prunes, pitted, chopped (optional)

½ tsp dried rosemary

2 tbsp of breadcrumbs

Salt and pepper

For the filling

400g of skinned sausages or sausage meat

½ tsp dried rosemary

½ tsp dried thyme

½ tsp nutmeg

Salt and pepper

1) For the hot water crust pastry, combine the flour and salt in a large mixing bowl. Create a dip in the middle, add the egg to it and sprinkle a decent quantity of flour over the top.

2) Add the water, lard and butter to a pan and gradually bring to the boil over a medium heat. When the mixture is boiling, mix the liquid into the flour, using a knife to stir. Knead the dough until smooth and consistent in colour. Use straight away without resting, or it will become very hard and difficult to work with.

3) On a floured surface rollout the pastry to 1cm thickness. Cut out 8 rounds about 11.5cm across, and 8 rounds of 8cm. Use the larger rounds to line 8 holes in a muffin tin.

4) To make the stuffing, soften the onion, apple and garlic in a generous knob of butter until translucent, then add the prunes if using, rosemary and seasoning and stir for a couple of minutes.

5) Mix all the pie filling ingredients together and divide half into the 8 pastry cases and compress it down. Then add a layer of stuffing, followed by another layer of sausage meat.

6) Lightly wet the edges of the pies, and place a lid on top of each pie, crimping to seal the edges with your fingers. Brush some egg yolk over each pie to glaze and make a small cut in the middle of each pie to let the steam escape.

7) Bake for 40 minutes until golden and cooked through, then allow to cool before eating.