CHEESE AND SALAMI PIES
For the white sauce:
500 ml milk
40 g cake flour
40 g butter
a pinch of cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
Melt the butter in a small pot over low heat. Add the flour and mix to form a smooth paste and cook for about 1-2 minutes. Add the milk slowly and little-by-little while continuously whisking with your wooden spoon. Continue to stir or whisk until the sauce starts to thicken. Reduce the heat even more and cook for 3-5 minutes. The sauce must never boil vigorously. Allow to cool.
Now add:
2 cups chopped salami – it is 1 small salami chopped up
2 cup grated mature cheddar
about 2 tablespoons chopped herbs like parsley- optional
Once you have mixed the white sauce with the cheese and salami, allow to cool off completely. You can even make this a day in advance.
To make the pies:
Preheat oven to 200 ºC. Break egg in a cup and keep one side. Roll out the pastry to about 5mm and use a cookie cutter or stacking ring to cut out pastry circles. I make about 12 pies (9 cm in diameter) from this, so you will need 24 circles. Brush the edges of the pastry circles with some egg white. Spoon some of the cheese/salami filling on 12 of the pastry discs and top with the other 12 discs. Use a fork to press the edges of the pies, making sure there are no gaps. Use the rest of the egg wash to brush the pies before baking it in the oven for 20-25 minutes.
Recipe and photo: Franco Dippenaar
