TO MAKE THE PASTRY : sift flour and salt into a bowl and add the cubed butter and rub butter into the flour using your fingertips until mixture resembles breadcrumbs then make a well in the center of the flour mix and add the egg yolk and water to the flour well , mixing with a round bladed knife to form a manageable dough , which leaves the sides of the bowl clean and all is combined together now knead together until a smooth dough , wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until needed .
PREPARING THE POTATOES : Wash , peel and cut the potatoes and place them in a pot of boiling water and boil for about 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes are cooked through , soft and tender , remove from heat and drain well , place drained potatoes into a bowl and mash them up well with the butter , once mashed well add the cream and whisk the cream through till smooth and creamy , set aside to cool .
PREPARING THE FILLING : Heat the olive oil in a large frypan and add the onions and cook for 5 minutes until soft now add the garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes , now add the mince , breaking the mince up , and cook over medium heat until mince is cooked through and browned , breaking up any lumps whilst cooking , next sprinkle the flour over the meat and stir through to combine , then add the beef stock , tomato paste , worcestershire sauce , salt and cracked black pepper to the pan and mix through well for a couple of minutes to combine all well , now bring to the boil then reduce heat slightly to simmer and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes or until mixture has reduced and thickened , then take off the heat and set aside to cool whilst you prepare pastry cases .
PREPARING THE PASTRY CASES : Brush patty tins / muffin tins lightly with oil or melted butter . Place chilled prepared pastry dough into a lightly floured surface and roll the pastry out very thinly . Using a glass as a guide , cut out 18 circles from the rolled out pastry . Place one pastry circle per patty tin hole , pressing in lightly to fit patty tin hole . once tins are full place them in a preheated oven at 200°C / 400°F and blind bake pastry cases lined with baking paper full of bean or rice to stop the inside of the pastry from rising and cake for 7 minutes then remove the paper and beans/rice and cook for a further 5 minutes , remove from heat and place on cooling rack to cool completely .
BUILDING THE POTATO PIES : Place the pastry cases on a baking paper lined baking tray and place spoonfuls of the prepared mince mixture into the individual pie cases till it reaches when top . now take a spoonful or two of the potato mixture and spread it over top of the meat filled pastry cases , you can rough up the potato surface with a fork if desired or you can pipe the mashed potato mix onto the meat filled pastry cases in a decorative way or as i did just smooth the surface over top and bring to a little peak .
THE COOKING PROCESS : Place prepared potato pies into the preheated oven at 200°C /400°F for 7 minutes , till potato tops harden a little , now add a little of the grated cheese to the top of each individual pie top and continue to cook for a further 7-10 minutes or until cheese has melted and is lightly golden , remove from the oven and place on serving plate , serve hot . enjoy . :-) .
