Salt Marsh Hogget & Cockle Pie

We couldn't celebrate #BritishPieWeek without sharing a recipe from Stosie at Parkers Arms. This recipe uses hand raised Cockerham salt marsh hogget & Morecambe Bay cockles and should be served with Pilling samphire, creamed mash and lamb gravy.

Pies you can find for National Pie Week at Parkers include:

• Creamed potato and Lancs cheese in  all butter rough puff
• Kamouney spiced smoked beetroot & beet leaves in Lancaster rapeseed oil sourdough fatayer ( fatayer is a middle Eastern pie shaped into parcels)
• Turbot, cod cheeks, Manx queenie scallops & parsley cream in all butter rough puff
• Herb fed free range Yorkshire chicken, Lancaster mushrooms and Bowland foraged ceps & Gisburn cream in chicken fat shortcrust pastry
• Curried hogget (lamb that is just over 1 year old so born last spring) pie in hogget fat pastry

Confit

Marinade boned breast in a mix of salt pepper rosemary and mint for 25 hrs, then rinse of salt pat dry & place in roasting tray, cover with lamb fat and cook sous vide or in combi oven on 70 degrees celcius for 6 hours, remove drain, wipe of excess fat and press overnight between 2 trays) 

Cockles

Place 1kg tightly shut cockles in shell into a smoking hot saucepan, add 250ml white wine, cover and cook for 2 mins until shells open. Pour into a colander reserve thoroughly sieved juice to add to lamb jus for the gravy. Pick the cockle meat and discard shells

To assemble

Rub aromatic paste & mint jelly into minced shoulder. Slice confit lamb thinly & mix with minced shoulder leg meat & cockles with their jus leave to marinade 24hrs. The next day season well with salt and pepper to taste and fry a little of the mixture to test the seasoning. Correct if necessary. Divide into 6 equal balls. 

For the pastry

1kg Good short crust pastry or hot water paste

Pie

Roll out individual pies if you wish or for a family of 6 roll half the pastry and place into a well greased tin. Press the filling in well then roll the rest of the pastry and cover the pie. Use a knife to form the edges. Glaze with a beaten egg and some milk, make a small hole in the centre and cook in a 180 degree preheated oven for 35 minutes until golden for a large pie 10 to 12 mins for individual pies. At Parkers we hand raise or them or shape them free form.

Serve with creamed mash and seasonal greens. Samphire is a delicious option as the iodine salty taste complements the sweetness of the hogget. Also delicious the day after with mint jelly as a great alternative to pork pie.

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