Inspirational Pies

Pies as iconic in Australia as kangaroos. 

Tasmania is an island with a best kept secret in its pastry industry that's not shared with mainland Australia, much less the world. And come lunch during my holiday week there, I've been stuffing myself silly with it. I just can't get enough of it.

Just what is it? Well, besides the usual range that you can get in every where else in Oz, the Tasmanian bakeries offer as their signature specials scallop pies. The richly creamy versions show case the shell fish's unique flavour to its best advantage. And the bakery in Oatlands has mastered that to perfection. The curried ones, though spiced to favour the Caucasian palate, sing in sweet harmony with the generous morsels of juicy scallops: the cake shop along Hobart's Battery Point even offers these in neat little bite sizes - just the ticket to perfect your afternoon tea.

Still it's just as well that mainland Australia doesn't offer this delectable treat. Otherwise I wouldn't have ordered the beef and mushroom pie in Denmark, Western Australia. And thus would have missed out on a palatable sensation made for heaven. The gravy in this pie spurts loads of piping hot woody mushroom flavour. You literally can't put it down until you've taken the very last hearty bite. Ummmm... my mouth's watering just thinking about it.

So it's little wonder that this Australian road trip has inspired me to steam back into my kitchen to whip up some gastronomical delights of my own. Hubby will be taking to work sumptuous slices of his favourite beef and Burgundy pie. It would be slices as he can never get through his lunch without some work colleague wanting to take a bite or two. So taking along more than one ensures there's sufficient to share.

I'm also putting into my oven my version of a chicken curried pie so that the spices are loaded to better suit the discerning Singaporean palate (yes, after 8 years working here, hubby has become acclimatized to the local spiciness). I intend to cook the meat the way the local curry is made, and then adhere to the Caucasian recipe of adding peas and carrots to the pot. Thus creating a pie by taking the best of two national cuisines.

And to keep my vegetarian friends happy, I'll offer them a really cheesy tattie pie. And this should be eaten piping hot so that the cheese remains runny through the multiple layers of thinly sliced creamy potatoes, with skins still intact to enhance the nutritional value of this pastry.