Take me down memory lane! (Tourtiere Recipe)

Before Christmas on Twitter everyone was sharing about holiday traditions.  Tourtiere is a French-Canadian Christmas tradition, enjoyed at large parties.  The recipe makes enough for a big party that’s for sure, so plan a party, or freeze some.  The recipe I found was a two day process, cook the Tourtiere, and let it sit overnight.

You may remember, I am a big fan of venison.  So instead of beef in the recipe, I used ground venison.  The venison is so much leaner then beef. I did ask my French Canadian friends on Twitter if it was okay to substitute venison, they said “why not?’

The recipe I found was on Foodbuzz.  Thank you to Brendan from the Nights Around the Table blog.  There is actually a lot of different variations to the recipe on the internet.  From what I have since learned from my friend Josie, the recipe I used is pretty much a traditional Tourtiere recipe.

The different spices I used were so unique for me, I have never used them together before. When it was done cooking, I felt like I was back on Mackinac Island, Michigan ordering a Pasty with beef gravy.   Seriously, this recipe brought back a lot of fun memories.  When my family would travel to Mackinac Island, we always got excited about getting Pasties.  They are a individual meat pie, topped with delicious gravy.  Aaaahhhhh…memories, and fun memories too!  The trip also included getting amazing caramel corn, and homemade taffy…….YUM…..I better stop, I am getting hungry!

Thank you to my Sissy!  Here is a couple pictures she took this summer while she was in Mackinac…..aaaannnnndddd getting a Pasty….was sooooo jealous:)

Here is the “Take me down memory lane”  recipe:

Makes 3 pies or several individual pies:

Filling:

1 lb ground pork

1 lb venison

2 cups potato diced

1 cup fine to coarse unseasoned breadcrumbs

4 cups beef stock

1 onion finely diced

3 bay leaves

2 tbsp olive oil

3 cloves garlic minced

¼ tsp paprika

¼ tsp nutmeg

¼ tsp sage

Pinch of cloves

Salt and pepper to taste

Heat large pot or dutch oven with olive oil on Medium heat. Soften onions until translucent, and then add garlic, bay leaves and spices.

Heat for no more that 20 seconds before adding stock so that garlic doesn’t burn. Add potatoes and bring to a boil, then remove bay leaves and add uncooked meat to stock.

Simmer for 20 minutes (or until meat is no longer pink) skimming fat as it cooks.

(This device is used to help break up the ground meat easier, love this!)

Stir in breadcrumbs and turn off the heat. Cool and let sit in fridge overnight before using.

I was sooooo excited to have dinner, and it was so worth the wait, Oh My YUM!

But WAIT…you have to put the meat mixture in a pie crust.  Now I have made homemade pie crusts, here is the recipe I used when I made Tart Aux Pommes.  For the holidays though, I bought a bunch of already prepared pie crusts on sale.  So instead of letting them go bad, I decided to use them for the Tourtiere.  I also decided to change things up, and instead of a whole pie, I made individual pies like the Pasties I so love.

You want to be careful, and not add too much meat mixture in the mini pies.

I did brush them with an egg wash before baking them.  I baked them at 425 for about 20 minutes, or until golden brown.

It was a wonderful dish, and I will definitely be making it again.  It is really easy, and fun to make:)

Have you ever made Tourtiere? Have you ever had a Pasty?

Until next time, Come on in, Have a seat,

Hugs, Terra

Tagged as: Baking, Blog, Cooking, Foodbuzz, Mackinaw Island, Michigan, Pasties, Recipe, Tart Aux Pommes, Tourtiere, Twitter, Venison