280&281/984 - Mum's steak and kidney pie with home-made lard pastry

This was my first experience of cooking with ox kidney and I must say the smell did not thrill me at all. 

Stephanie suggested that soaking the kidney in warm water with either lemon juice or vinegar would reduce the smell and so in desperation I used both. I was not on my own, Trev kept walking through the kitchen with his nose screwed up and a pained look on his face. Not a good start for the kidney chapter!

Trimming and chopping the kidney didn't thrill me either and I was seriously worried that there was finally a chapter that was going to beat me. While the steak and kidney were cooking I kept tentatively lifting the lid, hoping that I would finally enjoy the aroma, but alas I was consistently disappointed. Needless to say, when the pies were cooked, I was thrilled that I actually enjoyed the taste. The terrible smell was worth it! 

The lard pastry was a revelation, coming together easily, although I did need to add a handful of flour because the mixture was so sticky it was difficult to work with. I ended up with a beautiful silky ball of pastry that was easy to roll after chilling for a spell in the fridge.

I decided to hang the pastry over the edge of my ramekins to allow for shrinkage, and was surprised to see that this pastry did not shrink at all. I think I love lard pastry! 

Another lovely dish, and not too challenging for my party of offal lovers.