Pumpkin & Celeriac Pie with White Onion Sauce

Ingredients:

Pre bought shortcrust pastry roll
2 x celeriac discs
300g diced pumpkin
60g caramelised shallots
5g picked thyme
100g seasonal wild mushrooms
30g baby spinach - picked and washed

For the White Onion cream:
1Kg English onion – peeled and finely sliced
65o ml semi skimmed milk

Method:
White Onion Cream:
• Put the sliced onions in a heavy bottomed saucepan and cover with milk, placing a disc of baking parchment over the top
• Bring to the boil and simmer until the onions are very tender, making sure the milk does not catch
• Strain and reserve the milk.
• Place all the onions in a tall blender, add one ladle of the cooking milk and blend.
• Pass and season with salt and ground white pepper to taste

Pumpkin and Celeriac Pie:

• Line metal rings with buttered parchment paper
• Roll out the shortcrust pastry to 2mm in thickness
• Re-line the rings with the pastry and seal the edges with water
• Cook the celeriac disc and diced pumpkin separately in seasoned milk and leave to cool on a tray
• Mix the diced pumpkin with the caramelised shallots and picked thyme leaves
• In the bottom of the pie put one tablespoon of the diced pumpkin and shallot mix
• Place the celeriac disc on top of the pumpkin mix and season
• Repeat the same process again, seasoning each layer
• Fold over the edges at the top and place on the lid
• Egg-wash the top of the pie
• Bake the pie at 180˚c for 25 minutes

To Serve:
Cut each pie in half and open outwards in the middle of a main course plate. Spoon some onion sauce in the middle of the pie. Pan fry the wild mushrooms in butter with the baby spinach leaves and season with salt and pepper. Place next to the pie and serve.