Tourtière

One of my favourite dishes from Quebec is tourtière - a meat pie made with beef & pork and a unique blend of seasonings.  Depending on where you are from in Quebec, there are a few different ways to make this popular dish.  They are all delicious though, and here is my version that blends together a couple recipes I have tried in the past.

TOURTIÈRE
4 cloves of garlic, minced
3 onions, diced
1 tbsp. oil
2.5 lbs. ground pork
2.5 lbs. ground beef
1/4 c. flour
2 tbsp. Epicure's 3 Onion Dip Mix
2 tsp. Epicure's Pumpkin Pie Spice
1 tbsp. Epicure's Montreal Steak Spice or Beef & Steak Seasoning
salt & pepper
4 potatoes, grated
2 c. beef stock

In a large pot over medium heat, soften the garlic and onions in oil.  Add the ground meat and cook until it is all browned.  Drain if necessary.  Stir in flour and seasonings, add grated potatoes and stock, and continue cooking for about 40-45 minutes, stirring frequently.  Remove from heat and let it cool.

There are a few ways you can make your tourtière:

• The traditional way is to make meat pies.  Roll out a pie crust, fill it up with tourtière filling, and then cover with another pie crust and bake in the oven according to your pie crust recipe.
• You can also try my "Tourtière Triangles" recipe and use puff pastry to make individual popovers which are super delicious.
• You can use a mini muffin tin and make little tarts (which I baked, then froze, then reheated to serve on Christmas Eve as appetizers.)

• Or you can toss the filling into freezer bags (I suggest 4 c. portions) and use it later to make meat pies.

This recipe makes a HUGE BATCH!  I made one meat pie, 2 or 3 freezer bags to make meat pies later on, 8 puff pastry triangles, and about 36 mini tarts.

Tourtière is especially tasty with ketchup on the side.... you can use regular old ketchup, or get a little fancy and try some homemade or gourmet ketchup (made with cranberries or something like that.)  It's great comfort food, and perfect for stocking up your freezer with ready-to-go meals.