Holiday meat pie

Ingredients

• 437 ml (1 3/4 cups) ground almonds
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) water
• 4 eggs, large
• 0.6 ml (1/8 tsp) salt
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) grated Parmesan cheese
• 454 g (1 lb) lean ground beef
• 250 ml (1 cup) reduced-sodium tomato sauce
• 30 ml (2 tbsp) chia seeds (or ground flaxseed)
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) dried Italian herbs
• 2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) paprika
• 15 ml (1 tbsp) 1% partly skimmed milk
• 2.5 ml (1/2 tsp) dry mustard
• 1/2 cup (125 ml) light mozzarella cheese, grated

Preparation

1. Preheat the oven to 190°C (375°F).
2. Mix the almond powder, water, an egg, salt and Parmesan cheese in a bowl until a dough forms. Between two sheets of parchment paper, roll out the dough with a rolling pin. Place in a lightly greased pie tin. Reserve.
3. Fry the minced meat in a non-stick pan. Drain.
4. In a large bowl, combine the cooked meat, tomato sauce, an egg, chia seeds, Italian herbs and paprika.
5. Pour the mixture over the pastry and spread.
6. In a small bowl, beat two eggs with the milk and dry mustard. Pour over the mixture and cover with grated cheese.
7. Bake in the center of the oven for 30-40 minutes or until the top crust is firm. Watch for burns on the bottom crust (cover the edges with foil if the top filling is not yet firm, but the edge of the pie is starting to brown).
8. Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack. The pâté is easier to cut when cooled. Even better when reheated the next day.