Recipe - Hervey Bay Scallop & Prawn Pies.

  

Hervey Bay is renowned for its abundant seafood. The waters surrounding Fraser Island are rich with an incredible variety of species, but nice fresh prawns and scallops are perfect for these tasty seafood pies.

This recipe draws on tropical island flavours to compliment the subtle seafood tastes, so break out the rum, coconut milk and limes and give this recipe a go for your Christmas visitors.

We made a batch of 4 dozen for a birthday party recently and they went like hotcakes.

Recipe:

Makes approx. 20 individual serve pies

2 red onions, finely diced

Good splash olive oil

1 each leek and celery stalk finely diced

Half bunch thyme leaves chopped

Bunch fresh coriander chopped

3 red chillis chopped

2 cloves garlic crushed

30 ml Bundy rum - their Tropical Pineapple & Coconut blend is perfect if available

50 gm melted butter and 50 gm plain flour mixed to make a roux

1 cup coconut milk

1 kg peeled uncooked Fraser Coast prawns chopped

1 kg Hervey Bay scallop meat, halved.

Finely grated rind of 1 lime

Salt & pepper for seasoning

1 tin sweet corn kernels

Shortcrust pastry

2 egg yolks for brushing

Method

Heat oil in large pot or pan and add chopped onion, leek, celery, garlic, chillis, and thyme and soften over low heat.

Add coconut milk, coriander, rum, lime, sweet corn and let flavours combine over low heat for 5 minutes.

Add half of prawns and scallops for just a couple of minutes until juices just start to release and bubble.

Add roux slowly to pot while mixing to thicken. Add a little water or stock if necessary to achieve just enough thick sauce.

Remove from heat. Stir in remaining prawns and scallops and set aside.

Filling should be chunky and not too runny.

Grease individual pie flans with butter and line with shortcrust pastry.

Spoon filling into pies taking care not to overfill (about 2/3 filling).

Add shortcrust pastry top, crimp down all around onto pastry base and brush with egg yolk. Cut a vent into pie top to allow steam to escape.

Place in preheated oven at 190 degrees until pastry is golden and cooked (20 – 30 minutes).

Allow pies to cool a little before removing gently from flans.