Recipes taken from the Complete Traditional Recipe Book by Sarah Edington.

Northumbrian Hodgepodge Pie

© National Trust Books

‘Gees in Hoggepot’ and ‘Goos in hochepot’ are medieval ancestors of the Hodgepodge pie. It is a close relative of the Hot Pot. Where it differs is that several different meats are included in this one dish. Where it agrees is in the slices of crisp, golden potato that top it.

There are several different regional hodgepodge pies: Scottish Hodgepodge has mutton and peas in it. This Northumbrian version is thickened with pearl barley. All hodgepodges make a filling one-pot meal in a cold climate.

• 900g (2lb) stewing veal, pork and lamb in equal quantities
• Dripping (if you don’t have any dripping you can use untraditional olive or
  sunflower oil)
• 225g (8oz) onions, sliced
• 225g (8oz) carrots, sliced
• 600–850ml (1–11⁄2 pints) hot water mixed with 1 teaspoon Worcester sauce
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 2 tablespoons pearl barley
• 1 teaspoon mixed herbs
• 450g (1lb) potatoes, thinly sliced
• 50g (2oz) grated cheese
• Salt and pepper to taste

Serves 6

Preheat oven to 160°C, 325°F, gas mark 3. In a large frying pan brown the meat, a few pieces at a time, in the dripping or oil. Transfer the meat to a wide casserole dish. Next fry the onions and carrots for a few minutes. Stir in the flour to soak up the juices, then gradually add the hot water, stirring all the time until the liquid is smoothly blended. Pour the contents of the frying pan over the meat in the casserole – sprinkle in the pearl barley and mixed herbs and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Arrange the potato slices on top in an overlapping pattern. Cover with a lid and cook in the oven for 11⁄2 hours. Remove the lid, scatter over the grated cheese and cook for a further 50 minutes. If the top is not browning sufficiently, turn up the oven heat for the last 15 minutes or finish under the grill.

Leek and Potato Hotpot

This Leek and Potato Hot Pot comes from Lancashire. It’s a 'fatherless pie'. Vegetarian hotpots were made when the earner of the family was out of work and money was short. The Lancashire plain was full of market gardens and potato fields, so the leeks and potatoes were plentiful and good value.

A pity this excellent dish was viewed as second best. Now we can appreciate it in its own right.

• 450g (1lb) leeks
• 1 tablespoon sunflower oil
• 50g (2oz) butter
• 25g (1oz) plain flour
• 150ml (1⁄4 pint) milk
• 1 teaspoon mustard powder
• 175g (6oz) Cheddar cheese, grated
• 450g (1lb) new potatoes, cooked
• Finely chopped parsley, to serve

Serves 4

Preheat oven to 160°C, 325°F, gas mark 3. Trim, slice and wash the leeks in a colander. Sauté gently in the sunflower oil until soft but not mushy. Make a cheese sauce: melt the butter, and stir in and cook the flour for a couple of minutes. Gradually add the milk, stirring all the time, until the mixture comes to the boil and a thick sauce is made. Add the mustard and cheese and heat gently until melted into the sauce. Arrange half the potatoes in the bottom of each dish, then the leeks, then cover with the cheese sauce. Arrange the balance of the potatoes on top, brush with a little extra oil and bake uncovered in the oven for 20 minutes. Serve with a scattering of chopped parsley.

Border Tart

A Cumbrian recipe which uses the dried fruits that came from the Caribbean in the ships that docked in ports on the north-west coast of England. Serve this rich and sweet tart with yoghurt.

• 225g (8oz) shortcrust pastry
• 175g (6oz) currants
• 50g (2oz) walnuts, chopped lightly
• 50g (2oz) butter
• 50g (2oz) brown sugar
• 2 eggs

For the icing

• 75g (3oz) icing sugar
• Lemon juice

Serves 6

Preheat oven to 200°C, 400°F, gas mark 6. Grease and line a 20cm (8in) flan tin with the pastry. Wash the currants and put in a pan with the walnuts, butter and sugar. Melt, gently, stirring all the time, then turn the mixture into the flan case and spread evenly all over the base. Beat the eggs well and pour over the flan filling. Bake for 25–30 minutes until set, then take the tart out and leave to cool. In the meantime mix the icing sugar with enough lemon juice to make a pouring water icing.

Dribble this over the flan filling and leave to set.

The Complete Traditional Recipe Book contains more than 300 recipes.