Raised Chicken and Pork Pie

Makes one large pie or 6 small ones Oven temperature 375 degrees Fahrenheit Strip the meat off of the chicken and cut neatly into generous slices. Roughly chop the pork and bacon together, discarding the rind or bone. Don't use the food processor - you don't want to lose the texture. Season generously with salt, pepper, nutmeg and sage, and mix in the cider brandy. To make the pastry, add the fat to the water and heat together in a small pan. Put the flour and the salt in the food processor and tip the hot liquid in the machine while the machine is running, to form a workable dough. When it is cool enough to handle, but still very warm, cut off a quarter for the lid and keep that warm. Pat the remainder between the palms of your hands to flatten it - it should begin to look and feel like chamois leather - then line a large oval pie mold, 10 x 6 inches, starting at the bottom and drawing the dough up the sides so that it hangs over the edge of the mold. Work quickly, as the dough will be less pliable if it gets too cool. Roll out the remining piece of the dough to roughly the right shape for the top. Cover the bottom of the pie with a layer or chicken, then spread some pork mixture over that followed by a thin layer of parsley. Repeat the layers until the pie is full. Put the lid over the pie, and pinch together the sides and top, sealing them together with the beaten egg. Make a central hole in the lid and decorate with any left over pieces of pastry - in braids, leaves or whatever shape takes your fancy. Cover the pie with two layers of waxed paper to protect the pastry during the long baking. Bake it for two hours in the pre-heated oven, checking from time to time that it is not overbrowning. Take the pie out of the mold. Glaze the sides and top with the beaten egg and return to the oven. Cook for 10 minutes to color the pastry. To make the small pies, divide the pastry into six, remove a quarter from each prtion for the lid as your make each pie. Mold the warm dough around greased and well floured jam jars. Wrap around with several layers of nonstick baking parchment or waxed paper, cut to the height of the pie and tie loosley with string. Slide the pastry cases off of the jars carefully, so they don't collapse. Proceed for the large pie, except reduce the cooking time to 1 hour.