Guinness, Cotswold, Impossible Sausage Pie 🧀
Most of you know I’m a meat & badayyydas kinda gal. But we mostly cook healthy, these days.
So lately I’ve been trying to cook a couple recipes a week that allow us to eat more plant-based protein, but still enjoy flavors we love. It’s an experiment much of the time, though.
When we first heard how good Impossible sausage was, I decided pizza would be a good maiden voyage. Because if we weren’t fans, it would be easy enough to pick off the pizza, and not have dinner be a total loss 😜
Luckily, no backup plan was needed! I doctored up a pizza with Impossible sausage, ricotta, and some caramelized, balsamic onions I whipped up. And honestly? WOW. We were blown away by both the texture and flavor.
So when the pizza went swimmingly, I decided to take it up a notch: I subbed Impossible sausage into something I love to make, but rarely do. As the original version of my Guinness Sausage Cotswold pie is more of a holiday treat (with calories to match!)
But this new version with Impossible sausage, less butter, and low-sodium beef stock was a close mirror of the original, in flavor. And because it focuses on carrots and onions, not potatoes, and only has one sheet of pastry over the top (not underneath, as well), it’s got a ton less carbs, too.
The only thing I didn’t change? The Cotswold Double Gloucester 🧀. If you’ve ever had it, you wouldn’t compromise on it either 😜 Although sharp cheddah is a good swap, if you can’t find it. Here’s what you’ll need:
Pie filling
1 tbsp olive oil
1-14 oz. package Impossible Savory Sausage Crumbles
1 medium onion, chopped
3 medium carrots, cut into thin rounds
6 cloves garlic, minced (we ♥️ gahlic, so adjust if need be)
1 tablespoon butter
1-2 tablespoons flour
1 cup low-sodium beef stock
1-ish cups Guinness Stout beer (about 3/4-1 bottle)
3/4 cup grated Cotswold (or sharp cheddah 🧀)
Fresh ground black pepper
4-5 fresh thyme sprigs
Herbal sea salt
Pastry topping
1 large egg
1 tablespoon milk or water
1/4 cup grated Cotswold or sharp cheddah
1 (9-inch) pie crust
Chives
Defrost Impossible sausage and heat your oven to 375ºF.
Heat the oil in a large, deep pot on medium-high, 1-2 minutes. Add sausage to pan, browning a bit, taking care not to overcook (Unlike “real” sausage, this doesn’t have a ton of fat. So it is possible to dry it out. Aim to remove in a minute or two, to preserve moisture). Transfer sausage to a plate.
Add onions and carrots to pot. Cook, stirring every couple minutes until onions soften (about 5-7 minutes). Stir in garlic, butter and flour and cook, stirring constantly, until flour is absorbed, and darkens in color (about a minute or two).
Stir in stock, Guinness, and fresh thyme sprigs (don’t worry about removing the thyme from the sticks - once it simmers and softens for a few, it’ll come off easily). After a few minutes, reduce heat to medium. Simmer uncovered for an additional 5 min. Now add your sausage back in, for 2 minutes.
Remove pot from heat, and using a fork or some tongs, fish out your thyme sprigs and put them on a plate. They should be soft enough now, that you can just strip the leaves off with your finger. Then add the leaves back into the pot.
Add 3/4 cup of Cotswold, reserving 1/4 cup for the top of your pie. Add salt and/or pepper to taste (go easy on salt though - the cheese has a fair amount, already!)
Now make an egg wash by whisking your egg and milk/water together in a small bowl, until blended. Grease an 8x8 baking dish and spoon your filling in. Shape/roll out/cut crust so it covers the top of your dish. Brush the top of your pastry with egg wash and sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup of cheese on top. Add some chives on there, too.
Bake until crust and cheese are golden brown on top, about 30-40 minutes.
We like our cheese and pastry nice and browned, so I bake it closer to 40. Just check it frequently after 30, to ensure you get it to your ideal level of browned, melty goodness!
Now crack open a Guinness and let your pie cool a half hour, before digging in.
Hope you enjoy. Cheers! 🍻













