Having lived in Bristol for over 10 years now, one of the best things it has produced is definitely its Pieminister pies! I always loved having a Heidi pie (goats cheese, spinach and sweet potato) but after being diagnosed as a coeliac four years ago, these became a thing of the past.
That was until Pieminister recently introduced their gluten free pies! Only three of their pies are gluten free at present, but one of them just so happens to be the Heidi pie! Wahoo! 🙂
Pieminister kindly offered me the chance to try their gluten free pies – there was no way I could say no to that!
Before I get on to the review, here’s a little bit more about their gluten free pies, taken from their website:
We’ve spent the best part of a year rolling, mixing, tasting and baking to create Gluten Free Moo and Heidi pies. And proof that they taste just as great as their non-GF counterparts, they both triumphed in the 2016 British Pie Awards. Taking first place in the Free From Class, the Gluten Free Heidi was crowned Class Champion, making it officially the best gluten free pie in the UK. The Gluten Free Moo was placed in the top three ‘Free From’ pies in Britain, winning a Gold Medal and the ‘Highly Commended’ title.
We were determined that our gluten free pastry – which we make with soya and rice flour – would have the same golden, buttery lightness as our regular shortcrust recipe. So we tested them on some very lucky coeliac and non-coeliac pie fans who all unanimously agreed that our GF versions were just as delicious as our Classics.
* Since this article was written they then added Gluten Free Ranger to make the three gluten free pies currently available.
I was lucky to receive some of each of the three gluten free pie varieties and couldn’t wait to get started on them!
First up was the Heidi pie for me (obviously!) and the Moo for Rich (the Moo is a British beef and gf craft ale pie).
Despite not having one of these pies for well over four years, the Heidi pie tasted just as amazing as I remember. I love the combination of goats cheese, sweet potato and spinach anyway, so that’s why this was always my favourite.
The gluten free pastry that Pieminister have spent a long time perfecting was definitely well worth it. It was of a substantial thickness to ensure that the pie retained its shape, but wasn’t too thick to detract from the filling. These are definitely the best gluten free pies I’ve had! 🙂
Rich also rated the Moo pie very highly. In comparison to some other gf pies it is very clear that Pieminister include a lot more filling in their pies, as demonstrated by this photo of the Moo pie!
Unfortunately we had a bit of a problem when cooking the Ranger pies (chicken, ham, leek and thyme) as we discovered our oven was broken halfway through(!), so photos weren’t a high priority, but they were also lovely, filling pies.
Well done Pieminister!! 🙂
All three of these pies are available nationwide as part of Pieminister’s gluten free menu in their Bristol (Broad Quay and Stokes Croft), Cardiff, Leeds and Nottingham restaurants.
You can also buy the pies – to cook at home – at some of the UK’s finest food markets and independent retailers, including London’s Borough Market, Bristol’s Tobacco factory Market, and Harrods’ famous food hall. You can also have them delivered direct to your door by ordering them through Pieminister’s online shop in boxes of 6 or 12.
To find out more about Pieminister you can visit their website, like them on Facebook or follow them on Twitter.
Not A Trace 