Beef and Cheese Dumpling Bake

Ingredients:800g beef mince
2 medium sized onions, diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 stalks celery, diced
2 tb canola oil
3/4 cup red wine (I used Shiraz)
2 tb tomato paste
1 tb beef stock powder
2 tb flour
800ml water
6 leaves of basil, roughly torn
2 bayleaves
sprinkling of parsley


Dumplings:
75g butter
1 1/2 cups self raising flour
1/2 cup grated cheese
water as required

Plus 1/2 cup of cheese to sprinkle at the end..


Method:
In an oven proof dish or a saucepan you can transfer to an oven proof dish, heat your canola oil and sweat the onion, carrot, and celery until onion becomes soft and transparent.

Add the mince and brown well.
Add red wine, sprinkle the flour, stock powder over the meat and pour over the water and stir in the tomato paste.   Add the basil, parsley and bay leaves.  Simmer on low whilst you prepare the dumplings
Preheat oven to 160 degrees c.

In a food processor, place flour, butter and cheese.  Process until it resembles breadcrumbs, about 1 minute.  Gradually add water until the mixture becomes dough-like.  Remove from processor and roll into 15 equal sized dumplings - about the size of a golf ball.
If you have been using a saucepan, transfer meat to a deep baking pan, preferably one with a lid.  If not, have some aluminium foil at the ready.

Place the dumpling on top, spaced evenly across your pot/pan and put lid on, cover as tightly as possible with foil.
Place in the oven for about 20 minutes, take off the lid, and sprinkle with the other 1/2 cup cheese.  Place lid back on for further 5 minutes.