A squab is a young pigeon and a ‘Squab Pie’ in some parts of Britain originally contained domestic pigeons. But over the years other meats have taken the place of pigeons, (who organised a massed protest in Trafalgar Square) and in Yorkshire  it is pork that appears in most regional recipes. Here’s one I adapted from an old recipe:

Ingredients

• 8 oz (225 g) lean pork
• One large apple (a cooking apple works best)
• One large onion
• One large potato
• 15 fl. oz of meat stock (I cheated and used a pork stock cube)
• Seasoning, including a little dried or fresh sage
• A fairly thick layer of pastry to cover  (I used puff pastry, but shortcrust works just as well)

Method

1. Slice the onions, apple and potato.
2. Cut the meat into small pieces.
3. Fry together the onions, apple and potato to soften these and to brown the meat.
4. Add the stock & seasoning and simmer the mixture in a pan for 1 hour.
5. Arrange the mixture in a pie dish.
6. Allow it to cool.
7. When the meat mixture is cold, cover with the pastry; glaze the pastry with a beaten egg.
8. Bake in hot oven (gas mark 6/electric 400 F/fan electric 190 until the pastry is golden brown (around 45-50 minutes)

Original Source:  Victoria Wright (1981) A Haworth Kitchen: recipes from the home of the Brontes.  ISBN: 0903775123.