Hamburg Pie

This old-school ground beef pie makes its own crust. Browned hamburger and onion go into the bottom of a pan, get topped with cheddar cheese, then a simple batter of eggs, milk, and Bisquick gets poured over everything and puffs up in the oven into a golden, biscuit-like top. No rolling out dough, no fussing with pie crust.

Brown the beef with the minced onion first and drain off the fat thoroughly. This step matters more than you’d think; leftover grease in the pan will soak into the biscuit batter from below and make the bottom soggy instead of set. Spread the drained meat evenly in a greased 9-inch pan and scatter the grated cheddar across the top.

The Bisquick batter is thin when you pour it on, almost like pancake batter. Don’t worry if it doesn’t look like enough to cover everything. At high heat, the eggs and baking mix in the Bisquick puff up around and over the meat and cheese, forming a self-crusting top that’s crispy on the outside and soft inside. Twenty-five minutes and it’s done.

Kitchen Tips

• Drain the cooked beef well; press it with a paper towel in the pan to absorb excess grease
• Whisk the egg-milk-Bisquick batter until smooth with no lumps for an even rise
• Let the pie rest 5 minutes before cutting so the batter sets completely
• A 9-inch pie dish or cake pan works equally well

Variations

• Cheeseburger pie: Add pickles, mustard, and ketchup drizzled on top after baking
• Mexican: Season the beef with taco seasoning and use pepper jack cheese
• Veggie-loaded: Mix diced bell peppers and mushrooms into the beef