Chicken Pie

I love chicken pie but haven't made it for ages. I roasted a delicious free range chicken for our dinner on Sunday and there was so much chicken left over.

We had enough for some in our sandwiches for lunch the next day and for another meal. I decided to use the remaining chicken in a pie and it gave me a chance to use my new red pie dish. I think you just see a glimpse of the wonderful red colour in the picture.

I used a packet of bought puff pastry for the top of the pie. It gives a really flaky, crispy top that is quick, simple and scrumptious. I served this pie with hot buttery mashed potato.

This pie would easily serve 4 I think.

Ingredients

Olive Oil

2 knobs of butter

Around 800g of cooked chicken, cut into chunks

2 medium leaks, sliced

2 carrots, peeled and roughly chopped

2 sticks celery, sliced

a small handful of thyme

2 tbsp flour

1 wineglass of white wine

half a pint of milk

2-3 large mushrooms, chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper

6 good pork sausages

1 500g block of puff pastry

1 egg

Preheat the oven to gas mark 7/180C.

Put a glug of olive oil and the butter in a large saucepan and heat gently. Add the leaks, carrots, celery, thyme and mushroooms and cook slowly for about 10 minutes. Add the flour and stir in, then add the wine, a wineglass of water and the milk. Season with salt and pepper then cover and simmer on the hob for about 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender. Stir it every so often so it doesn't catch on the bottom.

Place the chicken in a pie dish and then pour the vegetable mixture over the top. Squeeze the meat out of the sausage skins and roll into small balls. Brown them in a little oil and then sprinkle them over the mixture.

Roll out the pastray so it is about 0.5cm thick. Egg wash the rim of the pie dish and drape the pastry over the dish. Trim the pastry to fit. Egg wash the top of the pie then pinch the edges to crimp them. Use the back of a knife to criss-cross the top of the pie. Cook the pie in the centre of the oven for 30 - 40 minutes until golden.