Today’s recipe is something a bit more special. As it’s Good Friday and everything’s closed and even if there was something open we shouldn’t go there because we’re in Stage 3 lockdown here.

So what better thing to do than bake a pie. This chicken pie is a tasty dish with layers of starting with the bacon and climaxing with the goat cheese and tarragon. Give yourself a good two hours to prepare and cook this dish, but I promise you it’s well worth the effort.

Put your slippers on, pour yourself a wine and let’s get into it.

Ingredients:

Chicken Breast                           approx 600gram sliced

Bacon                                          250 gram sliced

Leek                                             1 large, sliced

Brown Onion                              2 medium sliced

Red chilli                                      2 sliced

Green Chilli                                 1 sliced

Green beans                                200 gram, top and tailed

Continental Cream of

Mushroom Soup                        1 x 420 gram can

Continental french

onion soup mix                         1/2 pack

Plain Flour                                  2 Tablespoons

Goat Cheese                                2 x 100-gram packs

Master foods Garlic

and Rosemary                          2 heaped teaspoon

Tarragon                                     2 tablespoon – can be fresh or dried

White Wine                                2 cups

Puff Pastry                                  4 to 6 sheets, thawed (depending on the size of your pie dish)

Eggs                                              2 whisked, (for egg wash)

Butter                                            2 tablespoons

Olive Oil                                        3 tablespoon

Method:

Before you start cooking separate six sheets of puff pastry from the pack and put aside to thaw.

1. Melt one tablespoon of butter, and a splash of olive oil in a large skillet and brown the leek, onion and chillies for about 4 minutes.
2. Add the chicken and bacon, then brown until golden.
3. Add the soups, both can and packet, herbs, white wine, garlic and goat cheese, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes. Add the flour to the sauce and stir until well mixed and the mix has thickened. Turn off and uncover to cool when completed.

   

4. While the filling is simmering, grease your pie dish and using 2 to 3 sheets of puff pastry cover the base of your pie dish. The pie dish featured is a 32cm falcon enamel pie dish which needed three sheet’s of puff pastry to cover. Remember to apply the whisked egg to all the overlapping areas of puff to ensure they stick together.
5. We’re going to blind bake the pastry crust which helps prevent the dreaded soggy bottom of the pie. You can skip this step is you want, but I think when you’re eating it, a crispy base is preferable to the alternative. To blind bake, give the pastry a spray with some olive oil, then cover completely with aluminium foil. Fill the interior with rice or dried beans and bake for 15 minutes at 200º Celcius. When finished, tip out the rice, (you can still use it) remove the foil and put aside to cool.

   

   

6. When the pastry and chicken mix has cooled, ladle a layer of the filling into the pie dish then add the green beans and scoop the rest of the chicken into the pie dish. Use a pastry brush and apply a generous coat of the egg wash to the pastry edge to allow the top to stick to the crust. Cover the dish with the remaining pastry, press down the edges firmly with a fork, then trim off any excess pastry. Go over the top of the pastry top with the egg wash.

   

   

7. Bake at 200º Celcius for 40 minutes then let it rest for five minutes before serving.

   

Serve direct from the pie dish as there’s a good chance it will collapse if you try to tip it out.

I hope you enjoy this dish and don’t be afraid to play with the ingredients to put your stamp on it.

Have fun and cook on.!!!!

Cheers,

Bryan