Chicken Mushroom and Leek Pie

Whilst it is supposed to be summer in Britain, the weather is not very summery, and today it is like winter. Thinking about what to do for tea tonight on this very wet and wintry day, what nicer than a chicken mushroom and leek pie.

Cost - approx £1.60 per person
Serves 2

Ingredients for the pie filling:

2 Chicken breasts
200g Leeks - washed and finely sliced
160g of Mushrooms - cleaned and quartered
1 TBLSP of butter
1TBSPS of plain flour
1 Pint of chicken stock
Salt and pepper to taste

Ingredients for the shortcrust pastry :

200g plain flour
Pinch of salt
100g butter - diced
Cold water
3 TBLSP of milk to glaze

Method for the pie filling:

• Trim the chicken breasts and cut into bite size chunks
• Take the leeks, cut them down the middle and wash, then slice
• In a large pan, add the the butter and melt on a low heat, add the leeks and mushrooms stir well and cover and cook on a low heat for 10 minutes to sweat down the leeks and mushrooms, stirring once in a while to stop the from burning.
• Add the flour to the pan and stir in well
• In a frying pan, add a little oil and add the chicken, and on a low to medium heat cook for 5 minutes, you are not looking to brown the meat
• Add the chicken to the pan and mix well
• Add the chicken stock to the pan and bring to the boil, reduce heat and simmer on a low heat with the lid on for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally
• Taste the gravy in the pan, and add salt and pepper if required
• Get a bowl and a strainer and put the contents of the pan in the strainer and let the gravy strain into the bowl
• Place the chicken, leek and mushroom mix into a pie dish
• Take some of the gravy and add to the pie dish, until it comes about 3 quarters up the mix and set aside
• Put the rest of the gravy in a pan and set aside

The cubed chicken breast

The washed and sliced leeks

The sweated leeks and mushrooms

The cooked chicken - note you are not looking to brown the meat

The filled pie dishes ready for the shortcrust pastry

Method for the shortcrust pastry:

• Place flour and salt in a bowl
• add the butter
• Rub the butter into the flour until it looks like fine breadcrumbs

The flour and butter rubbed in

• Take a tablespoon and start adding the water, one tablespoon at a time, mixing the water into the flour and butter. Repeat adding the water until the dough comes together

The resulting dough after adding the water

• Put the dough in a plastic food bag/cling film and put it in the fridge for at least half an hour

Method of assembling the pie:

• Take the dough out of the fridge and roll out
• Cut a thin strip and brush milk round the edge of the pie dish
• Put the all-round the edge of the pie dish and then brush with the milk
• Place the rolled out lid onto the pie
• Then with a tines of a fork, press gently down to seal
• with the remaining milk brush the top of the pie to glaze
• With a knife, make a few holes in the top of the pie
• Cook for 50 minutes at 220 degrees C and serve

The pie dish prepared ready for sealing with the lid

The pies ready for glazing and baking

The cooked pie

Serve with mashed potato and vegetables, using the reserved gravy.

Belly Pork with braised cabbage and creamy mashed potato

Belly Pork with creamy mashed potatoes and braised cabbage

The cooked belly pork

Costs - Approx £2.70p per person
Serves - 2 people

Ingredients:

For the belly pork:

• 1 KG of Belly Pork
• 2 TSP of salt
• 4 TBLSP of oil
• 2 TSP of course ground black pepper

For the potatoes

• 400g Potatoes
• 2 TBLSP Butter
• 50ml of Milk
• Salt and pepper to taste

For the braised cabbage:

• 150g Cabbage
• 1 TBLSP butter
• 1 TBLSP of water
• Salt and pepper

Method for the belly pork:

• Turn your oven onto full heat for 30 minutes before putting the meat in the oven
• If the butcher has not scored the pork rind, take a sharp knife and score the top of the rind.
• Remove moisture from pork rind by dabbing with kitchen paper towel.
• Mix salt and oil and rub all over pork belly, including the rind.
• Place pork, rind side up, on the grill rack
• Sprinkle the ground black pepper onto the rind, and rub into the rind
• Take some kitchen foil and pack it around the meat, but leave the rind exposed
• Place the pork belly in the oven and turn down the oven to 145 Degree C and roast for 5 hours - Do not baste the rind during cook

Method for the braised cabbage:

• Cut cabbage in quarters, cut out and discard the hard stems, and chop cabbage into bite-size pieces.
• Melt butter in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat. Add cabbage, sprinkle with salt, and add the water. Stir to combine, cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until cabbage is very tender and liquid is absorbed, about 10 mins
• Season to taste with salt and pepper to taste

Method for the potato:

• Boil potatoes until soft
• heat gently the butter and milk
• Add the melted butter and milk to the potatoes
• Mash well and add salt and pepper to taste

Assemble the meal and enjoy!

The cut of belly pork with the rind scored

The belly pork prepared with the oil, salt and course ground black pepper

The cooked belly pork

Cottage Pie

Cottage Pie



The cooked cottage pie

Approx Cost - £2.50p
Serves - 4 people

Ingredients:

• 600g peeled potatoes, quartered
• 100ml milk
• 40g butter
• Salt and ground black pepper
• 1 TBLSP oil
• 1 finely chopped medium onion
• 1 finely chopped medium carrot
• 2 clove garlic finely chopped
• 400g ground/ minced beef
• 500 ml beef stock
• 115g finely chopped white mushrooms
• 1 TSP of dried parsley
• Dash of Worcester sauce
• 1 TBLSP all-purpose flour
• 50g grated Cheddar Cheese

Method:

• Boil the potatoes until soft, drain. Place the milk and butter in the pan with the boiled potatoes and mash, and set aside
• Heat the oil in a large pan. Add the onion and carrot and fry on a medium heat for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and cook for another minute. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
• Add the beef to the pan and fry gently until browned. Depending upon the quality of the mince being used, if there is a lot of fat then strain the fat from the mince
• Add the carrots, onion and garlic, plus the mushrooms and parsley to the meat and cook on a low heat for 5 minutes
• Add the flour to the pan and mix, cook for another minute
• Add the beef stock, bring to the boil, turn down to a simmer and cook with the lid on for 20 minutes
• Remove the lid, increase the heat and reduce the liquid until the sauce has thickened, stirring (See picture)
• Taste and season with salt and pepper to desired taste
• Place the cooked meat mix into a suitable dish and cover with the mashed potato. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top of the potato and bake in the heated oven for 40-45 minutes until the surface is crisp and browned.
• Serve and enjoy !!

The onions, carrots and garlic cooking

All the ingredients combined and cooking before adding the stock

With the stock added and simmering

The meat mix ready for the potato topping - note how much the sauce has been reduced

The finished assembled pie ready for baking



The cooked cottage pie

Gammon Cheese and Onion Flan

Whilst I was digging through the freezer last night trying to think what to do for tonight's tea, I came across a lone 250g un-smoked gammon steak hiding at the back of the freezer, which I got for my wife when I went on a two week walk, so out it came, to defrost overnight. The good thing about this recipe is you can use whatever you have as the filling.



The finished Flan

Gammon Cheese and Onion Flan

Serves 4 people
Cost - approx £2.00

Ingredients:

250g of Gammon
1 onion - thinly sliced
2 TSP of oil
250g of plain flour
125g of butter
Pinch of salt
approx 100 ML of Cold water
2 medium eggs
150 ml of milk
1 TSP of mustard powder
Salt and pepper
65g of grated Cheddar cheese

Method:

• Trim and cut the meat into small cubes
• In a frying pan add a little oil and heat gently, add the onions and allow to cook on a low heat for about 20 minutes or until very soft and translucent, stirring occasionally so they do not burn. Once cooked remove with a slotted spoon and set aside
• Turn up the heat a little and add the meat to the frying pan, and cook the meat through until slightly browned. Once cooked remove with a slotted spoon and add the meat to the onions and mix
• For the pastry, add the flour to a large bowl and add the butter and salt, and gently rub in until the butter and the flour look like fine breadcrumbs
• Take a TBLSP and add one TBLSP of water one at a time, mix with a knife until the mixture comes together and you can form a ball of dough with your hand
• Wrap the dough in cling film and put in the fridge for at least 30 minutes
• Grease a flan dish
• To roll out the pastry, take a sheet of grease proof paper and lightly sprinkle with flour. Place the dough in the centre and flatten , sprinkle the top of the dough with a little flour and roll out, until it is large enough to line the base and sides of the flan dish. The benefit of the grease proof paper is that you should be able to pick up the paper with the pastry on it and turn it over, rather than trying to get it of the bench
• After the flan dish is lined with the pastry pop it back in the fridge for 30 minutes, then trim the edges. Note - you could blind bake the pastry for a crispy base, but I like it unbaked
• In a bowl whisk the eggs, milk, salt and pepper and mustard well
• Take half the cheese, and sprinkle onto the base, then add the gammon and onions, pour in the whisked eggs and milk, and then sprinkle the rest of the cheese onto
• Place in a pre-heated oven 220 Degree C, and bake for 40 minutes
• Cool on a wire rack and enjoy !

The Gammon to be used in the flan

The diced gammon

The Flour and butter mixed to resemble bread crumbs

The formed short crust pastry dough

The rolled out dough ready for lining the flan tin

The lined and trimmed flan tin



The finished Flan

Grilled Chicken Breast with pecorino cheese with spicy pasta

This is the simplest of all meals , that is made from store cupboard ingredients



The finished meal

Cost: Approx - £1.40p
Serves two

Ingredients:

2 Chicken breasts - flattened
25g of pecorino or parmesan cheese finely grated
390g tin of chopped tomatoes
1 tsp of pepper
1 tsp of dried basil
2 cloves of Garlic finely chopped
150g of dried pasta

Method:

• Flatten the chicken between 2 sheets of cling film with a rolling pin and season with salt and pepper

The flattened Chicken Breasts

• In a pan combine the tomatoes, pepper, basil and garlic and put on a high heat to bring to the boil with the lid of, once boiling reduce heat and cook until reduced - you are looking to get rid of most of the water - so you are left with a rich like paste
• Put the tomatoes into a blender and blend until smooth - you could miss this step, you jest end up with a chunkier sauce

The Finished Sauce

• Pre-heat the grill, and put the seasoned chicken onto the grill rack, turn occasionally until cooked
• Meanwhile cook the pasta according to the packet instructions
• When the chicken is cooked, put the cheese on top and return to the oven, until melted and bubbling
• Just before serving add the sauce to the pasta and stir in

Serve and enjoy...


The finished meal