Chicken and Leek Pie

Epilogue:

Cooking has been somewhat fun and it undoubtedly does bring people together. However, due to various reasons, I might give up this blog of mine. I'm not going to give up entirely on cooking or baking yet because I do have a passion for food and sharing good food with loved ones brings a inexplicable amount of joy.

There is a possibility that I may continue this blog again someday but currently there are no intentions of doing so. I hereby thank everyone- my family, my friends, my loyal readers, regular commenters, food bloggers and you(!) who have shared marvelous ideas, provided me with great support and believed in me.

Thank you for reading Go on... Have a Bite.

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An old friend of mine has been aching for some pie time so we got up as early as 6am in the morning to satisfy this craving of hers and to provide some Baking 101 lessons. :P

Ingredients: (Makes a 9" pie)

• 2 1/2 cups + 1/3 cup plain flour
  
• 250g butter, cut into cubes
  
• 5 tbsp cold water
  
• 2 leeks, white part only, sliced into 1 cm intervals
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
  
• 1kg chicken, diced
• 500mL chicken stock
• Salt and pepper, to taste
  

Method:

1. First prepare the dough by mixing 2 1/2 cups plain flour with butter using only your fingertips. Rub until it resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add just enough cold water until it becomes a dough.
2. Roll the dough into a ball and wrap in cling wrap. Chill in refrigerator for 15 minutes.
3. Brown the chicken in a generously oiled pan and set aside. Add oil to a pot and add in the garlic and leek until the leek softens.
   
4. Add in the chicken and stock. Gradually add in the remaining 1/3 cup of plain to thicken the mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper. When it starts to thicken, switch of the fire and prepare the pastry.
5. Divide the dough into two portions. Roll out the pastry on a generously floured surface until it is sufficient to fit a 9 inch pie pan. Lift the pastry and gently press onto the pie pan. Prick the base with a fork.
   
6. Place the chicken filling onto the pastry and top the pie with the other portion of rolled pastry. Press the edges together using a fork so that the edges are sealed. Cut holes in the middle to allow steam to escape.
   
7. Bake in 200°C and bake for about 30 minutes or until brown. Serve warm.

Oozing pie filling.

While my friend commented that the crust was good, the filling lacked a bit of seasoning. The top and side crust was yummy but the bottom crust turned out soggy (as always). I've tried blind baking it first and various other methods but that doesn't work either so next time I might just omit the bottom crust.

Timpana

Timpana is a Maltese dish and it's basically a baked pasta pie. Pasta is cooked separately to under al dente and added to a rich bolognaise style sauce, originally and often with chicken livers. With the addition of eggs, the mixture is cooked in a pastry case in either a deep dish or baking tray until its golden brown.

Just imagine your spaghetti bolognaise topped with flaky puff pastry. :D

Recipe adapted from SBS Food. (Serves 8-10)

Ingredients:

• 2 frozen puff pastry sheets
• 500g penne
• 500g pork mince
• 300g bacon, finely diced
  
• 500g onions, finely diced
  
• 4 cloves garlic, crushed
• 300g cheddar cheese, grated
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 400g canned diced tomatoes in tomato puree
• 500ml chicken or beef stock

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 200°C. Sauté the onions and garlic for 5 minutes. Add pork mince, stirring well to separate and break up any lumps.
   
2. Add stock, mix well and bring to boil. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add canned tomatoes with purée.
3. While the sauce is cooking, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling salted water until just undercooked.
   
4. Drain and mix with sauce, adding tasty cheese. Stir in beaten eggs.
5. Spoon pasta into a baking dish and top with your puff pastry sheets. Making sure to cut some holes to allow the steam to escape.
6. Brush top of pastry with some beaten eggs. Bake in oven for 45 minutes.

Fresh out of oven.

Mine didn't turn out as red as it should be as I didn't use tomato paste. For a dish that requires star ingredients such as bacon and cheese, I'm quite disappointed with the outcome because I know I can create so much more lip smacking stuff with those key ingredients which consumes less time.