Ultimate Chicken Pie

Baby, it's finally getting cold out there! This morning it was a mere 4C and I could definitely feel the chill tear through my coat and go straight to my bones. Granted, I am a royal wimp when it comes to cold temperatures, but if the predictions for the upcoming winter are right and this is just the beginning, I don't think I'll make it without buying some sort of eskimo suit. Perhaps I'm better off pretending to be a bear and happily hibernating in my house until the springtime arrives.
Even though I am not much of a 'winter person' (Christmas excluded, I can't get enough of Christmas!), I love the comfort food that comes with the colder months. In a cheeky way, it feels as though the 'r' in the month is my greedy ticket to ride. The perfect excuse to eat everything that's seductively rich and not feel an ounce of guilt for doing so!
Perhaps one of my most-loved comfort foods is the very down-to-earth yet very delicious chicken pie. I love a good, creamy chicken pie. One with tender mushrooms, a little mustard and a delicate blanket of golden pastry haphazardly tucked over the filling so that some of it temptingly drips down its edges. It's the kind of meal that I long for on those dark, gloomy nights when the summer seems cruelly far away.
Here's my ultimate chicken pie recipe, which feels like a warm cuddle on a cold, wintery night. Enjoy!


Ultimate Chicken Pie
Serves 4

1 tbsp mild olive oil
knob of butter
4 chicken breasts, sliced
1 leek, cleaned and sliced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1 tbsp flour
250g mushrooms, sliced
2 tbsps creme fraiche
100ml white wine
200ml chicken stock
few sprigs of thyme, leaves picked
2 tsps Dijon mustard
275g ready-made puffed pastry
1 egg, lightly whisked

Preheat the oven to 200C. Heat the oil and butter in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the chicken pieces, season and cook, for 4-5 minutes. Add the leek, garlic and flour and cook for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the mushrooms and cook for 2 more minutes. Add the creme fraiche, stir in the wine and let it reduce a bit. Add the stock and simmer for 8 minutes. Add the thyme and mustard and cook for 5 more minutes. Spoon into a pie dish. Unroll the pastry on a floured surface and roll it out just a little more. Round off the corners to trim into an oval shape. Tuck the pastry all around the edges of the pie. Do this inside the pie, not over it. It doesn’t have to be pretty, it’s a rustic pie!  Slash the surface of the pie with the point of a knife and brush with the whisked egg. Place the pie in the oven and allow it to bake for 30 minutes. It might be a wise idea to line the bottom of your oven with foil in case of any drippings from the pie. Serve and swoon!