I substituted some of the ingredients from the original recipe (using freshly chopped basil instead of mint and parsley) and because I couldn’t find filo pastry in the supermarket this afternoon, I used a sheet of puff pastry instead. I didn’t use the sesame seeds on top either because Tom hates them! I’ll try and include the method for both types of pastry here – hopefully it won’t be too confusing!

Ingredients

5 tablespoons olive oil, plus extra for brushing
400g red onions, finely chopped (I used 2 large red onions)
500g leeks, finely chopped (I used 3 leeks)
2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
600g courgettes, finely chopped (I used 3 courgettes)
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped (optional)
60g fresh mint leaves, removed from storks and roughly chopped
60g fresh flat-leaf parsley, roughly chopped
250g pack filo sheets (12 sheet pack, or 1 sheet of ready to roll puff pastry)
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon pine nuts, toasted
25 Kalamata olives (or good quality mixed olives, stoned)
1 heaped teaspoon dried mint
200g feta, crumbled
2 medium eggs, beaten
2-3 teaspoons sesame seeds

Method

1. Heat the oven to 170C or gas mark 3 (I went up to gas 4 with my puff pastry). Grease the base and sides of a 23cm x 7cm deep cake tin, or a similar sized oven proof dish.

2. Put 3 tablespoons of oil in a large pan on a medium heat. Add the onions, leeks and garlic and stir well. Turn the heat down to low and cook gently for 10 minutes until softened. Add the remaining olive oil, courgettes, chilli and herbs, and continue to cook over a low heat for a further 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Season with black pepper (I didn’t add salt because the feta is salty, and this will be added later).

3. If using filo pastry, lay a sheet of filo over the base of the prepared tin and mould it gently into its shape, allowing the ends to fall over the edge of the tin. Brush with oil and don’t worry if it breaks up a little. Repeat this with 5 more sheets of pastry, brushing each one with oil as you go.

4. Add the lemon zest, pine nuts, olives and dried mint to the courgette mixture, stirring well to combine. Spoon the mixture into the filo lined tin (if using puff pastry, just spoon straight into the greased tin). Crumble the feta over the top and then pour in the beaten eggs (save a little if using puff pastry for brushing).

5. For the top of the pie, either layer 3 sheets of filo pastry (brushing each one with oil) and then fold the hanging edges over the top of the pie, pressing down gently. Brush the filo pastry top with oil and scatter with sesame seeds. If using puff pastry, cover the courgette mixture with the sheet, crimping the excess on the top, and brush with the remaining egg.

6. Bake in the middle of the oven for 30 minutes until golden. Serve hot or cold with some salad. Enjoy!

The post Courgette Filo Pie appeared first on Hello! Hooray!.

This does make an excellent mid-week meal and you could also use pasta instead of pastry to make a yummy, creamy pasta bake. And it won’t break the bank either! The recipe below is my adapted version of Jamie’s recipe.

Ingredients

4 x 180g skinless chicken breasts

A knob of butter (leave this out if using bacon or chorizo – see optional ingredients)

Olive oil

A bunch of spring onions

150g button mushrooms

1 heaped tbsp plain flour, plus extra for dusting

1 heaped tbsp low fat creme fraiche

300ml chicken stock (I use a stock cube)

A few sprigs of fresh thyme (or a tsp of dried mixed herbs works well too)

1/3 a nutmeg, grated

1 sheet pre-rolled puff pastry

1 egg

Optional ingredients: 2 rashers smoked bacon/100g chorizo, chopped into small pieces/1 leek instead of spring onions

Method

1. Pre-heat the oven to 200°c/400°F/Gas mark 6. Cut the chicken into chunks (I use my kitchen scissors for this – so much easier!). Put a lug of olive oil and butter into a hot, large pan. Add the chicken and cook for a few minutes until sealed. If adding bacon or chorizo, wait until the chicken is sealed before adding to pan.

2. Meanwhile, make the stock and then wash and trim the spring onions (or leek) and slice. Cut the button mushrooms in half before adding to the pan with the onions. Leave for 2 minutes before adding 1 heaped tbsps of plain flour and creme fraiche. Stir well.

3. Add the chicken stock and stir again. Add the herbs and the nutmeg, and season. Leave to simmer for 5-10 minutes or so.

4. Pour the mixture into an oven proof dish. Roll out the pastry (luckily, my dish is just the right size for the pastry so I don’t need to do any rolling out) and place on top, tidying up the edges. Add a little decoration if you like! Beat the egg and brush a little over the pastry.

5. Place in the oven and cook for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is golden. Serve with some steamed vegetables and enjoy!

Post updated 24th June 2016.

The post Jamie Oliver’s chicken pie appeared first on Hello! Hooray!.