recipe is : chicken pot pie

Ingredients

4 oven proof containers/ramekins/pots

2 packets ready made puff pastry dough
600 gms chicken breasts or chicken fillet, cut into 2cm cubes
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 big onion, diced
4 bay leaves
1/2 tsp basil
2 sticks celery, cut into 3 per stick
3 big potatoes, cut into chunks and boiled til just cooked
1 cup baby carrots, boiled for 5 mins
1 cup peas
1 head broccoli, cut into small florets, boiled for 3 mins
1 can button mushroom, sliced
250 ml cream
200 ml chicken broth/vegetable broth/water
1 tbsp butter
salt and pepper to taste

1 egg, beaten (for the pastry eggwash)


Method


heat the butter in a saucepan over medium heat and once it starts to melt, throw in the onions and celery. cook til onion softens. add in the bay leaves and basil. add in the garlic and chicken cubes. stir fry til chicken is just cooked.

add the carrots, peas, broccoli, mushroom, cream and broth. once it comes to a boil, add in the potatoes and season with salt and pepper. let it simmer for 5 minutes. add a bit of water if it get too dry.

prepare the puff pastry according to the packet instructions.

spoon the prepared chicken pie filling into the containers. cover the containers with the pastry. let a bit of pastry overhand the edges of the containers. brush the pastry with egg wash and make 2 small slits in the pastry to let the hot air vent out. bake in oven according to the pastry packet instructions.

note:

i normally discard the celery after cooking as i only use it for flavouring. should you want to leave it celery in, best if you dice it into small pieces.

for a healthier version, use 150ml low fat milk instead of cream, and olive oil instead of butter.

recipe is: salmon fettucine

Ingredients

600 gm salmon fillet
600 gm fettucine, cooked to al dente, drained and set aside, retain a bit of the liquid
3 medium tomatoes, quartered
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
3 shallots, finely chopped
a handful of chives, cut to about 1 cm length
500 ml cream
6 tbsp olive oil
coarse ground black pepper
salt to taste

Method

heat up a large, deep frying pan and use about 1 tbsp of the olive oil and stir fry the shallots and garlic for about 3 minutes. dish up and set aside

pour into frying pan the remaining oil and put in the salmon fillet. once they start to cook, break the salmon into big chunks. add in the chives and tomatoes. add the cream and let it come to a simmer

add the fettucine and stir fry quickly to mix. add a bit of the retained fettucine liquid if it's too dry. season with the black pepper and salt.

dish up and serve immediately