Trying to lighten up your calorie load? Spring-chicken pie is the perfect answer to healthy food demands. Our lightened-up version of this classic is filled with veggies and wholesomeness. Plus, it won’t leave you feeling uncomfortably full for hours! With less than a quarter of the kilojoules of traditional chicken pie as well as more more heart-healthy monounsaturated fat and fibre, this pie is guaranteed to become a new favourite.
Spring-chicken pie
Ingredients
- 30ml (2 tbsp) olive oil + extra, to brush
- 4 leeks, finely sliced
- 1 fennel bulb, finely sliced
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
- 125ml (½ cup) dry white wine
- 30ml (2 tbsp) chicken stock powder
- 20ml (4 tsp) cornflour, mixed with
- 20ml (4 tsp) boiling water
- 500ml (2 cups) fat free milk
- 1 rotisserie spring chicken, meat shredded and skin and bones discarded
- 300g frozen peas
- 2 handfuls fresh flat-leaf parsley
- salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 sheet filo pastry, defrosted
- fresh pea shoots, to garnish (optional)
Instructions
For the filling, preheat the oven to 180°C. Heat the olive oil in a medium pot over low heat. Add the leeks, fennel and garlic to the pot and sauté gently until the leek and fennel turn soft, about 10 minutes. Add the wine, increase the heat to medium and simmer until the wine has almost evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the stock powder, cornflour – mixed with the 20ml (4 tsp) of water to a thin paste – and milk to the pot and bring to a boil, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the shredded chicken, peas and parsley. Taste the mixture and season accordingly.
Pour the chicken mixture into a rectangular casserole dish and cover with the sheet of filo pastry, scrunching the sides slightly. Brush the pastry with the extra olive oil and bake in the oven until the pastry is crisp and golden, about 40 minutes.
Serve warm, garnished with fresh pea shoots, if desired.
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Steak and blue cheese individual pot pies
