Falling in love (again) with phyllo.
I’d forgotten how delicious and easy phyllo pastry is. Tonight I made a pie using mushrooms, leftover chicken and potatoes. So easy and yum. Served with a tomato and haloumi cheese salad.
Easy Phyllo pie
* Slice leftover roast potatoes into cubes and sauté in olive oil.
* Add halved portobellini mushrooms. Sauté for a few minutes.
* Add shredded leftover roast chicken and cook over low heat.
* Add a good few glugs of beer and sliced spring onions. Add salt, pepper and pul biber to taste. Simmer a little more but don’t let it dry out.
* Layer phyllo pastry in a round pie dish, brushing roughly with melted lemon butter as you go (every second layer should be brushed). Leave edges sticking out.
* Add mushroom mix to pie dish. Turn the edges of pastry over the top, brushing layers as you go. Put a few more buttered squares/pieces on top.
* Bake at 200 for ten minutes or so til nicely browned. Serve with:
Haloumi and tomato salad
* Slice haloumi and cook in butter til browned on both sides.
* Layer the following on a platter:
- Yellow zucchini zested into long strips.
- Cherry tomatoes sliced in half
- Cooked haloumi cheese
- I added leftover diced gemsquash – optional!
- Basil chiffonade
- Crisp onion (from any Indian slice shop).
- Dukkah
- Salt and pepper to taste.
Serve salad with a bowl of lettuce and olive oil and fig balsamic.
Summer!!
Summer love vegetables with lentils.
I love making one pot meals. Especially in summer when a quick and easy meal is required on these hot nights.
* Simmer brown lentils in water until al dente.
* Slice eggplant finely and cook in olive oil for 6-8 minutes until browned and soft. Remove from pan.
* Add sliced onion, cook until starting to brown.
* Add finely sliced garlic, cooked eggplant, sweetcorn kernels and chopped tomatoes. Simmer for about 8 minutes. Add a little water as it cooks.
* Add shredded chicken (I used leftover roast chicken that I had cooked using a Sabrina Ghayour recipe (see pic below). This added lovely layers of Middle Eastern flavour.
* Add chipotle chile spice and salt to taste. (Chipotle gives it a yum smokey flavour.)
* Add the lentils with a little of the lentil water.
* Add julienned zucchini (I use a zester to get lovely fine long strips.) Stir through.
Eat!!
