Thursday, November 08, 2007

November 6, 2007: Leek, mushroom and asparagus pie

I had another bunch of asparagus left over from the ravioli and cannelloni and a hankering for something a bit special, just for me. Pastry. Cream sauce. Neil's solution is a chicken pie with morels and asaparagus, and with leeks in season, it's not difficult to beef up the mushroom quotient and make a vegetarian version.

This recipe makes enough for a family meal or in my case, enough to repackage the leftover filling in fresh pastry and share with Michael two days later.

Leek, mushroom and asparagus pie

~15g dried porcini mushrooms (more if you can afford them)
40g butter
1 leek, sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
200g portobello mushrooms, sliced into meaty chunks
1 heaped tablespoon flour
2/3 cup "chicken" stock
100mL cream
10 stalks asparagus, sliced into 1 inch lengths
1 tablespoon parsley, finely chopped
salt and pepper
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
a little milk, for brushing the pastry

Rehydrate the dried mushrooms in hot water. Melt half the butter in a frypan and gently cook the leek and garlic until the leek is soft. Drain the rehydrated mushrooms and reserve the liquid. Finely slice the mushrooms and add them to the frypan, along with the fresh mushrooms.

In a separate small to medium saucepan, melt the remaining butter. Add the flour and stir to combine, allowing a minute or two to cook. Whisk in the stock and mushroom water, then the cream. Simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Add the cream sauce, asparagus and parsley to the frypan and season to taste. (I distributed the pepper generously but needed no more salt.) Turn the heat off after a further minute.

Thaw out the pastry. When it's flexible, spoon the filling into a casserole dish, cut the pastry to size, and place it carefully on top. Try to seal up the sides, but poke a few air holes in the pastry. Decorate with the leftover scraps, it's a crime to waste delicious pastry! Brush with a bit of milk.

Bake in the oven at 220 deg C for about 20 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

15 comments:

  1. At the risk of sounding like Sandy Whatshername - Don't you just love frozen puff pastry?

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  2. I do, LB. Frozen puff pastry sheets are a winter staple around here. :-)

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  3. Hey Cindy - just started a new blog....if you like, maybe you could put a link up and i'll do the same?

    http://globalgobbler.blogspot.com/

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  4. Hi Joel, thanks for introducing yourself! I've added you to my list of Melbourne food blogs.

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  5. This looks absolutely sensational Cindy! I have a terrible weakness for pastry and love the sound of this filling.

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  6. Some how missed saying good bye properly, sorry... Vida x x x

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  7. Thanks Truffle! I know you share my love of puff pastry. :-)

    Not to worry, Vida! It was lovely meeting you. Now, no teasing because I'm writing this from my desk at work!

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  8. Work, what work??? That is a myth started by you!?!?! Hehehe. Great to meet you and as awkward as I felt, I still enjoyed it... I am much shyer than people realise... Vida x x x

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  9. That's a very nice looking riff! I love leeks too, nice touch. Glad Michael go to share. Sorry we didn't get a chance to talk, I saw you there, but was a little busy chasing after M, who would have liked to do some gardening of her own.

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  10. Thanks Neil! Sorry to have missed meeting you the other night. I glimpsed M early in the evening but didn't make the connection until long after you were gone.

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  11. This is probably a terrible question considering there is all that cream, but I'd love to add cheese to this... What kind of cheese would you recommend?
    Thank you! I have just discovered your blog and I love love love it. Although I am now starving and its only 11.45am...

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  12. Welcome, Claire! I'd probably try grating some cheddar into the simmering cream sauce. Hope you like it. :-)

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  13. Thanks Cindy :) I'm going to cook it this eve - I'll let you know how it turns out.

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  14. I made the pie and OMG it was sooo delicious. I added about half a cup of grated colby to the creamy sauce which I thought was a good addition. We are already going to be making it again when a friend comes for dinner tomorrow night :)
    The only question I had was there is no mention of flour in the list of ingredients. I guessed at about a tablespoon but think maybe I needed a bit more as the sauce good have bene a little thicker. How much should I add next time?
    Thanks guys! Ps shockingly for the same meal I also made the nutella pudding!

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  15. Hey Claire - I'm glad this worked out so well for you! Thanks for pointing out the missing flour. Checking back on Neil's original recipe, he listed "a heaped tablespoon" so you definitely had the right idea. :-) I'll go back and fix that up right now...

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