Little Jack Horners Christmas Chicken Fruit And Stuffing Pie Recipes

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 170C/350F/Gas 5.
• Grease and line a 20-23cm (9") springform or deep loose-based tart tin with baking parchment or greaseproof paper.
• Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a frying pan, then add the onion and the bacon, fry for 5 minutes until the onion is softened and the bacon browned. Cool slightly.
• Tip the sausagemeat, lemon and orange zest, breadcrumbs, apricots, chestnuts and thyme into a bowl and mix together.
• Add the onion, bacon and cranberries, then mix everything together with your hands, adding plenty of pepper and a little salt to taste.
• Cut each chicken breast into three or four fillets lengthwise and season them all over with salt and pepper. Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan, and fry the chicken fillets quickly until browned, for about 6-8 minutes.
• Roll out two-thirds of the pastry to line the springform or loose-based tart tin; make sure the pastry comes right up the sides of the tin, and extends over the edge of the tin a little bit. Press in half the sausage mixture and spread to level. Then add the chicken pieces in one even layer and cover with the rest of the sausage mixture. Press down lightly.
• Roll out the remaining pastry, leaving a little pastry for the decorative shapes. Brush the edges of the pastry base with beaten egg and cover with the pastry lid. Pinch and crimp the edges to seal, then trim.
• Brush the top of the pie with egg, then roll out the excess pastry trimmings to make holly leaf shapes and berries. Decorate the pie with the shapes and brush again with egg.
• Set the tin on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes, then cool in the tin for 15 minutes. Remove the pie from the tin, and leave to cool slightly. If you wish, you can place the pie back into the oven at this stage if you would like a darker crust - just sit it on a greased baking sheet and bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes.
• Serve warm or cold with a winter salads, chutneys, relishes and pickles.
• Can be frozen once cooked for up to 1 month. Defrost in the fridge overnight.

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine crust ingredients; press into a greased 10-in. pie plate and set aside. In a small bowl, combine flour and mushroom liquid until smooth; set aside. , In a large saucepan, saute mushrooms and onion in butter. Stir in all remaining ingredients except cheese. Heat through; pour into stuffing crust. , Bake, uncovered, at 375° for 20 minutes. Cut cheese slices into strips; arrange in a lattice design on pie. Bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Brush the bottom and sides of a 10-inch heavy skillet, preferably cast-iron, with 1 tablespoon butter. Mix together the stuffing and chicken broth in a bowl, then press the stuffing mixture into the bottom and up the sides of the skillet in an even layer, occasionally dipping your hands in cool water if necessary to help prevent the stuffing from sticking. Bake until dry to the touch and lightly browned, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Whisk together the condensed soup and cream cheese in a large bowl until smooth. Stir in the chicken and vegetables. Pour the filling into the crust.
• Toss the sweet potato slices with the remaining 4 tablespoons butter in a bowl. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and toss again. Arrange the slices on top of the pot pie in concentric circles.
• Bake until the sweet potato slices start to curl and brown around the edges, 45 to 50 minutes. In the last 5 minutes, top the pot pie with the sage leaves. Let rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Tip the cranberries into a bowl and cover with boiling water. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan and soften the onion. Tip into a large bowl and leave to cool. Add the almonds to the same pan and toast until golden brown. Leave to cool, then roughly chop. With their peel on, whizz the clementine quarters in a food processor until puréed. Drain the cranberries.
• Add the nuts, clementine purée, cranberries and the remaining ingredients, except the butter, to the onion, with plenty of seasoning. Stir everything together, then tip into a casserole dish. Dot with butter, cover with foil and roast in the oven for 30 mins. Uncover, then roast for a further 15 mins until crisp and golden.

Steps:

• Season the chicken breasts. Heat the oil in a frying pan over a high heat and brown the chicken very quickly on each side - you might need to fry these in batches. Don't worry about cooking the chicken all the way through. Set aside.
• Set aside 2 tbsp of the stuffing mixture. Make up the rest using half the amount of water that the packet says.
• Make the pastry by tipping the flour into a food processor with 1 tsp salt. Add the butter and suet, and whizz to fine crumbs (or rub in with your fingers if you don't have a food processor). With the motor running (or stir with a fork), dribble in 150ml cold water until the pastry just comes together. Tip onto a lightly floured surface and bring together into a dough. Cover one-third while you roll out the rest to line an oiled, 20cm round springform or loose-bottomed tin.
• Spoon the stuffing into the base of the pie, packing down well and smoothing the top. Arrange the chicken pieces over, cutting to fit like a jigsaw puzzle to fill in any gaps. Squeeze sausagemeat from skins and press evenly over the top, then scatter over the reserved dry stuffing. Roll out the reserved pastry until big enough to cover the pie with an overlap. Brush the edge of the pie with egg, then lift on the pastry lid and press edges to seal before trimming and rolling down excess to thoroughly seal.
• Decorate by crimping the edges or pressing them with the prongs of a fork, then cut a little hole in the middle of the pastry to let steam escape. Brush all over with more egg (don't throw the leftover egg away).
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 and bake for 50 mins. Brush all over again with egg and cook for another 10 mins. Cool in the tin, then thickly slice for a picnic or lunch. Or wrap well in cling film and freeze for up to 3 months.