Squash, mushroom, leek and beetroot pie
- Prep: 30m
- Cook: 40m
- Serves: 8
This is a sealed pie a bit like a salmon en croûte. There’s some preparation involved in this vegetarian centrepiece but it can all be done in advance and it’s really worth the effort because the result is a more-ish, hearty feast of winter vegetables. Once it’s assembled you can freeze it and cook it from frozen, just increase the cooking time to 1 hour and turn the over down to 200°C.
Method
- Pre-heat the oven to 220°C / 200°C fan / gas mark 7. Wrap the beetroot tightly in foil and roast for 1 hour until soft. Remove from the oven, unwrap and once cool enough to handle, rub off the peel and slice into 5mm thick rounds. Set aside to cool.
- Peel the squash and cut into 1cm cubes. Toss in one tablespoon of olive oil, season and roast in the oven for 30 minutes or until golden brown. Set aside to cool.
- Heat the second tablespoon of olive oil in a frying pan and fry the mushrooms whole until soft. You may need to add a splash of water to the pan and put a lid on it to help the mushrooms cook evenly. Set aside to cool.
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Slice the leeks and add them to the butter. Sweat for 5 minutes until soft. Meanwhile, crush the cumin, coriander and cardamom then add to the leeks and cook for a couple more minutes. Add the rice and stock and bring to a gentle simmer. Pop a lid on the pan and cook for 10 minutes. Then turn the heat off and leave for another 10 minutes. Finally, add the squash and a generous pinch of salt and stir together. Spread the mixture out onto a baking tray to cool quickly.
- Now to assemble the pie. Pre-heat the oven to 220°C / 200°C fan / gas mark 7. Lay one sheet of puff pastry on a lined baking sheet. Arrange the beetroot slices in the middle of the pastry so they overlap and make a rectangle approximately 10cm x 30cm. You will probably get two layers of beetroot in the space. Sit the mushrooms on top. Pile the rice mixture on top, moulding it with your hands to make a neat, domed, cylinder. Trim the edges of the pastry leaving an inch thick border around the filling. Lay the second sheet of puff over the top of the filling and use a little beaten egg to seal it to the border on the bottom sheet. Trim the edges and fold them over the seal. Use the blunt side of a kitchen knife to score lines in the chilled pastry to create a harlequin effect then brush with egg wash and cook for 35-40 minutes until the pastry is golden brown and the rice is piping hot.
- To serve, cut into slices to reveal the layers within.
Ingredients
All to be sourced organic where possible
- 350g beetroot
- 250g squash (roughly half a medium squash)
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 4 large Portobello mushrooms
- 30g butter
- 2 leeks
- 1 tbsp cumin seeds
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- 8 cardamom pods
- 115g basmati rice
- 225ml hot vegetable stock
- 2 packets of rolled puff pastry (320g each)
- 1 egg, beaten
