Not many people know this but when I was in high school, I spent three months studying abroad in Wales. This Chicken, Leek, Caerphilly Cheese and Prune Pie is a dish that I ate while I was there and never forgot. It uses Caerphilly cheese which is a hard, crumbly white cheese. If you can’t find Caerphilly, you can substitute it with a strong crumbly cheddar.
Start by sautéing onions and garlic in a skillet. Add chicken and sear for 5 minutes until cooked on the outside. Make the sauce by stirring in flour and leeks. Pour in white wine and chicken stock, then add double cream and mustard. Stir well as you add prunes, cheese, and herbs. Place the pie filling in a pie dish and top with a pastry lid. Bake for 25 minutes.
To make Chicken, Leek, Caerphilly Cheese and Prune Pie, you will need the following ingredients:
Preheat the oven to 350 °F.
Melt 1 tablespoon of butter and 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium-sized saucepan. Sauté a chopped onion and 3 chopped cloves of garlic for about 10 minutes until they start to soften.
Add the cubed chicken thighs and cook for 5 minutes until the chicken is sealed.
Add the 7 ounces of chopped leeks and 2 tablespoons of flour. Stir until fully combined. Pour in 150ml of white wine and 450ml of chicken stock. Stir slowly until the sauce has thickened.
Add 200ml of double cream and 2 teaspoons of English mustard. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat and stir in 3 ½ ounces of prunes, 5 ½ ounces of Caerphilly cheese and herbs.
Transfer the chicken and prune pie filling to a medium sized pie dish.
Mix an egg yolk with 1 tablespoon of cream. Brush around the edges of the pie dish. Cover with a sheet of ready rolled puff pastry. Cut around the sides of the pastry with a knife and brush the lid of the pie with the remaining egg mixture. Using a fork, make some small holes in the pastry lid to ensure the steam can escape.
Bake in the oven for 25 minutes.
Serve this delicious pie with mashed potato or steamed vegetables.
Try my Chicken, Leek, Caerphilly Cheese and Prune Pie soon and don’t forget to come back soon to leave a comment with your thoughts!
