Leftover Turkey & Ham Pie

The quantities below will make quite a large pie to feed 6-8 people.  You will need a deep oven proof dish about 35-40cm long by about 25-30cm wide.

If you do not want to eat this straight away, the filling can be frozen for use later in the year.

• 2 onions, peeled and sliced top to bottom
• 2 leeks, sliced
• 2-3 sticks celery, sliced
• 250g mushrooms, sliced or quartered.  (optional – depends if your family like mushrooms or not)
• 6-8 quartered, boiled new potatoes (again optional – adding potatoes bulks out the recipe if needed)
• A large mug of frozen peas (optional – we like peas in our family) or chopped up leftover green vegetables from Christmas lunch.
• 50g butter, melted with 2 tablespoons olive oil
• About 2 dessertspoons plain flour
• A good slug of sherry (about 60-75ml) or white wine.
• About 150 ml of turkey stock – possibly a bit more or less depending on whether you use the sherry/wine.  This assumes that you have stripped the meat off your turkey carcase, and have made a bone stock by boiling the carcase in a large pan up with onions, leek tops, celery, carrots, salt and pepper.  If not, use a chicken stock cube or chicken stock pot made up with 150ml water.
• 284 – 300 ml double cream ( a medium sized tub)
• About 500-800g cooked turkey meat, cut into cubes.  A mixture of dark and light meat works well, with about 2 thick slices of cooked ham (approximately 300g), cubed; OR
• Approximately 800g – 1kg of cooked diced turkey meat

Seasonings to taste:

Salt, pepper, a few gratings of nutmeg, a bay leaf (if you have one)

Either:  half teaspoon mixed herbs

Or: 2-3 teaspoons Dijon Mustard, or a mix of Dijon and Wholegrain Mustard

Or:   half-1 full jar of basil pesto

1 pack puff or flaky pastry (either ready rolled or roll yourself)

In a large deep pan or deep saute pan, melt the butter and oil together.  Add the sliced onions, celery, leeks and mushrooms (if using), plus the bay leaf, herbs and nutmeg if using.  Stir around to coat in the fat, then reduce the hob temperature to the absolute minimum, put a lid on the pan, and sweat together really slowly for 15 – 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Don’t skip this stage – the vegetables should be really soft, without any colour.  Cooking them this slowly at the start of any recipe releases their natural sweetness and flavour, and will make your dish taste sensational.

Once the vegetables are lovely and soft, stir in the plain flour and allow to cook in for a minute or two.  Add the sherry, wine and stock, and keep stirring as the sauce thickens.  Add the cream and allow to cook in.  If you are adding Mustards or Pesto to your sauce, add it now.  Finally, stir in the cooked turkey, ham, vegetables or peas and potatoes.

Pour into your ovenproof dish, and top with flaky pastry.  Crimp the sides, cut a couple of slashes in the top of the pastry, and brush the surface of the pastry with a beaten egg or some milk.

Bake in a preheated 200ºC/Gas 6 oven for 45 minutes – 1 hour, until the pastry is crispy and brown, and the filling is bubbling well.