Josceline Dimbleby's Crispy Pigeon Pie

This impressive Moroccan-style pie from Josceline Dimbleby's food memoir Orchards in the Oasis would make a great centrepiece for a dinner party or more casual supper with friends.

"This party piece – a deliciously aromatic fusion of flavours – isn’t a true Moroccan bastilla, but it is inspired by those I have eaten there, and less laborious to make." says Josceline. "I serve it with a green salad – with fennel slivers and coriander and mint leaves added – and a bowl of yogurt to spoon onto your plate beside the pie."

The filling can be made ahead.

Serves 8

12 pigeon breast fillets, skinned
350g red onions
3 large cloves garlic
generous walnut-sized piece fresh root ginger
75g unsalted butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
3 rounded teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 rounded teaspoon paprika
finely grated rind and juice of 1 lemon
2 level teaspoons caster sugar
150g blanched almonds
6 medium free-range eggs
4 tablespoons whole milk
1 rounded teaspoon turmeric
large handful of flat-leafed parsley
350g filo or strudel pastry
1 level tablespoon icing sugar
sea salt, cayenne pepper

Cut the pigeon breasts into small pieces. Peel, halve and finely slice the onions. Peel and finely chop the garlic and ginger. Melt 15g of the butter with the olive oil in a wide flameproof casserole dish or large, deep frying pan (with a lid) over a medium heat. Stir in the garlic, ginger, cinnamon and paprika, followed by the pigeon. Stir for a minute or two, then add the onions and the lemon rind and juice. Cover the pan and cook over a low heat for about 40 minutes, stirring now and then, until the pigeon is tender. Then remove the lid, stir in the sugar and bubble to reduce the juices down. Season to taste with salt and cayenne pepper and leave to cool.

Meanwhile, brown the almonds in a dry frying pan and then whiz briefly in a food processor to chop. Whisk the eggs in a bowl with the milk, turmeric and a little salt. Melt a knob of butter in a saucepan over a low heat, add the egg mixture and scramble slowly and lightly, stirring only once or twice. Remove from the heat and leave to cool. Heat the oven to 180°C/Gas 4.

Pull the leaves off the parsley stems and chop them roughly. Stir into the cooled pigeon mixture with the almonds. Melt the remaining butter. Brush a loose-based deep cake tin, about 18cm in diameter, thinly with butter. Line the tin with a sheet of filo, bringing it up the sides and allowing the excess to overhang the rim; keep the rest of the filo covered with a damp cloth so it doesn’t dry out. Then lay another sheet of filo across the first one (at a 90° angle) and continue like this, buttering the sheets between each layer, and reserving two sheets.

Now spoon half the pigeon mixture into the filo-lined tin and level the surface. Spread the scrambled egg evenly on top and cover with the remaining pigeon mixture. Fold the overhanging filo over the filling and then lay the remaining filo sheets on top. Press the excess pastry down inside the edge of the tin and butter the top.

Cook the pie in the centre of the oven for about 30 minutes until well browned. Push the pie up so it is just on the tin base, then using a wide spatula, lever it carefully off the base onto an ovenproof serving plate. Put back in the oven for about 20 minutes to crisp the sides. Before serving, sift icing sugar over the top. Use a very sharp knife to cut into slices.

Taken from ORCHARDS IN THE OASIS by JOSCELINE DIMBLEBY, published by Quadrille (£25, hardback)

Photography © JASON LOWE

What to drink: I'd like an aged Spanish red like a Rioja Reserva or Gran Reserva with this or an old vintage of Chateau Musar.

Honey-roast chicken with roast sweet potatoes

You may recognise this shot as one of the rolling images on our home page which were taken by photographer Jason Ingram and styled by Genevieve Taylor. The dish was so delicious I had to pass on the recipe which comes from Louise Walker's Aga Roast.

You don't have to have an Aga to make it, by the way - you can cook it in a conventional oven.

Serves 6

1.75kg/4lb chicken

1 orange

1 bunch spring onions

110g/4oz honey

3 tablespoons olive oil

1⁄2 teaspoon cloves

1 teaspoon paprika

1 teaspoon ground coriander

2 teaspoons cumin

Salt and pepper

1kg / 21⁄4 lbs sweet potatoes

1 tablespoon chopped coriander

Line a roasting tin with Bake-O-Glide. Put in the chicken.

Grate the rind from the orange and put in a basin. Finely chop half the bunch of spring onions. Add the honey, oil, cloves, paprika, coriander, cumin and salt and pepper. Use half the mixture to brush the chicken inside and out.

Slice the orange and chop the remaining onion. Use half to put in the chicken cavity and sprinkle the remaining onion over the chicken and the remaining orange slices on the chicken breast.

Hang the tin on the third set of runners from the top of the roasting oven and calculate the roasting time at 20 minutes per 450g/1lb plus 20 minutes. (Gen also put some foil over the bird halfway through to stop the sweet marinade over-browning.)

Meanwhile, peel and cut the sweet potatoes into chunks and toss with the remaining honey mixture. After the first 30 minutes of roasting the chicken add the potatoes round the bird. Remove the orange slices if browning too much.

Roast for the remaining time. The chicken should have a dark golden skin.

Test that the chicken is cooked and then remove the chicken to a warm plate and scatter the coriander over the sweet potatoes.

Serve the sweet potatoes with any pan juices and chunkily carved chicken.

Serve with a plain green salad to offset the sweetness of the chicken and sweet potatoes.

Conventional cooking: Roast at 190°C/375°F/Gas mark 5.

Aga Roast by Louise Walker is published by Absolute Press.

What to drink: You need something with a touch of sweetness to cope with the sweetness and spiciness of the marinade. I'd suggest a Barossa Valley or South African Shiraz or a Grenache or, if you prefer a white, a full-bodied Viognier.

Spicy chicken salad

We normally think of lunchboxes in terms of kids' packed lunches but James Ramsden has come up with this a brilliant book of imaginative dishes you can take to work. Called - appropriately enough - Love your Lunchbox.

Spicy chicken salad

Serves 2

This is based on a south-east Asian salad, larb gai, which is, like much of the food in them parts, pretty fiery. This is a pared-back version, though you could always ramp up the chilli quotient. Should keep your colleagues off your lunch, if nothing else.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cooking time: 7 minutes

Freezable? Yes

2–3 skinless, boneless chicken thighs

1 shallot, peeled and chopped

stalks from a bunch of coriander (cilantro), finely chopped

½ stalk of lemongrass, finely chopped

zest of ½ lime

1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped

1 tbsp Thai fish sauce

1 tbsp groundnut (peanut) or vegetable oil, plus extra for cooking

4 large-ish Little Gem lettuce leaves (outer leaves, as opposed to inner)

coriander (cilantro) leaves

For the dressing

juice of ½ lime

1 tbsp Thai fish sauce

1 tsp soft brown sugar

bottom half of a Thai chilli, finely chopped

AT HOME

Put the chicken, shallot, coriander stalks, lemongrass, lime zest, chilli, fish sauce and 1 tbsp oil in a blender and pulse until the chicken is well minced. Alternatively, finely and thoroughly chop with a knife.

Heat a splash of oil in a sauté pan or saucepan over a medium–high heat and add the chicken mixture. Cook, stirring regularly, for about 7 minutes, until cooked through and crisp in places. Set aside to cool, then store in the fridge for up to 2 days.

Mix the dressing ingredients together and store in a jar.

IN EACH LUNCHBOX

A portion of chicken (in a microwaveable vessel); lettuce leaves, coriander; dressing.

TO FINISH

Reheat the chicken in a microwave on medium for 3–4 minutes. Serve on lettuce leaves with a few coriander leaves and a spoonful of dressing.

What to drink:

Assuming you're taking this to work I'm taking it for granted you're not going to be drinking alcohol but any sharp, citrussy soft drink would be a good match. Even sparkling water with a slice of lemon or lime. If you're making it at home it would go down very well with a glass of Aussie riesling.

Recipe extracted from Love your Lunchbox: 101 Do-ahead recipes to liven up lunchtime by James Ramsden, published by Pavilion. Photograph © Martin Poole

West country chicken casserole with cider, apple and celery

Now we're firmly into autumn why not try this homely, comforting, very English-tasting casserole from my book Meat & Two Veg? Do try and find some proper ‘dirty celery’ with some soil still clinging to the stalks, if you can. It has so much more flavour

Serves 4

2 level tbsp plain flour

4 boneless (but not skinless) chicken breasts

3 tbsp light olive oil

25g butter

1 large onion (about 175g), peeled, halved and sliced

1 large carrot (about 125g), peeled, cut lengthways and sliced

2-3 sticks of celery, washed, trimmed and sliced

1/2 tsp fresh thyme

175ml ready-made fresh chicken stock

175ml dry cider

1 large or 2 smaller Blenheim or Cox apples (about 150g) peeled and sliced

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Chives to decorate

Put the flour in a shallow bowl and season with salt and pepper. Pat the chicken breasts dry with kitchen towel then coat them thoroughly in the seasoned flour, shaking off any excess.

Heat a large, deep, lidded frying pan or casserole for a couple of minutes over a moderately high heat. Add 1 tbsp of oil then, when that is hot, half the butter. Place the chicken breasts in the pan, skin side downwards and fry for 2-3 minutes until the skin is nicely browned. Turn the breasts over, turn the heat down and fry the other side for about 1 1/2 minutes. Remove the chicken breasts to a plate, discard the fat in the pan and wipe it clean.

Return the pan to a moderate heat and add the remaining oil and butter. Add the onion, carrot and celery, stir well, cover the pan and cook for 5 minutes until the vegetables are beginning to soften. Stir in the thyme and any leftover flour and stir.

Add the chicken stock and cider, bring to the boil and add the sliced apples. Turn the heat down and return the chicken pieces to the pan, spooning the vegetables over them. Replace the lid and cook at a gentle simmer for about 35-40 minutes, stirring the vegetables occasionally to stop them sticking and turning the chicken breasts over half way through. Add a little extra cider or chicken stock if needed.

Check the seasoning, adding extra salt or pepper to taste. Serve the chicken on warm plates and top with a few scissor-snipped chives. A few buttered new potatoes would be nice.

What to drink: Cider. What else?!

Image © Jason Lowe.