Christmas pie

Christmas pie

Combine a few key Christmas flavours here to make a pie that both children and adults will adore

Difficulty and servings

Moderately easy

Cuts into 10-12 slices

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 1 hr 15 mins

Plus cooling
Freezable

Method

  1. Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5. Heat 1 tbsp oil and the butter in a frying pan, then add the onion and fry for 5 mins until softened. Cool slightly. Tip the sausagemeat, lemon zest, breadcrumbs, apricots, chestnuts and thyme into a bowl. Add the onion and cranberries, and mix everything together with your hands, adding plenty of pepper and a little salt.
  2. Cut each chicken breast into three fillets lengthwise and season all over with salt and pepper. Heat the remaining oil in the frying pan, and fry the chicken fillets quickly until browned, about 6-8 mins.
  3. Roll out two-thirds of the pastry to line a 20-23cm springform or deep loose-based tart tin. Press in half the sausage mix and spread to level. Then add the chicken pieces in one layer and cover with the rest of the sausage. Press down lightly.
  4. Roll out the remaining pastry. Brush the edges of the pastry with beaten egg and cover with the pastry lid. Pinch the edges to seal, then trim. Brush the top of the pie with egg, then roll out the trimmings to make holly leaf shapes and berries. Decorate the pie and brush again with egg.
  5. Set the tin on a baking sheet and bake for 50-60 mins, then cool in the tin for 15 mins. Remove and leave to cool completely. Serve with a winter salad and pickles.

Per serving

488 kcalories, protein 23g, carbohydrate 39g, fat 28 g, saturated fat 12g, fibre 2g, salt 1.4 g

Recipe from Good Food magazine, December 2005.

Try 3 issues of Good Food magazine for £3 - subscribe now!

Latest comments and suggestions

Results 141-150

  • Binder photo diet73

    14 December 2012

    diet73 commented on this recipe

    Would you bake this pie before freezing?

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo diet73

    14 December 2012

    diet73 commented on this recipe

    Would you bake this pie before freezing?

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo diet73

    14 December 2012

    diet73 commented on this recipe

    Would you bake this pie before freezing?

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Erlik27

    17 December 2012

    Erlik27 commented on this recipe

    Diet 73, you can do it either way. Pastry, generally , is better frozen uncooked, but it would be absolutely fine to freeze it cooked if that was most convenient

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Erlik27

    17 December 2012

    Erlik27 commented on this recipe

    Diet 73, you can do it either way. Pastry, generally , is better frozen uncooked, but it would be absolutely fine to freeze it cooked if that was most convenient

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo made with love

    22 December 2012

    made with love rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    This is my second year of making this pie and the only thing I changed from last year was to add more chicken, I use 4 chicken breasts instead of 3 to make sure that there is a full layer of chicken. This pie is a real winner and a great recipe even though there is a lot to get through for 2 people ! I tend to give some to friends if they pop round for a coffee.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo catarnold

    26 December 2012

    catarnold rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Made this for my boxing day buffet table today and my uncle said 'this tastes like Christmas in a pie' - so true, it was full of flavour and everybody loved it- will become a festive regular in my house!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo lindsey martin

    30 December 2012

    lindsey martin rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Just delicious. Made it for the first time for Christmas 2012. It was a great cut and come again dish to fill the hollow legs of the younger generation. The last crumbs disappeared at 1am along with some homemade chutney. Will definitely become a regular Christmas time buffet menu feature and I will try freezing it next time having read the positive comments.

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo Rachel

    01 January 2013

    Rachel rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Amazing!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

  • Binder photo makween

    06 January 2013

    makween rated and commented on this recipe

    5 stars

    Made this for my family's Christmas Eve buffet. Expected there to be leftovers when I saw the size of the pie, but in the end it was polished off in double quick time with everyone giving rave reviews. It was also very easy to make. Definitely recommended!

    Flag as inappropriate

    Please let us know your name and the reason you find the above comment inappropriate.

Leave a comment or suggestion

You must sign in or register to leave a comment.

Sign in / Register

Difficulty and servings

Moderately easy

Cuts into 10-12 slices

Preparation and cooking times

Preparation time

Prep 30 mins

Cook time

Cook 1 hr 15 mins

Plus cooling
Freezable

Make-ahead pie

Ingredients

Print this recipe
Add to your binder

Per serving

488 kcalories, protein 23g, carbohydrate 39g, fat 28 g, saturated fat 12g, fibre 2g, salt 1.4 g

Advertisement

Your binder

Here are three other great reasons why to sign up:

  • You get an online binder, where you can store all your favourite recipes and create menus.
  • You can add your own recipes to this site for others to try; plus, rate and make comments on recipes, and share your views on our blog.

Follow Good Food

Advertisement

All about Good Food

Magazine

Good Food Magazine

Subscribe to Good Food magazine - enjoy 100+ triple-tested recipes delivered to your door, every month.

Order today, and receive your first 3 issues for just £3

On TV

Foodie TV

See your favourite chefs on Sky Channel 247, Virgin TV 260 and find their recipes at goodfoodchannel.co.uk.

Good Food Apps

Good Food Apps

For Good Food on the go, download our apps to your phone or portable device.
Find out more here

Buy ingredients

With just one click, the full list of recipe ingredients will be put into a basket at your choice of provider. Choose from:

mySupermarket Compare prices and choose a retailer you wish to buy them from.

Ocado Let Ocado deliver all you need for this recipe, right to your door

Tesco Buy all the ingredients from our recipes through your Tesco online shop.

new

Asda Shop with Asda? You can now buy ingredients for our recipes via your Asda online shop.

In association with the above providers. Terms and conditions apply.

Close