A pithivier is an indulgent puff pastry pie taking its name from a town in France… Head Chef James Woodhams shares his indulgent vegan take on this classic featuring hearty root vegetables and a tangy tarragon pesto – perfect for the tail end of winter!
Root vegetable pithivier, tarragon pesto
Ingredients
How to prepare
Peel and chop all of the vegetables into similar sized chunks, about a 2cm dice.
Place into a roasting tray, with a glug of olive oil, a sprig of rosemary and thyme and season with salt and pepper. Then roast them off in the oven @180c for about 20 minutes or until cooked and soft. Then allow to cool.
Roll out the puff pastry until it is 0.5cm thick and cut out two circles, using a dinner plate as a template. Place one on a baking tray, on top of greaseproof paper. Then spoon on the cooled roasted root vegetables into the centre of the ring of pastry, leaving a border around the edge.
Brush oil around the border and place the other circle of pastry over the vegetables. Then crimp the pastry together using a fork to form a tight seal.
Then bake in an oven @180 for 20 minutes or until golden brown.
For the tarragon pesto, place a handful of tarragon leaves and toasted pine nuts into a blender and add olive oil until the right consistency is achieved, season with salt and pepper.
To serve, place the pithivier onto a plate and spoon the pesto around.
