Leftover Antipasto Pie
‘Home sweet home’ in a pie.
Pies are underrated. They may not be very sexy, but they taste and smell so damn good. Plus, they always feel so homely!
This is my favourite ‘nothing goes to waste’ dish. Once a fortnight, I take our leftover antipasto and veggies and bake a pie. I love the smell of baked pastry, mixed with the sweet caramelised lentils and melted cheese -it makes the house scream ‘welcome home’.
I’m not sure it there are ‘pie-rules’ but this is my go-to filling.
Caramelised lentils
Sautéed veggies
Antipasto
Green leaves
Cheese.
This is the perfect mid-week or Sunday evening meal. Paired with any leftover red wine, you’ll have a great dinner!
Ingredients
Base:
Puff pastry (thawed)
Filling:
1 can of lentils (drained)
1 zucchini (diced
Leftover greens (eg. spinach or parsley)
Leftover hard cheese (nb. I always use Manchego or Sheep’s Feta)
Sun-dried tomatoes
1/2 onion (minced)
2 garlic cloves (minced)
Optional: Handful of baby tomatoes and pine nuts.
Topping
Filo pastry (thawed and ripped into pieces)
Thyme or Rosemary
Condiments
Olive oil, 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar, 1/3 cup maple syrup, salt and pepper, paprika, butter.
Method
COAT your pie tray with olive oil. I typically use a rectangular glass tray, but you can also use a round tray.
PLACE one sheet of puff pastry on the base and on the sides of the tray, cut pastry to the shape of the tray.
SAUTEE the onions and garlic in a pan on medium heat for 5-8 minutes until golden. Then add the balsamic vinegar and cover the pan for 8-10 minutes. Once it thickens, add in the maple syrup and stir for 2 minutes. Add in the lentils and stir for another 2 minutes.
4. SAUTEE the zucchini pieces in olive oil, butter and paprika for 10 minutes. Add the pine nuts in for the last 5 minutes.
5. LAYER the lentils on the pie base first (as they are the heaviest). Then add the zucchinis, green leaves, hard cheese and cut up sun dried tomatoes.
6. FINISH the top of the pie with your broken filo pastry. Add your herbs on top and drizzle with olive oil.
7. BAKE for 40 minutes at 180 degrees on fan.
I love a spontaneous pie dinner. I don’t know what ‘pie rules’ there are but for me, I always go for lentils, sautéed veggies or antipasto, green leaves and cheese. That always seems to blend well!
Tips:
Make sure the puff and filo pastry are thawed. I like to leave it out for a few hours, or overnight in the fridge is good too.
Don’t forget to coat the the pastry in olive oil with a brush once you’ve placed it in the pie tray.
Puff pastry expands, so don’t go overboard too much pastry.
Optional to add in some baby tomatoes (halved) when you’re cooking the caramelised lentils. It adds another dimension of sweet and juicy flavour to the lentils.
Always add the cheese last, as that’s the delicious part you want to first bite into.