A traditional pastilla will cook the meat a day ahead and then make a custard-like thick sauce from onions and eggs to pour over the chicken. Rather than do this, we thought we'd lighten the recipe up, and make it a bit more do-able for an everyday meal. We also couldn't help adding in a few veg! We think it works really well - and is a different take on our red pepper and cherry tomato filo parcels from August last year. To finish your pastilla, dust it with a little cinnamon and icing sugar. We served ours with some green veggies on the side.
You can make individual pastillas, like we did, or you can make one big one, which is a more traditional way of serving it. If you want to do that, still use the filo pastry, but take a round cake tin and line it with greaseproof paper first. Then take a kitchen roll dipped in olive oil and lightly grease the paper. Line the bottom of the tin with the pastry, fill it up and then fold the leaves of pastry over to close the top. Give it a wash of milk, and then bake it for 20 minutes in the oven at 190C. If you want, you can then take it out of the oven, and turn it over and bake it for a further 20 minutes. It'll get crispy all over then!
This week we have also enjoyed some absolutely beautiful Moroccan clementines! We picked them up at a market near home, and they are so pretty and taste delicious too. We couldn't resist taking a picture to show you.
Enjoy today!!
- rosinaviolets x
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| We forgot to take a picture of the ingredients, so a mid-cooking picture will have to do! |
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| Mid fill - you can add a bit more filling to yours than this |
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| Aren't they gorgeous! |
To feed 6 (makes 6 mini pastillas)
For the chicken
3 chicken breasts, chopped into chunks
2 tablespoons tomato puree
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (or more, or less to taste) chilli flakes
1 dessertspoon honey
100ml lemon juice
For the vegetables
2 red onions, chopped roughly
2 courgettes cut into chunks
2 red peppers cut into chunks
3 cloves of garlic, chopped finely
2 tablespoons each of parsley and coriander
For the pastillas
2 tablespoons sultanas
1 tablespoon toasted sliced almonds
1 packet ready-prepared filo pastry (12 sheets or 6 bigger sheets that you've cut in half to make 12!)
Icing sugar and cinnamon, to dust
- Chop up the chicken and marinade it in a bowl with all the other marinade ingredients. Leave it for as long as you can! At least 30 minutes.
- Chop up the veggies and put them in a roasting dish. Spray with a little olive oil, and sprinkle with a little water. Season with freshly ground black pepper and roast in the oven at 180C for 30 minutes.
- Put your chicken and marinade into a hot pan and cook until the chicken is done. Add the roasted vegetables, and the parsley and coriander.
- Lay out two sheets of filo pastry. Add a couple of big spoonfuls of filling to the middle of the pastry. Sprinkle a few sultanas and sliced almonds on the top. Take a pastry brush, and use a little water to brush all the way around the first layer. Fold the first layer over the filling. Brush the outside of the second layer with a little water and fold this layer over too. Brush the top of the pastilla with a little milk. Lay on a baking sheet covered in greaseproof paper (that you've brushed with a little olive oil).
- Keep going until you've made six pastillas.
- Bake in the oven at 190C for 15 minutes, or until they are nicely and lightly browned on the top.
- Plate up, and sprinkle with a little dusting of icing sugar and cinnamon for that sweet and savoury flavour.
- Serve with some green veggies - we went for peas and sliced green beans.
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