Serves: 4
Time to prepare: 1 hr
Time to cook: 25 mins
Dietary requirements: Dairy-free, Egg-free, Vegan
Ingredients
For the pithiviers
225g packet ready rolled puff pastry sheet
1 tbsp soya milk (for the glaze)
25g sesame seeds
For the watercress sauce
25g soya margarine
3 spring onions
300ml vegetable stock
2 bunches watercress
Salt and freshly ground pepper
For the filling
1 garlic, whole and unpeeled
100g bunch asparagus, chopped into 2" pieces
4 baby sweetcorn, chopped into 2" pieces
25g soya margarine
25g unbleached flour
180g soya milk
45ml vegetarian white wine
50g ground pine nuts, roasted
1 tsp mustard
1 handful fresh, flat leaf parsley, chopped. (reserve a few parsley leaves for garnish)
Instructions
To make the watercress sauce: Heat the margarine, fry the spring onions until soft. Add stock and bring to the boil, simmer for 5 minutes.
Add watercress, boil for 15 seconds, then remove from heat. Season. Cool, then blend.
To assemble pithiviers: Preheat oven to gas mark 4/180°C/350°F. Place the ready rolled pastry, folded on a lightly floured board and cut out 4 rounds with a 13cm/5 inch plain cutter. Place the pastry rounds on a greased baking sheet, brush with soya milk and sprinkle with sesame seeds.
Place in the oven for 15 minutes until well-risen and golden brown. Set aside and keep warm. Filling: Roast the garlic in the oven for about 10 minutes, then remove them from their skins. Set aside. Steam the asparagus and the sweetcorn. Set aside.
In a saucepan heat the margarine, sprinkle with the flour and cook the roux for 2 minutes stirring continually. Remove from the heat and add the soya milk. Continue stirring. Place back on the heat and continue to stir until the sauce thickens.
Stir in the wine, cook for a 2 minutes, then remove from the heat. Mix together the pine nuts, mustard and roasted garlic and add to the sauce, beating constantly. Add the parsley and the vegetables.
Cut the pastry cases horizontally in half and remove the pastry inside. Spoon the vegetable mixture into the pastry base and top with the pastry lids. Serve the pithivier on an individual serving plate with the heated watercress sauce.
