Guinea Fowl, Sprout and Bacon Pie

My Mum brought me back some guinea fowl from France as it's impossible to get anything other than a whole bird here and that's too much for me. As I also had brussels sprouts leftover from Christmas I made this delicious pie from Waitrose Kitchen Magazine. The pie was lovely, I made it a bit healthier by using filo instead of puff pastry and it worked really well.

Guinea Fowl, Sprout and Bacon Pie
(adapted from Waitrose Magazine January 2014)
(Serves 6-8)

1 whole guinea fowl
2 large carrots, cut into 2cm pieces
2 leeks, sliced
3 bay leaves
1 tsp black peppercorns
2 tsp salt
20g thyme
1 tbsp oil
200g smoked bacon
25g butter
250g mushrooms
200g brussels sprouts, halved or quartered
2 tsp mustard
300ml low fat crème fraiche
1 packet filo pastry
oil

Put the guinea fowl, carrots, leeks, bay leaves, peppercorn, salt and half the thyme in a large pan. Cover with cold water, bring to the boil and skim off any scum. Simmer for 1 hr 5 mins (or 20 mins per 450g plus 20 mins). Transfer the bird to a plate and shred the meat, discarding the skin, bones and herbs Strain the stock and reserve, slice the leeks and set aside with the carrots.

Heat the oil in a frying pan. Fry the bacon over a high heat until crisp about 4-5 mins. Add the butter, stir in the mushrooms, fry for three more mins until golden. Pour in 200ml of the stock and bring to a boil, then add the sprouts. Boil until the liquid is reduced, thickened and coats the veg.

Take off the heat, stir through the mustard, crème fraiche, meat, reserved veg and leaves from the rest of the thyme. Season and tip into a large pie dish.

Preheat the oven to 200C. Brush the edges of the pie dish with oil. Unroll the filo pastry and lay a sheet of pastry over the pie dish. Brush with olive oil then repeat with the other sheet. Scrunch up the overhanging pastry, fold onto the pie’s surface, and brush with olive oil. Bake for 25-30 mins or until golden and crisp.

Maple and Orange Glazed Guinea Fowl with Orzo

I was sad to find out that Presto Pasta Nights has come to an end. I was looking through the entries to the last roundup and found Ruth's Chicken and Orzo recipe, which looked fantastic and thought hmm now I have a craving for orzo! So I went for something similar to what she did, but different! Instead of her Lemon Rosemary Balsamic and More... Roasted Chicken, I went for Maple and Orange Glazed Guinea Fowl, still roasted in the oven, and I too served mine on a simple bed of orzo. I also served it with cabbage.

Maple and Orange Glazed Guinea Fowl with Orzo (adapted from Good Food Magazine June 2002)
(Serves 4)

4 guinea fowl legs
3 tbsp maple syrup
1 tbsp wholegrain mustard
grated zest 1 orange
1 tbsp soy sauce
240g orzo
mixed fresh herbs
1 tbsp olive oil

Make several slashes across each guinea fowl leg. Tip the other ingredients into a wide shallow bowl and mix them together.

Add the guinea fowl and turn them in the mixture until evenly coated. Leave to marinade for about half an hour.

Preheat the oven to 200C.

Bake the guinea fowl for 30 mins until it is browned and glossy.
 
Meanwhile, Bring a pan of water to the boil and cook the orzo according to packet instructions, drain and return to the pan. Mix in the herbs and olive oil and serve the guinea fowl on top of the pasta.

Chicken Breast Stuffed with Green Olives and Goat's Cheese

I feel a bit more stiff today than I did yesterday, but I had a lovely long soak in the bath yesterday, which helped enormously! I still feel on a high too, it feels fantastic to have completed the walk and I had a lovely day yesterday of no diet, eating wispa golds and creamy pasta! It was a lovely treat!

Now on to today's recipe. As I have probably said before I love goat's cheese, I have always loved goat's cheese and it is fantastic used as a stuffing in chicken, which is what this recipe is. My goat's cheese escaped in the cooking process but it was easy to put back. I actually used guinea fowl rather than chicken, and the roasted veg tasted amazing with it. I served the guinea fowl with a mixture of beans, celeriac mash and corn on the cob. Delicious!

Chicken Breast's Stuffed with Green Olives and Goat's Cheese (from WeightWatchers Complete Kitchen Cookbook)
(Serves 2)
(6 WW ProPoints per serving)

1 red onion, chopped roughly
175g cherry tomatoes, halved
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
cooking spray
50g goat's cheese
25g green olives, chopped
2 chicken breasts

Preheat the oven to 200C. Toss the onion, tomatoes and most of the thyme together on a non stick baking tray. Spray lightly with cooking spray. Spread out into an even layer, making space in the centre of the tray.

Mix the goat's cheese and olives together with the rest of the thyme.

Use a sharp knife to cut a horizontal pocket into each chicken breast. Use a teaspoon to stuff the goat's cheese mixture into each chicken breast. Press the chicken beast lightly closed around the stuffing.

Nestle the chicken amongst the vegetables on the baking tray and spray lightly with cooking spray. Roast in the oven for 20 mins or until the chicken is cooked through, stirring the veg around halfway through.

Guinea Fowl with Vegetables En Papillote

When I was in France a couple of weeks ago, I picked up a box of WeightWatchers recipes in French! I have an ok knowledge of French and I can read a menu so with the help of my trusty French dictionary I have worked out what the recipes say and this is the first recipe that I tried.

I love guinea fowl, but it's not something you get very often here in the UK, so I brought some back with me. We popped into the supermarket in Lille on the way back and I picked some up, as well as a whole host of other things I can't get here. Guinea fowl tastes like chicken but better and it's a little smaller I think. This recipe was deliciously simple but fantastic. I really am majoring on en papillote! I love the juices of the meat/fish flavouring the veggies, so good!

Guinea Fowl with Vegetables En Papillote (adapted from WeightWatchers Boite a Fiches Recette)
(Serves 4)
(6 WW ProPoints per serving)

4 guinea fowl legs
300g green beans
2 shallots, sliced
2 carrots, julienned
1 courgette, julienned
40g light margarine
1 tbsp curry powder
salt and pepper

Preheat the oven to 210C.

Share the veg out between four sheets of greaseproof paper. Place the guinea fowl legs on the top, then sprinkle over the curry powder and put a little knob of butter on top of each leg. Fold the greaseproof paper on top and seal the parcel to form a papillote (the one that looks like a Cornish pasty).

Bake in the oven for 20 mins and serve.