melted butter, to brush, plus extra butter to grease
1tbsp icing sugar, plus extra to serve
1/2tsp ground cinnamon
For poaching
1 litre chicken stock
1 onion, halved
2cm piece fresh ginger, halved
6 garlic cloves, halved
zest 1/2 lemon
zest 1/2 orange
7cm cinnamon stick
1kg chicken thighs
handful coriander, stalks and leaves separated
For the filling
100g dried apricots, roughly chopped
1tbsp olive oil
2 onions, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2cm piece fresh ginger, finely chopped
1tsp ground tumeric
2tsp ground coriander
2tsp ground cumin
2 eggs, beaten
125g blanched almonds, finely chopped
small handful flat-leaf parsley, chopped
Method
Put all the poaching ingredients, including the chicken thighs and the coriander stalks (reserve the leaves) into a lidded pan set over a high heat. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat and gently poach the chicken for around 45 minutes or until fully cooked and tender.
Remove the chicken, leaving the poaching liquid in the pan, and set aside until cool enough to handle. Remove the skin and shred the meat off the bones.
Strain the poaching liquid into a jug and discard the flavourings. Pour the liquid back into the pan and boil rapidly to reduce by half, then remove from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 220C/200C F/Gas 7.
To make the filling, soak the apricots in the reduced liquid. Heat the oil in a deep frying pan over a medium setting, add the onions and fry for 4-5 minutes until soft. Add the garlic, ginger and dried spices. Cook for 1 minute, then stir in the chicken, apricots and soaking liquid.
Reduce the heat to low, pour in the beaten eggs and stir until they look lightly scrambled. Remove the pan from the heat, then stir in the almonds and parsley and reserved coriander leaves. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Lay out three sheets of filo pastry and cover with cling film or a clean, damp tea towel. One by one, brush each sheet with melted butter and sprinkle lightly with the icing sugar and cinnamon. Layer the filo sheets and press to seal.
Butter a 25cm pie dish and line it with the three sandwiched pastry sheets – overlap them to cover the base of the dish, with the excess filo overhanging generously enough to enclose the pie filling. Spoon the chicken mixture into the dish and fold the excess filo over the filling to enclose. Brush the top with more melted butter and bake for 5 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 200C/180C F/Gas 6 and bake for a further 25-35 minutes or until golden.
Remove the b’stilla from the oven and let it cool slightly. Dust with icing sugar before slicing to serve.
Recipes and photographs taken from Life's too Short to Stuff a Mushroom by Prue Leith, photography by Ant Duncan, (Carnival, £25)
