Ingredients

4	puff pastry shells, large		240 g
8	button (white) mushrooms		110 g
1 tbsp	olive oil		15 mL
2/3 cup	frozen peas		80 g
5 tbsp	butter, unsalted		65 g
1/3 cup	white flour (all purpose)		40 g
375 mL	Homemade Chicken Broth		1 1/2 cup
1 1/2 tbsp	whipping cream 35%		23 mL
2 tbsp	fresh tarragon, chopped		4 g
1 pinch	nutmeg, grated
660 mL	Boiled Chicken, cut into bite-size pieces (Recipe)
	salt to taste
	ground pepper to taste

Before you start

Make sure you have the precooked chicken available.

Keep the serving plates in the oven at the lowest setting so they are warm when you serve.

Method

1. Preheat the oven using the lowest setting. Warm up the puff pastry shells on the individual serving plates.
2. Prepare the mushrooms: slice them thinly. Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, then sauté 3-4 min, with occasional stirring, until the mushrooms are golden and the released liquid has evaporated completely. Set them aside.
3. While the mushrooms are cooking, cook the small peas, still frozen, by plunging them 4-5 min in a small pot of boiling salted water. Drain them, then set aside.
4. Melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the flour then cook 2 min with stirring. Slowly add the broth with stirring and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and cook 3-4 min, with stirring, until the sauce is smooth and a bit thick. Pour in the cream, chopped tarragon, and grated nutmeg.
5. Add the chicken pieces, mushrooms, and peas. Adjust the seasoning. Cook a few minutes, then portion out the mixture into and around the pastry shells. Serve.

Remarks

Ingredients

2	onions, cut into quarters		400 g
3	cloves		0.1 g
1	leeks, cut into large chunks		300 g
2	carrots, cut in half		200 g
2 stalks	celery, cut in half		140 g
1	chicken, whole		1.4 kg
2	bay leaf		0.4 g
12 cups	water, 5-6 cm above the chicken		3 L
1/2 tsp	peppercorns		2 g
3/4 tsp	salt		4 g
	cheesecloth

Method

1. Prepare the vegetables. Cut the onions into quarters and stick the cloves into one of the quarters. Cut the leek into large chunks. Cut the carrots and celery stalks in half.
2. Place the vegetables, bay leaves and whole chicken (without the giblets!) into a pot. Add cold water to cover (5-6 cm above the chicken). Add peppercorns and salt (not too much, you can always add more later on). Bring to a boil. Reduce to a very gentle simmer: liquid should just bubble up to the surface. Cook, uncovered, for 1 h. A skin will form on the surface of the liquid; skim this off with a slotted or a regular spoon and discard.
3. Remove the chicken and pick off the meat. Reserve the chicken meat in a tight container, covered with some of the broth. Let cool down a few minutes then put the container in the refrigerator.
4. Adjust the seasoning of the broth and return the carcass to the pot. Simmer uncovered another ½ h, turn off the heat and when the broth is cool enough to work with, strain it through a sieve or a colander lined with cheesecloth, discarding the carcass, herbs, and vegetables. Transfer to airtight containers and refrigerate. Leave any remaining fat in the broth as a protective cover. You can skim this off when you use the broth.

Remarks