At the risk of sounding like a raging sycophant, I haven’t yet come across a Jamie 30 Minute Meal that isn’t a) extremely doable in the time, and b) darn tasty to boot. But they just are!

This chicken pie is no exception. A rich and tasty pie that ticks all the “chicken pie please” boxes. There’s supposed to be peas & lettuce simmered in stock with this too, but the carrots were enough for me.

Dessert was a rapid and shameless quick switcheroo from a different 30 minute meal, but just what I fancied. Thick, creamy and sweet too.

30 minute chicken pie, smashed carrots and mascarpone cherries (serves 2):

For the pie:

2 skinless chicken breasts, sliced into 1 cm pieces

1 red onion, peeled

7 – 8 chestnut mushrooms

1 tablespoon flour

1 teaspoon English mustard

1 tablespoon creme fraiche

200ml chicken stock

A few sprigs of thyme, leaves picked

½ nutmeg

1 sheet of pre-rolled puff pastry

1 egg

For the smash:

4 – 5 carrots

Handful of parsley, roughly chopped

For the mascarpone cherries:

½ tin cherries

150g tub mascarpone

A little milk

1 heaped teaspoon icing sugar

Some shortbread biscuits

1. Get the oven on 200°C, the kettle full and boiling, a big frying pan on a low heat, a large lidded saucepan on a low heat and chuck the thick slicer disc in the food processor.
2. Add a little oil and butter to the frying pan, add the chicken and fry for a couple of minutes. Throw the mushrooms and onion into the food processor, slice and add to the pan. Stir in the flour, work it around the pan then add the mustard, creme fraiche, stock, thyme and nutmeg. Leave to simmer.
3. Slice the carrots in the food processor and add to the saucepan. Cover with water from the kettle and bring up the heat – simmer for 15 minutes until tender.
4. Check the chicken mix for seasoning, then tip into a baking dish. Cover with a sheet of puff pastry and slice liberally with a knife, then brush over the beaten egg. Pop in the oven for 15 minutes or until golden and puffed up.
5. For the dessert, crumble some biscuits in the bottom of a serving bowl. Mix the mascarpone with some milk to slacken to a creamy paste, then stir in the sugar. Plop this on top of the biscuit and dot with cherries, tipping on a little of the tin juice with it. Put to one side until dinner’s done.
6. Back at the carrots, if they’re tender drain, season, add a splash of oil and seasoning, then stir through the parsley. Get the pie out of the oven and start eating!