Millefeuille of Lamb
We've turned a famous French dessert, ‘millefeuille’ (a thousand leaves) into a gorgeous savoury creation. It's an open pie packed with delicious French flavoured lamb and moist vegetables that allows your presentation and building skills to run riot. It makes a perfect supper or lunch dish for special occasions.
Ingredients
Method
Minced mixture
- 500g prime lamb mince
- 2 tbsp tbsp olive / vegetable oil
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp dried tarragon (if available fresh make it a tbsp)
- 1 tbsp thyme
- 2 tbsp parsley (or a generous handful, finely chopped if fresh)
- 1 tsp beef stock powder mixed with 1 cup of hot water
- 1/2 cup good red wine - preferably the one you will drink with dinner
- 1 tsp quality dark red jam e.g. blackberry, blackcurrant
- 1 tbsp flour mixed well with 1/2 cup warm water
- salt and black pepper to taste
Vegetable mixture
- 1 small eggplant, finely diced
- 1 cup mushrooms, finely diced
- 1 tsp wholegrain mustard
- 1 tbsp finely diced chives (or a tsp dried chives)
- 1 tbsp sour cream
- salt and black pepper to taste
- 3 sheets flaky pastry
- Gruyere or Raclette cheese
- Blue cheese or Roquefort or Goat's cheese - whichever you prefer
- 1 egg, beaten
- Heat the oil and gently fry off the onion and garlic until both are soft. Add the mince and brown, ensuring there are no large pieces. Then add the tomato paste, herbs and stock and bring to a gentle simmer, stirring all the while. Add the wine and the jam and simmer for 15 minutes until the liquid has reduced a little. Add the flour and water mixture to form a light gravy - simmer and stir for a few minutes, taste and season if required. Remove from the heat and keep warm.
- In another pan, heat 2 tbsp olive oil, add the diced eggplant and mushrooms, cook until soft.
Add mustard and chives, leave to simmer for a few moments, and then stir through the sour cream. Add salt and pepper to taste, stir and take off the heat. Cover. - Heat your oven to 180C. Cut each sheet of pastry into 4 squares, then crumble blue cheese and sprinkle over 4 of the pastry squares. Slice gruyere thinly and place on another set of squares. Brush a third set of squares with beaten egg.
- Bake pastry for 15 minutes or until the squares have risen, the cheese is melted and it's all deliciously golden brown, remove from the oven. While hot, squash the squares down gently and trim a tiny bit off the edges with a sharp knife - so you can see the layers of pastry.
- Assemble as follows on warmed plates.
- Using a blue cheese pastry as the base, spoon mince meat mixture evenly, then place the plain pastry on top. Spoon over the eggplant and mushroom mix then place the gruyere pastry on top.
- Drizzle a warm Tomato Sauce around the Millefeuille and serve with a side of salad greens and balsamic vinaigrette.