Chicken and Mushroom Cheesy Bake

Another recipe from the Farmer’s Weekly collections, probably from the  70s or early 1980s. It is a complete doddle to make this brilliant and delicious recipe, but assemble your ingredients ready to use. It is especially good served with a salad, as summer approaches. [plus Cornish new potatoes!!] plus it is even good cold for a picnic or the beach. 

Pre heat your fan oven to 150C and butter/line a loose bottomed or spring form 8 inch deep cake or flan tin.

First make the base:

scant 4 oz melted butter

4 oz crushed cream crackers [in a food processor is easiest]

4 heaped tablespoons dry sage and onion stuffing mix

Mix the above ingredients together, then press into the bottom of your prepared tin.

Then the filling:

2 oz sauteéd mushrooms

6-8 oz cooked shredded chicken [or finely chop]

2 oz chopped, cooked bacon

1 oz plain flour

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

10 oz sieved [plain] cottage cheese

3 eggs separated

salt and fresh ground pepper

5 fl oz sour cream

Cook your bacon until nice and crisp then chop until fairly small. I used chicken breasts that I butterflied and cooked in a pan with a little oil and sprinkled with bouillon. Cool then shred.

I did not sieve the cottage cheese, I bought mine in Lidl and the curds were very fine and not at all watery or lumpy. Perfect. Mix the flour and sour cream to a paste.

Mix all the above together in a bowl, except the egg whites. Whisk the whites until stiff then fold them into the mixture before tipping on the top of your base.

Bake for about 1 and a quarter hours, until firm but still springy. Carefully remove from the tin and allow to cool slightly on a serving plate.

Meanwhile, as it cools, make the topping:

1 small onion finely sliced [I used red]

2 oz mushrooms sliced

1 oz butter

2 or 3 fl oz sour cream 

1 tablespoon chopped parsley

Melt the butter, then lightly fry the onions and mushrooms. until lightly coloured and soft. Stir in enough cream to make a stiff ish mix. 

Spoon this over the Bake, which has slightly cooled, then sprinkle over the parsley.  Serve warm., although still great cold. Just brilliant, trust me. I will use this forever!

Note: the stuffing base was just scrummy