COD & CHORIZO PITHIVIER WITH KALE
A pithivier is a type of French pie traditionally made with puff pastry. The preparation is both time-consuming and difficult but, luckily for us, high-quality frozen puff pastry is widely available. The cod and chorizo filling comes together in a snap, and if you’re tight on time, you can skip the etched decoration on top.
⁄ cup (125 mL) finely diced Spanish cured chorizo or Portuguese chouriço
4 cups (1 L) thinly sliced lacinato kale (no stems) Kosher salt to taste
⁄ cup (60 mL) finely chopped parsley leaves
1 tbsp (15 mL) finely chopped shallot
1 tbsp (15 mL) lemon juice
⁄ tsp (2 mL) finely grated lemon zest
⁄ tsp (1 mL) chili flakes (optional)
9 oz (255 g) cod fillet, cut into 1-inch (2.5 cm) cubes
1 egg yolk
1 tsp (5 mL) water
1 pkg (450 g) PC all-butter puff pastry, thawed
1 Preheat oven to 400 F (204 C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2 Heat a medium frying pan over medium-high heat. Add chorizo. Cook until golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes. Stir in kale. Cook until bright green and wilted, about 1 minute. Season with salt. Remove from heat. Set aside to cool to room temperature.
3 Combine parsley, shallot, lemon juice, zest and chili flakes, if using, in a medium bowl. Season with salt. Add cod and toss to coat.
4 Whisk egg yolk and water in a small bowl.
5 Unfurl puff pastry over a clean work surface. Cut out four 4 ⁄ -inch (11 cm) rounds. Transfer to prepared baking sheet.
6 Divide cooled kale mixture among rounds, leaving a ⁄ -inch (1 cm) border all the way around. Top with cod mixture. Brush egg wash over border.
7 Unfurl remaining puff pastry. Cut out 4 more 4 ⁄ -inch (11 cm) rounds. Working with 1 round at a time, position on top of cod mixture, carefully lining up edges of pastry. Press edges together to seal. Using back of a knife, create a slight diagonal indentation every ⁄ inch (5 mm) along edge, all the way around pastry.
8 Brush egg wash overtop. Poke a small hole in centre of each pastry top. Use tip of a small paring knife to gently score several curved lines, connecting each indentation to the centre hole.
9 Chill pastries in the refrigerator for 10 minutes.
10 Bake on middle rack until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.
Serves 4