Ragout pastry with Sinterklaas miter

Preheat the oven to 200°C and let the puff pastry thaw.

Bring a pan of 500 ml water to a boil. Add the stock cube, Verstegen black peppercorns, Verstegen bay leaf, and Verstegen mace and stir. Reduce the heat to a simmer, add the chicken thighs, and poach for 20 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove the chicken from the pan, let it cool for 10 minutes, and then cut into 2 cm pieces.

Meanwhile, cut the puff pastry into a miter shape to fit the pie and poke a few holes in it with a skewer. Bake the puff pastry for 8 to 10 minutes, or until golden brown and cooked through. Adjust the oven temperature to 170°C (330°F) and bake the pie shells for 6-8 minutes.

Cut the mushrooms into half slices and the leek into thin rings. Peel and finely chop the garlic and onion. Melt the butter in a pan. Add the onion and garlic and cook for 5 minutes until lightly browned. Then add the mushrooms and leek and cook for 6 minutes until lightly browned and cooked through. Add the flour and stir well over low heat for about 7 minutes, or until the flour separates from the bottom.

Strain the stock, pour 100 ml of it over the flour mixture, and whisk well to combine. Repeat until the ragout has the desired consistency. Add the chicken and heat through.

Serve the chicken ragout in the pie cases and garnish with the Sinterklaas mitertjes.