Christmas Kurnik

Begin by preparing the chicken: rinse it thoroughly, cut it into pieces, and set it to boil. First, place the chicken in boiling water and cook for 10 minutes after it comes to a boil. Then, drain this water, replace it with fresh water, bring it to a boil, and reintroduce the chicken. Add salt, one carrot, half an onion, mustard seeds, and peppercorns. Simmer the broth for an hour and a half, adding a bay leaf 30 minutes before it's done. Once the broth is ready, remove the chicken, vegetables, and bay leaf.

Prepare the vegetable base: crush the garlic with the flat side of a knife, and slice two onions into quarter-rings. Sauté the garlic in hot olive oil for one minute, then add the onions and continue to sauté for another 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Add two carrots, grated on a coarse grater. Sauté for another 2 minutes, lightly salt, sprinkle with thyme, paprika, dill, and parsley. Simmer the vegetables under a lid over low heat for 10 minutes. If the carrots are not juicy enough, you can add 2 tablespoons of broth. Turn off the stove, remove the garlic, and let the vegetables steep under the lid.

Slice the mushrooms thinly.

Shred the boiled chicken into fibers so that it can be easily distributed in the filling.

Finish the pie with the final layer of chicken, drizzling it with melted butter. Cover the filling with a round of puff pastry, using the smaller portion, brushed with egg yolk along the inner edge. The edges of the dough can be decoratively crimped and folded towards the center, or the top layer of dough can cover the rim of the bottom layer. Make a small hole in the center of the pie for steam to escape and prick the dough in several places with a fork. Brush the top of the pie with egg yolk whisked with salt, sprinkle with sesame seeds, and bake in an oven preheated to 200°C for 30 minutes.

Remove the pie from the oven and carefully detach the springform ring. Brush the sides of the pie with egg yolk and return it to the oven for another 30 minutes at 180°C in convection mode, so that the sides brown as beautifully as the top. Let the finished kurnik cool on a wire rack, then use parchment paper to transfer it to a festive platter and serve with rich chicken broth. Enjoy your meal!

Now, let's make the pancakes: whisk the eggs with salt and sugar, pour in the milk, and add the baking soda. Mix everything thoroughly with a whisk. Gradually incorporate the flour, then beat with a mixer until you have a smooth batter without lumps. Pour in the vegetable oil and let the batter rest for about 30 minutes. Cook the pancakes in a pan lightly greased with lard. Brush each finished pancake with melted butter.

Divide the puff pastry into two parts, one of which should be approximately one-third smaller than the other. Roll out the larger part into a circle with a diameter greater than that of your baking dish. Line the bottom of the dish with SAGA baking paper to prevent the pie from sticking and make it easy to transfer. Grease the sides of the dish with melted butter. Place the pastry in the dish, forming high sides and pressing them firmly against the walls. Brush the inside of the pastry with melted butter. Lay out the first layer of filling – onions and carrots, after lightly squeezing out any excess liquid from the vegetables.