This is a sponsored post

Who needs a pork pie when you could have a pretty little curly kale pesto pie instead? Not me!! I know, picnic season seems such a long way off, but I love serving picnic-style finger-food when we have friends for lunch, even in the depths of winter. I made these before realising that it’s British Pie Week too, a happy coincidence!

You may not have guessed that the ingredients for these pies are almost all from the freezer cabinet – yes, even the curly kale and parsley. I was challenged by Iceland to create a recipe from their range of frozen ingredients for their #PowerOfFrozen campaign, and took a trip to my nearest store, which I hadn’t visited before.

I must admit to being surprised and impressed as I rummaged around – I wasn’t expecting to find curly kale, chopped chilli, garlic & herbs, bulgur wheat with lemon & mint, sweet potato mash, sliced peppers, mushroom risotto, asparagus spears, creamy spiced lentils, and so much more. Their frozen ‘bake at home’ bread is seriously good, and I’m still trying to resist the temptation of their frozen breakfast patisseries.

Our freezer is groaning under the weight of my discoveries, and its so good to know there are always handy standbys in the cupboard for those just-back-from-holiday empty-fridge emergencies.

There are a whole host of reasons why frozen ingredients are a great idea…. extra nutrients as they are frozen quickly after picking, lower price for higher quality, less waste, guaranteed provenance, convenience, choice and many more. Iceland’s new Power of Frozen website gives a huge amount of interesting info – hop over for a look.

Vegan

Print Kale Pesto & Cauliflower Picnic Pies Prep Time 25 mins Cook Time 40 mins Total Time 1 hr 5 mins Course: Lunch Cuisine: British Servings : 12 mini pies Author : Kate Ford | The Veg Space Ingredients 500 g frozen shortcrust pastry, defrosted

1 large potato, peeled and cut into 1cm dice

200 g frozen or fresh cauliflower florets

75 g frozen or fresh diced onions

75 g frozen or fresh curly kale

3 garlic cloves peeled and crushed

75 g almonds or pine nuts

50 ml extra virgin olive oil

Juice of 1 lemon

2 tbsp frozen or fresh chopped parsley

75 ml soya or nut milk Instructions Preheat the oven to 180°C / 350°F / Gas Mark 4. Boil the potato chunks for 5 minutes in a large saucepan. Add the cauliflower florets and diced onions, and cook for a further 3-4 minutes until both potatoes and cauliflower are just cooked through. Drain and set aside. Cook the curly kale in a microwave or saucepan according to packet instructions. Add to a blender or food processor along with the garlic, almonds, olive oil, lemon and parsley, and blitz until finely chopped. (For this recipe I prefer my pesto just 'chopped' rather than a smooth sauce, but the consistency is up to you). Add the soya/nut milk and pulse until combined. Take a large bowl and add the potato and cauliflower, breaking up the cauliflower florets into small-ish chunks. Pour over the kale pesto and mix together until fully combined. Grease a 12-hole muffin tin, (I use cooking spray for this). On a floured surface, roll out the pastry to about the thickness of a pound coin, and cut out 12 large circles to line each hole of the muffin tin. Re-roll the offcuts, and cut out 12 smaller circles which will form the lids. Fill each case with the potato and cauliflower mixture, (pack it in really tightly, it won't expand or leak during cooking!), and then brush the edges of each lid with a little water and stick down to the rim of the pies, crimping with a fork to create a good seal. Make four little holes in a cross pattern on the lid of each pie with a sharp knife. Brush the lids of each pie with soya or nut milk, then spray with cooking spray (if you have some handy). Bake for 35-40 minutes until deeply golden brown on top. Leave to cool in the tin, then remove the pies carefully. These can be served either hot or cold.

Don’t forget to pin the recipe for later, or to share with friends → → → → →

There are plenty of similarly quick and easy recipes in my new book, ‘Vegan in 15‘*. Hop over to Amazon for a look. Thanks for your support!

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For more vegetarian Iceland #PowerofFrozen recipes, take a look at:

Disclosure: This post was sponsored by Iceland. There was no expectation of a positive review, all opinions are my own.