Smoked cheese & potato pithivier

Put the potato slices into a pan over a high heat with a kettleful of just-boiled water. Bring to the boil, cook for 5 minutes, then drain. Spread out over kitchen paper or a clean tea towel and allow to cool completely.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a frying pan over a medium-high heat and fry the leeks with some seasoning for 7-8 minutes, stirring often, until softened and a little coloured. Tip into a bowl and mix with the mascarpone. Leave to cool, then stir through half the cheese.

Preheat the oven to 200°C, gas mark 6 and put a baking sheet in to warm up. It might seem early to do this, but you want the sheet to get really hot. Unravel a pastry sheets on a board, keeping it on its paper. Spread about two-thirds of the potato slices over, leaving a 2cm border each side. Top with the leek mixture, then the remaining potatoes and cheese. Brush the border with beaten egg.

Unravel the second sheet of pastry, then carefully place on top of the filling, pushing out any air pockets and smoothing it down over the filling and on top of the base layer. Using a fork, press the edges together all the way around (the top edge won’t come right to the edge of the base)

Snip off the four corners of the pastry, then roll the edges over on themselves like a Cornish pasty. Go around with the fork for a second time – it doesn’t have to be neat, it’s just to seal the edges effectively. Brush the whole pie with beaten egg, then chill for 15 minutes.

Carefully score a pattern in the top with the point of a knife (see tips), brush all over with beaten egg and skewer a small hole on top, in the centre. Slide the pithivier carefully onto the preheated baking sheet, keeping it on its paper, bake for 20 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 180°C, gas mark 4 and bake for 25 minutes more until golden and crisp.

Allow the pithivier to cool for 15-20 minutes, then slice and serve with a sharply dressed bitter leaf salad and cornichons. It’s also tasty at room temperature as part of a buffet.