Cheddar Leek Puff Pie with Pear Salad

This meat-free pie uses lovely leeks and sharp Cheddar cheese plus light and flaky puff pastry. What's more it's very easy and quick to prepare.

It only take a few minutes in preparation time and about twenty minutes in the oven. Served with a pear salad (yum!) which takes only seconds to make, it's delicious and - I like to think - healthy too.

How did this recipe come about? Well, if you've read my other meat free recipes you'll know that we have a curious system

He's the one who does the shopping and I have fun creating dinner from whatever turns up. This can be an adventure at times and this recipe was a typical example.

When the groceries turned up, there was a lovely leek in there. Excellent, but hmm ... I already had one in the fridge. So I had to devise a dinner that would be largely leek. I keep flaky or puff pastry in the freezer - I don't make my own, it's the commercial sort - and it's a brilliant ingredient to keep in stock. It certainly saved my (meat-substitute) bacon this time!

• Two leeks
• A slab of frozen puff pastry. The type I use needs to be defrosted for about half an hour at room temperature before baking
• 4oz sharp Cheddar cheese
• 2 pears
• Salad greens
• 2 orange wedges
• Olive oil

PREHEAT THE OVEN

If you're using frozen pastry, a glance at the packet will tell you the temperature you need. Usually, it will be 400 - 450°.

SLICE AND WASH THE LEEKS

It might just be me being paranoid but I like to separate them into rings and rinse and rinse and rinse. Heat the olive oil in a skillet and add the leeks. Once they are beginning to cook turn the heat down to low and cover with a lid.

ROLL THE PASTRY

I don't like to have kitchen tools that I only use occasionally because I have such a tiny kitchen. (You should have heard me when he came home one day with a pizza cutter. We have knives for goodness sake!) So I roll the pastry with a wine bottle. Full, complete with cork of course, or empty - it doesn't matter as long as it's given a good clean first.

Flour the board first and the top of the pastry and roll it out to roughly 5 by 11 inches or whatever size will fit your oven dish. With a knife, lightly score around the perimeter of the pastry - about a quarter inch from the edge, place it on a baking sheet or oven dish and bake until cooked - about twenty minutes.

ADD THE CHEESE

Gently remove the 'lid' with a knife and add half the cheese to the pastry case. It will immediately start to melt and that's fine.

ADD THE LEEKS TO THE PIE

Simply spoon the cooked leeks on the top of the cheese.

ADD THE REMAINING CHEESE

Top the leeks with the remaining cheese. Put the pastry lid back on and return the pie to the oven to keep it warm and melt the cheese while you made the salad.

A SIMPLE SALAD

Simply arrange salad greens on a plate and add the sliced pears. Serve with a wedge of orange to squeeze over the salad in lieu of an oily dressing. (We already have olive oil and cheese so let's not add any more).

As I write he is on the phone to his mum telling her about the delicious pie he had for dinner last night - praise indeed!

A small but good collection of cookbooks in your kitchen can be a marvelous investment. Every day you'll find inspiration for wonderful meals from breakfast, lunch and dinner, plus snack and delicious drinks.

Below, you can see step by step photographs for easy reference.