A pithivier is a festive French pie, usually filled with almond frangipane. Here it's transformed into an elegant veggie main course, the tasty, rich filling with chickpeas, herbs and spices, nuts, mushrooms, and dates. You can prepare it the day before – a food processor will make light work of the prep – and store in the fridge. Serve with a pistachio pesto, which can also be done ahead, for a deep, nutty flavour. Just use a non-dairy pastry to make it vegan-friendly.

Get the recipe for vegetarian pithivier with pistachio pesto here

The perfect festive season menu looks like this