Zaatar Puff Pastry Pie – German-Lebanese fusion with chicken

Name: Zaatar Puff Pastry Pie – German-Lebanese fusion with chicken
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 2 h 30 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Lebanese
Ingredients: Filling: 2 onions (thin), 8 mushrooms (sliced), 3 tbsp Honeydew zaatar, 1 tbsp Maggi soy, 1 garlic clove, olive oil; Mascarpone base: 250 g mascarpone, 3 tbsp sun-dried-tomato pesto; Chicken: 300 g breast + marinade (garlic, olive oil, tomato paste, mustard, lemon juice, yogurt, vinegar, salt, pepper, 7-spice); 200 g rock-salt cheese, grated; 1 sheet puff pastry; 1 egg, beaten; Plus: a little zaatar for topping

Our Zaatar Puff Pastry Pie blends bold German cheese and flaky pastry with a Lebanese twist: a savoury zaatar-mushroom-onion filling, a creamy mascarpone-sun-dried-tomato base and tender spiced chicken – aromatic, satisfying and Mediterranean.

~2 Std 30 Min (Prep 30 Min, Cook 30 Min) Servings: 4 Cuisine: Lebanese Category: Main course With chicken

Method

Sweating onions in pan — Gently sweat onions in olive oil – flavour base.

Step 1 – Sweat onions

Sweat 2 large onions (thinly sliced) in extra virgin olive oil over medium heat for 6–8 min until translucent.

Add 1 minced garlic clove and cook 30 sec without browning.

Adding zaatar to onion base — Add zaatar & soy, fold in mushrooms – simmer to creamy.

Step 2 – Zaatar & mushrooms

Stir in 3 tbsp Honeydew zaatar and 1 tbsp Maggi soy sauce. Add 8 sliced brown mushrooms, cover and simmer on low 7 min until soft and creamy.

Adding sun-dried-tomato pesto to mascarpone — Stir mascarpone with sun-dried-tomato pesto.

Step 3 – Mascarpone pesto

Mix 250 g mascarpone with 3 tbsp sun-dried-tomato pesto until smooth.

Searing marinated chicken breast — Sear marinated chicken hot, cook through.

Step 4 – Sear chicken

Marinate chicken (1 breast, ~300 g) at least 2 h: 6 garlic cloves, 3 tbsp olive oil, 2 tbsp tomato paste, 2 tbsp mustard, juice of 2.5 lemons, 2 tbsp yogurt, 1 tsp white wine vinegar, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp pepper + 1 tsp each of 7-spice. Sear 4 min/side, cook 6 min more. Cube.

Step 5 – Assemble

Lay puff pastry. Spread 2 tsp tomato pesto, then the mascarpone mix. Add chicken, then the zaatar mushroom-onion filling. Top with 200 g rock-salt cheese.

Brush edges with egg and sprinkle zaatar — Brush edges with egg, sprinkle zaatar – bake golden.

Sprinkling rock-salt cheese over filling

Step 6 – Egg wash & bake

Brush edges with beaten egg, sprinkle a little zaatar. Bake at 170 °C for 25–30 min until cheese melts and pastry is golden. Rest 5 min, slice and serve.

Why this pie works
Authentic Lebanese zaatar adds tangy-herbal depth; mascarpone keeps it creamy; mild rock-salt cheese melts beautifully; puff pastry bakes ultra-crisp.