Some dishes feel like warm hug. This is most definitely one of them. A proper filling pie, no pastry required, just a thick top of fork-fluffed mashed potato on top of creamy chicken and leeks.

The key is building flavour from the bottom of the pan up. The bacon goes in first, low and slow, rendering down until there's a deep fond on the base, that's where everything starts. The leeks and onion go in next, softening in the leftover fat until sweet, before a splash of white wine lifts all of it off the bottom.

From there it becomes a Gruyère béchamel, spiked with Dijon and a generous hand of tarragon, which does something extraordinary with chicken. Herbaceous, faintly aniseed-y. The mash is straightforward. Maris Pipers, plenty of butter and seasoned well. Pipe or spread it over the filling, then take two forks and rough up the entire surface. Those peaks catch in the oven and turn deeply golden and crisp while the filling underneath bubbles away.

This is also a brilliant recipe for using up a leftover roast chicken, which makes it as practical as it is satisfying.