Today is the day to celebrate the often unseen work that goes on in our Kiwi homes -the beds that are invisibly made, the clothes that somehow get cleaned and folded back into your cupboards and the dinners that appear on the table at night.

So all you boys, girls, young and old, get into that kitchen and cook for your Mum tonight! Make a chicken pie for dinner - it's a piece of pie to make.

Why chicken pie? Maybe its the fact that I was brought up on a chicken farm? Plus they're easy, pretty healthy and above all it's my wife's recipe! Can't go wrong.

Bee’s Famous Chicken Pie (makes 1 family-sized pie)

Ingredients

1 size 12 free range chicken
3 tbsp olive oil
pinch salt
pinch black pepper
1 leek
4 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
50g butter
50g flour
300ml milk
1 cup frozen peas
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 sheets of savoury short  pastry (or filo for a healthier option)
1 egg
1 tbsp milk
100g rocket leaves to serve

Preheat oven to 180°C. Pat chicken dry with paper towels, then rub with 2 tbsp olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Place chicken in a roasting dish and pop into oven. Roast for 1 hour or until juices run clear. Allow to cool slightly before removing skin and picking all meat off the bird.  Set aside. (Keep the chicken carcass to make stock!)

Thinly slice the leek, rinse and sauté in a large saucepan until soft. Remove and set aside. Sauté garlic in butter until soft. Stir in flour and cook over medium heat for 1 minute. Gradually pour in first measure of milk, whisking well between additions. Cook for a further 1-2 minutes once all milk has been added to thicken sauce. Add leek, shredded chicken meat, peas and mustard and stir well to combine.

Spray a family-size pie dish with cooking spray and lay a sheet of pastry in the bottom. Spoon in chicken mix. Whisk together egg and 1 tbsp milk to make eggwash. Lay the second sheet of pastry over the top. With your fingers, press the two sheets of pastry together around the edges. Prick the top sheet with a fork and brush with eggwash. Bake pie in oven for 25-30 minutes.

Serve with homemade tomato relish and rocket leaves.

Tomato relish (makes about 1 cup)

1 small onion, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 x 400g tin whole peeled tomatoes
leaves from 1 sprig of rosemary
1 tbsp honey
pinch salt
pinch pepper 

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and place over a medium heat. Simmer for 15 minutes or until reduced by about one third.