Who doesn't LOVE chicken pot pie?!? Actually me, ok well I do now but I used to hate it! I would rather eat a bowl of brussel sprouts than eat a bit of that nasty thing! I don't know why, they are so delicious now! And easy!
The thing I absolutely love about them is that they can be made into individual size portions. You can make a huge batch freeze them and then have them for at least a month. Talk about grab and go, so easy. Annnyways. The one's that we made last night were Ah-mazing... literally worth risking your life for. No drama there!
Here's how it goes. First you need to figure out what you want in them. Do you want sausage, shredded meat, cubed meat, no meat. Do you want corn, broccoli, brussel sprouts (gag!), carrots, celery, etc. The filling is clearly the most important part of it so you have to make sure it's everything you want and more!
Our's went like this:
2 each Ears of Sweet Corn
4 each Carrots
2 each Chicken Sausage (I used garlic chicken)
1 cup Chopped Broccoli
1 sprig Thyme
1 sprig Rosemary
1 each Medium Yellow Onion
4 each Yellow Potatoes
2 each Garlic Cloves
I cut everything into a small dice so that it was easy to eat. Don't you hate how sometimes you will only get a bit of one ingredient because you can't fit more than one on the spoon. Yeah, me too. Once you have everything chopped up boil the corn, potatoes, broccoli, and carrots for about 15-20 minutes (until potatoes and carrots are cooked). If you don't boil the veg before you cook the entire pot pie you will have raw veggies. If that's your thing than go for it! If not boil them first. Strain the veg out and set to the side. Caramelize the onions until they are a nice golden brown, it gives them a great flavor and a little bit of sweetness. Once they are to the color you want them add the garlic and cook until you can smell the garlic. Throw the chopped up herbs in the onion and garlic mixture and cook for like 30 seconds. Remove from the heat and mix all the veg together.
In a saute pan cub the chicken sausage and get a nice sear on it. If you're cooking with another type of meat you don't necessarily have to sear it, I just like the flavor of it. Next make a roux and add milk to it to make a basic bechamel sauce to use as the creamy part of your mix. You can use oil in place of butter, you can use gluten free flour or if you are against it you can thicken your milk with corn starch. Clearly if you use the corn starch your meal is going to have a different texture to it, but it's your choice :)
I used almond milk and I loved the way that it came out, it was so yummy. Get it to the consistency you want. It shouldn't be runny like a soup but it shouldn't be so think that it's more like a gravy. A nice in between is a good place to be. Once your sauce is to the consistency add all the vegetable and the sauce together. Mix well. Please make sure that you season everything. It will give you a better end product if you season your boiling water for the vegetables and season the bechamel sauce also. Once you add them you shouldn't really have to adjust the seasoning too much.
Once everything is mixed roll out your crust and cut it out. We decided to cut out dove shapes and they turned out so lovely. I wish I had a picture but unfortunately I forgot my camera and my phone isn't uploading... I'll figure it out, stay tuned for a picture of the end result.
This recipe for the dough is fully Robin's doing. She had it made before I even got over. P.S. if anyone is in the Hudson Valley or NY area this girl can bake some amazing cakes and pastries! For the reals.
Pastry Dough:
3 cups Flour
1 tablespoon Sugar
1 teaspoon Salt
1/2 cup Shortening
4 ounces Butter
1/2 cup Cold Water
Mix all the dry ingredients together. Cut in the butter and shortening until small balls start to form. Finally add the cold water a little at a time until it's fully mixed. Wrap it in plastic wrap for about 2-4 hours and then bring it out. For a flakier crust you can do different amounts of "folding". Basically you let the dough rise, bring it out roll it, fold it, put it back in the fridge and let it rise again. Repeat that step anywhere from 3-6 times. The more times you do it the more flaky the crust will be. Think about 3 as a pie crust and 6 as a semi flaky pastry... croissant gets like 40 folds.
Once it's done rising, roll it out on a well floured surface and cut out the shapes you want for you pot pie. Assemble your pot pie by placing the veggie mixture is first and the the dough on top. Place in an oven at 400 degrees and bake for about 15 minutes or until dough starts to brown.
Let cool and enjoy! Be proud of what you just made and truly enjoy it!!
Happy Eating Family
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