Hi Housewives!

I hope those of you in the Northeast are safe and warm in your homes…what a storm that was!  If you’re like me a storm means one thing and one thing only – tons of cooking and ummm, EATING!  It’s a time to bake, make soups or stews and just veg out.  A time for comfort food.  So, this weekend I decided to make a chicken pot pie which I love but have never done before.  I’ll be honest the reason for me mostly wanting to attempt this dish was because I recently bought an adorable little casserole dish and I really wanted to use it, LOL.  So, with the impending storm,  all week I thought about what I would like to make in it and chicken pot pie won out.

It wasn’t as hard as I had imagined it would be.  That being said it really all depends on whether or not you are making your own dough and cooking your own chicken.  I decided to go the semi-homemade route.  I had store bought pie crusts which I had all intentions on using for an apple pie but never quite got around to that so with their expiration date soon approaching I decided to not waste them and used that for my crust.  I also had every intention on making my own chicken and shredding it, however, when I braved the supermarket Friday night with the 1000’s of other blizzard shoppers I saw a beautiful rotisserie chicken already made and smelling quite alluring that I decided then that was what I would use for my chicken. I cooked the veggies and added my seasonings and the end result was tasty, pleasing and comforting.  So, here is my recipe for chicken pot pie.

• 5 Tablespoons of butter
• 1/2 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup of finely chopped celery
• 1 cup of chopped carrots
• 1 can of chicken broth
• splash of white wine
• 1/2 bag of frozen peas rinsed
• 1/4 cup of low fat milk (you can use whole if you prefer)
• 3 cups of shredded cooked chicken or turkey
• 1/4 cup of flour
• 2 refrigerated pie crusts ( a box usually comes with 2)
• a shake or 2 of thyme (fresh or dried)
• 1 egg
• Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees and take your unbaked pie crusts out of the refrigerator to thaw/soften.

Melt the butter in a large pot, then add your veggies and cook for about 3-5 minutes.  Stirring often.  When onions look translucent stir in your shredded chicken.  Then sprinkle in the flour and stir well.  Add your chicken broth and white wine and let cook until it starts to thicken.

Add your thyme, salt and pepper, milk and stir.  Let it cook until it bubbles and thickens up some more.  If you think its too thick add a little more chicken broth.  Turn off the heat.

Roll out your pie crust slowly and line the bottom of the casserole dish with it.   Pour your veggie and chicken filling into your casserole dish.  Then gently unroll your 2nd pie crust and lay it on top of your casserole.  Seal edges with fork, trimming edges if necessary.  Use a knife to cut a few little slits to allow steam to escape.

In a small bowl mix an egg and use it to carefully brush all over the top of your casserole.  You won’t use it all.

Place your casserole on a large baking dish and bake for 30-40 minutes until top is golden brown and filling is bubbly.  Cool for 10 minutes and ENJOY!

*Update – I used almond milk since that was all I had the next time I made this and there was no compromise of taste!  It was just as good!

RHC