Chicken Pot Pie

My camera battery died right when I started cooking so you get iPhone photos today.  Sorry about that.

Comfort food is calling my name lately.  All I want is chili and stew and mac and cheese and all things roasted and red wine and bourbon drinks.  Falling leaves and CA building fires in the fireplace just make me want to curl up with something warm and comforting and there isn't anything more comforting than a bowl of chicken pot pie.

I did my best to load up the body of this chicken pot pie with veggies and to make the sauce with lighter ingredients too.  This pie is filled with onion, celery, chicken, zucchini, peas and corn.  I love the flavor that the mix of vegetables contributes to this recipe.

I also wanted to make sure that the chicken stayed nice and moist so I cooked the chicken by poaching it in stock.  Then I used that stock as part of the base of the sauce which means that all that wonderful chicken flavor is trapped inside the pie... I just pictured myself trapped in a pie and eating my way out.  That wouldn't be such a bad prison.

Despite what I consider to be excellent execution of the chicken pot portion of this chicken pot pie, I had some issues with the crust.  One of my intentions in making the pot pie was to use up some of the puff pastry scraps I've been saving in my freezer.  Typically when you make anything with puff pastry you end up with oddly shaped scraps and because of all the work it took for me to make all this puff pastry, I wasn't inclined to throw the in the trash so I've been collecting them.  

Once I cooked the chicken and sauteed the veggies and made the sauce, I topped all that with my puff pastry scraps and stuck it in the oven expecting the pastry to rise above into a beautiful browned pastry crown.  That did not happen.

Instead the pastry sunk into the base and didn't puff up or brown or anything.  It simply turned into a soggy mess.  I think this was because the pieces were so small - I'm pretty sure a large piece would have stood up to the test.  However, I didn't have any large pieces of dough so I scraped the soggy unpuffed pastry disaster off the top and set aside my deliciously creamy chicken and veggie base.  I then picked out a few more pastry scraps, put them on a baking sheet and baked them until they were beautifully browned and puffy.  I really should have just done this in the first place because a ladle of that creamy base and a little puff pastry hat in a bowl was absolute comfort food perfection!

Therefore, I recommend (and have adjusted the recipe instructions below to reflect this) keeping your chicken pie and your pie crust separate until serving.  It's best for everyone.

This recipe, as amended, is a really good one if I do say so myself.  It is creamy without being too heavy and the chicken flavor really comes through thanks to the stock.  I know what I'll be doing with the rest of the puff pastry scraps!

Chicken Pot Pie
6 servings


Ingredients
1 lb Boneless Chicken, breasts or thighs
2 cups Chicken or Vegetable Stock
1 T Olive Oil
1/2 Onion, finely diced (about 3/4 cup)
4 ribs Celery, chopped
3/4 cups Chopped Carrots
1/2 cup Corn (I used frozen)
1/2 cup Peas (I used frozen)
2 cloves Garlic, finely diced
1/3 cup Flour
1/4 cup White Wine
1 cup Milk (I used Skim)
1 tsp Thyme
1 tsp Salt
1/4 tsp Pepper
10 oz. Puff Pastry

Instructions
In a small pot, poach the chicken in the stock over low heat until the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes.  Let the chicken cool completely in the stock.  When the chicken is cool cut into bite sized pieces.  Reserve the remaining stock.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Spray a casserole dish with non-stick spray.

Heat the olive oil in a medium pot.  Add the onions, celery and carrots.  Saute until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the peas, corn and garlic and saute an additional 2 minutes until the garlic is fragrant.  Add the flour and stir until thoroughly coating the vegetables.  Cook 2 minutes.  Add the wine and milk, thyme and one cup of the reserved stock.  Cook until the sauce thickens, about 30 minutes.  Add the cut up chicken and stir until combined.  Pour the mixture into the prepared dish.

Cut the puff pastry into 6 equal portions.  Place on a baking sheet.

Bake both the chicken mixture and the puff pastry at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until the chicken mixture is bubbly and the pastry is browned and cooked through.

Spoon the chicken mixture into individual serving bowls and top with a piece of puff pastry.

Enjoy!
Julie