A Plate Full

I know, chicken pot pie……. yawn.  I’m also not going to tell you that this is the pot pie to end all pot pies, that it’s the most fabulous, wonderful, life changing pot pie you’ll ever have.  I will tell you that it’s very good.  I will tell you that you should make this, and that it was good enough that I would serve it to guests for dinner. Actually, I did serve it to a guest for dinner.  And I’d do it again.  I’ve been playing with this idea of doing a weeks worth of dinners for you, with cooking more than you need of some things and using leftovers for a few meals.  Trying to put together an easy, cohesive selection that would work for anyone, singles, couples, and families. I’m almost there, and I’ll tell you all about it when it’s done.  But this recipe was(is?) part of it.  You can use leftover vegetables and chicken, make a quick sauce, top it with store bought pastry, and you’re done.  I will start with a caution, however.  If you’re using crocks similar to those above, be careful when transferring it to the plate.  Silicon potholders can be slippery.  I wouldn’t want you to do what I did.  Which was dump the @#)(*$#)@ thing over on its side, puffy lid flying off, hot bubbling innards spilling out (luckily on the baking sheet) right in front of your guest!  Crap.  I had to get tongs out, set it up right, scoop and pour and reattach it’s little lid.  So people, use caution, and rubber tipped tongs.  No, I didn’t get a picture.

You know how I love roasted veggies.  Love them so much that I roast them in the summer when it’s almost hot enough to roast them outside from the sun alone. This uses roasted veggies.  So plan ahead.  If you’re roasting or cooking vegetables before you make this, make extra and save some for the pot pie.  I used butternut squash, sweet little carrots, purple potatoes, and leeks.  I roasted the squash, carrots and potatoes all together, with a little olive oil and salt until they were almost fork tender.  400 oven for about 15 to 20 minutes.  Also, try to keep the pieces the same general size so they cook evenly.  Put them in a bowl along with the shredded chicken and the herbs and mix together.

For each 12 oz. serving use:

1/4 cup of purple potatoes
1/4 cup of butternut squash
1/4 cup of carrots
1/2 cup of chicken
1 tablespoon of finely chopped mixed rosemary, sage and parsley

Heat 1 cup of chicken stock either on stove top or microwave and hold until ready to use in sauce. In a small saucepan melt 1-1/2 tables of butter with 1-1/2 tablespoons of flour. Whisk until the mixture bubbles and cook 1 minute more. Add warmed chicken stock, 1/4 cup of sherry, whisk, whisk, whisk until boiling and thickened. Remove from heat. Add 2 tablespoons of heavy cream, and pour over the mixed chicken and veggies. Now this is important. TASTE IT. This is when you add salt and pepper until it tastes great to you. You can’t skip this step. Start with a 1/2 teaspoon and move up from there. I used at least a teaspoon of salt and teaspoon of pepper. This amount of sauce is for 2 servings. Ladle into your serving dish of choice and leave 1/2″ of room at the top.

Since my baking skill does not include making my own puff pastry, I used frozen. I prefer DuFour’s, but it can be hard to find, so Pepperidge Farms works perfectly. Cut a square or circle about 1′ larger than your dish drape over the top, pressing lightly around the edge. Put each dish on a baking sheet.

Bake in a 375 oven for 30 minutes or until the pastry is puffed and a deep golden brown. Transfer to a plate and serve. See above warnings about transfer.

The puff pastry shatters and crunches into the savory sauce. The squash and carrots add an earthy sweetness that melts around the chicken and potatoes. This comfort food. Simple, satisfying, warm comfort. Give it a go.