Chicken Pot Pie

Why is it that with every other pie I can title the post "Fresh Raspberry" or "Spiced Pumpkin", but I can't call this one "Chicken Pot"? Just doesn't work without the "Pie" at the end. But, boy does this pie work. If it were easier to make, mr. and I would both gain 50 pounds this year. Because I would make it once a week. Thankfully, it's a time consuming process. But so worth it.


It was nice to be back to making a regular pie crust. It seemed like weeks...which I guess it literally has been. I went to Lehi Roller Mills last week and stocked up on their Peacock All-Purpose Flour for general baking and Pastry Flour for pie dough. Their products aren't organic, but they are local and high quality (and I know the owners through my parents, so it kind of feels like buying from a neighbor). I can feel the difference as I work bread dough and pie dough with my hands. This flour is so much more fine and soft. I love it.

This pie. Was delicious. I don't know if I've ever had homemade pot pie. In fact, I don't think I've ever had anything but frozen pot pie. There's a world of difference. I don't think mr. has ever been so excited about food. The onions give a wonderful flavor. The vegetables are cooked, but still have some texture and aren't mushy (the potatoes need to be cut to the same size dice as the carrots--mine were bigger, they weren't raw by any means, but they were slightly undercooked).


The sauce is creamy but not too thick.


And the crust just surrounds it all with buttery goodness. (I did brush the inside of the crust with egg white hoping that the liquids wouldn't soak through the bottom crust and make it gummy--whether it was because of that or not, the crust was perfect)


It served up so nicely. I was sure that once I cut into it and removed a piece, the liquid would flow everywhere and it would be an impossible mess. Not at all. There's so much meat and vegetables in there that it really holds together. Some of the sauce leaks here and there, but that's part of the point with pot pie, right?

I'm looking forward to trying this with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving. That may, in fact, be the next time I make this recipe. For the sake of my waistline.

It was a perfect winter meal. In the sticks-to-your-ribs way. I topped it off by making pie dough cookies from the leftover dough. The Pie Queen used to do this when we were kids, but I had forgotten about it until The Piper's daughter reminded me around Thanksgiving. They had made some (just roll out the dough, cut it into rounds with a biscuit cutter and bake at 425 for 10-15 minutes) and sprinkled them with cinnamon sugar. I had to give that a try. With vanilla ice cream. So delicious. Like a flat churro.


Pie Rating--Chicken Pot Pie--KEEPER

And, a bonus video for your enjoyment. Just so you know what was running through my head the whole time I was making this particular meat pie:



Other baking projects this week: No-Knead French Bread, Banana Chocolate Chip Mini Muffins, and Cream Biscuits (which I neglected to photograph, but they were easily one of the more delicious things I've ever baked).

Next up: I realize I may have bitten off more than I can chew, switching my focus off pie and onto general baking. It leaves me with not just a world, but a universe of possibilities to choose from. I've discovered that The Joy of Cooking (I have the 1997 edition) is a great source for ideas for old-fashioned recipes. But in the edition I own, they've already done some of my work for me, they've altered the recipes to suit modern tastes. Meh. I want to try a real old-fashioned Pound Cake. With ingredients measured by the pound. Oh yeah. This should be interesting.