Favorite Recipe: Chicken Pot Pie

My best friend, Ariel, and I discovered this recipe one night. We were craving pot pie, and wanted to try something new. Ariel was the genius and found this one. For sure, this recipe will always remind me of her :)

Its quite an impressive recipe. The directions actually include making your own stock by roasting a whole chicken. The few times I have made it I end up just using chicken bouillon cubes, simply because I prefe

r to eat sooner than later.

While this recipe is beyond delicious, some of the processes and ingredients caught me by surprise.

For example, the pie dough is made of both butter and shortening. The two recipes I have are my fail safe Betty Crocker pie dough recipe with shortening. And the second is the classic "poor mans puff pastry" recipe made with butter I got from my time working as Pastry Chef at Communal (a divine restaurant in Provo.)

So needless to say, it was the first of its kind i encountered. And I have to say, it is fan

tastic. It gives great flavor, with the perfect amount of flakiness. Also, the egg wash on top adds a great deal of yumminess.

Also the sauce was not a tradition, make a bechemel then add the sauteed vegetables. But I think this fact helped add the vegetable and chicken flavor to the sauce.

It only called for celery, onion, ca

rrot, peas and chicken, but I added potato. And in the past we have added whole bags of frozen veggies, like green beans and corn.

What I really loved about this recipe was that it has fresh thyme in it, making it great down home cooking with great flavor. However the few times I have made it, I end up putting at least double than it calls for. Cant pass up that great comforting flavor.

The recipe calls to make it in small ramekins so that they are more individual. U

ntil yesterday I had made it in a big pie pan, making it easier to serve, and also having enough inside stuff to make two. Last week I made it this way and yesterday made it in the ramekins. Both are great. And either way, you will always have great leftovers.

And, as always, if you want the recipe, feel free to let me know and I will hook you up!

Always in the kitchen,

Mel