Recipe: Family Favorite Chicken Pie

Last Saturday’s CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIE RECIPE received such a
great response; I decided to share one more of my favorites with you….MY SIMPLY
THE BEST CHICKEN PIE!!
My mamma always taught me that a great soup, sauce, or
chicken pie begins with superior stock.  It takes a little more effort than throwing
the chicken in a pot of water.  I think
cooking the stock overnight in the slow cooker adds so much flavor and
tenderness to the meat.  So, I begin with
a cup of chopped celery, chopped onion, and two minced garlic cloves in the
pot.  I season the veggies with a
tablespoon of salt, and about a tablespoon of MRS. DASH GARLIC AND HERB SEASONING (love this…use it a lot!).  If I have
some fresh herbs growing in my window, I might also toss in a sprig of rosemary
or three basil leaves for additional flavor. 
Then I put the chicken (3-4 lb. fryer) in the pot upside down, cover
with water, put the pot on low and say Nighty Night!
The stock will be a rich golden brown in the morning.  I take out the chicken…which may fall to
pieces, so a serrated spoon is good to have on hand…and I set it aside to cool
for a little while.  I use the spoon to
scoop out the cooked veggies and place them in a saucepan as you see
below. 
Now, one whole chicken will shred up to enough meat for
either two pies…or one pie and one chicken salad for another meal…or one pie
and a little homemade chicken soup…or take a pie to a friend in need or just to
put a smile on their face.  It is easy to
make two pies either for you whole family or to bless another!
You may do any combination of veggies you and your family
will like.  Here I mixed the celery
mixture with mushrooms, carrots, LeSueur Peas  (I always thought they
were the best), and  chopped red pepper.  I cover these in chicken stock and cook until
they are soft.
Here is where I cheat! 
I do not often make a homemade pie crust.  In high humidity, pie crusts are difficult
and time consuming.  So, I buy the
ready-made dough.  It must be taken out
of the refrigerator to soften while you are making the filling.
For the sauce, you will need a good whisk to keep it
smooth.  Melt six tablespoons of butter
in a pot.  When thoroughly melted, add
one-half cup of all- purpose flour and whisk until thick (into a ball), and
then slowly add three cups of the chicken broth.  Whisk until smooth and thick.  Taste and season as you go along.  You might want to add more salt and, if you
have a husband like mine, you will want it to have plenty of pepper.
Place the bottom layer of dough into a pie dish and press it
to fit.  Then load up the filling!  Now, I collected many cookie cutters when my
children were young and here is one of the places I still use them.  My Texas Aggie son was the benefactor of this
pie so I decorated with a cowboy boot. 
But, my chicken pies have had flowers, hearts, autumn leafs,
Thanksgiving turkeys, and even Christmas trees in the middle of them.  Cut the center as you desire and place it on
top.  I pinch the ends together as my mother taught me with a thumb pinch and a twist.
The pie will bake for about thirty minutes at 400
degrees.  You must cover the edges with
foil so they do not burn.  I recycle foil
just for this purpose.  What I decided to
do with the extra filling I made was to freeze the filling and have a quick
dinner one evening…now that my husband and I are going back to work
fulltime!  All I will need is the pie
crust!
Enjoy!!  Have a
Wonderful Thursday and make sure you visit some of the other bloggers at KATIE’S FAVORITE THINGS BLOG HOP! on Thursday!
Thursday Favorite Things

14 Comments

  1. I was just checking out the Thursday Favorite Things and came upon your delicious recipe – I've just pinned it – I'll be trying it!!!

  2. YUMMY and so cute to boot 😉 Came over from Favorite Things Thurs and so glad I did – your blog is a breath of fresh air – and it smells like Chicken Pot Pie!

  3. You know, I'm just not into cooking but your recipe looks so delish, I might just try it….better yet, I'll ask hubby. 😉
    Thanks for sharing. Have a terrific weekend Pam!

  4. Oh my goodness. Chicken pot pie is one of my favorite foods and my mouth is watering as I erad this. The boot cut out on top is just perfect! I need to learn how to use a crock pot. I am just not enthused about cooking. I love reading recipes, but anything beyond about 3 ingredients just seems like too much work for me.

Comments are closed.