A Love/Hate Affair With Chicken Pot Pie

I can honestly say I loathed chicken pot pie when I was a child. My mother used to buy the ones that were already made, the small little ones that would somewhat fill you up, and the only thing that was needed was to place them in the oven and cook them until you saw some juice bubbling over the crust that had fork marks around the circle of the pie. Once they were done, they were placed in front of us, and I hid a “yucky” face from everyone. It tasted like metal, no flavor and heck, was it even real chicken? How about the veggies? Real or plastic? It was so nasty I told myself I would never eat chicken pot pies as an adult, it was too nasty to eat and there are much better and tastier foods out there.

What can I say? At the time I was having a “hate affair” with chicken pot pies. Do not even get me started with beef pot pies! They were even worse!!

But today, I am different. I never have eaten those oven-baked-already-made-gross-you-out-chicken-pot-pies again, but I have a husband who adores chicken pot pies (not the beef), so I decided to make it home made instead of buying the fake stuff. I have control on the ingredients, what type of flour to use, what kind of veggies to put in, and most importantly, REAL chicken, all without making “yucky” faces anymore.

How I find my recipes is Pinterest. Have you been on Pinterest? It is loaded with practically anything you need or want, especially recipes. I found a recipe that looked enticing, even though I still had that cringe feeling in my stomach, wondering if I would have those nightmarish scenes from my childhood of stale, overcooked chicken pot pies.

But, I plundered forward, and you know what? It was not that bad. I think I am finally having a “love affair” with chicken pot pies, finally. I have a husband who will tell me what he REALLY thinks about it. I think the best part was the crust. OH MY GOODNESS! I found the perfect gluten free flour to use, as we have gluten issues: Baking Flour 1:1. You can get it at many grocery stores, especially the natural, farm market types. I want to share the recipe, but it is definitely NOT mine but from someone else who took the time to cook this moist-overflowing-with-goodness-type of chicken pot pie recipe. I have put a link on the bottom that you will need to copy and paste in your favorite browser for this recipe and more on her site:

GLUTEN-FREE CHICKEN POT PIE

PREP TIME: 20 minutes

COOK TIME: 50 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 10 minutes

INGREDIENTS

FOR THE CRUST (MAKES TWO 10" CRUSTS, ENOUGH FOR ONE LARGE POT PIE, OR 6 SMALL POT PIES) :

• 3 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour blend

• ½ teaspoon salt (omit if using salted butter)

• 2 teaspoons xanthan gum (omit if you use a blend that has xanthan)

• 1 cup butter (2 sticks), cold - cut into small pieces

• 8-10 tablespoons milk, cold

FOR THE FILLING:

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed

• 1 cup sliced carrots

• 1 cup frozen green peas

• ⅓ cup butter

• ⅓ cup chopped fresh yellow or white onion

• ⅓ cup all purpose gluten-free flour blend (or 3 tablespoons corn starch)

• ½ teaspoon salt

• ¼ teaspoon black pepper

• 1 ¾ cups chicken broth

• ⅔ cup milk

INSTRUCTIONS

1. For the crust- Preheat oven to 425°F (220°C). In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour,salt, and xanthan gum.

2. With a pastry knife (or a knife and fork), cut butter into flour until butter is the size of small peas.

3. Add milk and combine. Add additional milk if needed. You may need to use your hands to work the milk into the dough.

4. Dough should be moist and easy to roll.

5. Divide dough in half and roll each ball of dough out on a gluten-free floured surface with a rolling pin until approximately 10-inches in diameter. Alternatively, roll dough between two pieces of wax paper.

6. Place one circle of dough into the pie pan and trim edges if necessary.

7. For the filling- In a medium saucepan, combine chicken, carrots and peas. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from the pan and drain; set aside. If you are using precooked chicken, cook the peas and carrots, then add in the cooked chicken after draining.

8. In the same saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent.

9. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk.

10. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.

11. Place the chicken and veggie mixture in bottom pie crust, filing about half way. Pour the gravy mixture over the top and fill about ¾ of the way.

12. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Cut small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.

13. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly.

14. Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

NOTES

When working with or measuring gluten-free flour, spoon the flour into the measuring cup and level. Do not scoop your measuring cup into the gluten-free flour. The best method really is to weight it but I don't have the ingredient weights for all my recipes yet.

NUTRITION INFORMATION:

YIELD:

12

SERVING SIZE:

1/12th

Amount Per Serving: CALORIES: 436TOTAL FAT: 23gSATURATED FAT: 14gTRANS FAT: 1gUNSATURATED FAT: 7gCHOLESTEROL: 89mgSODIUM: 524mgCARBOHYDRATES: 39gFIBER: 3gSUGAR: 2gPROTEIN: 18g

“This nutrition info is based on the exact ingredients and brands that I used a the time. It may not be 100% accurate. Please check your ingredients nutrition labels.”

https://www.glutenfreepalate.com/gluten-free-chicken-pot-pie/

Bon Appetit!!