Reading Recipes

Simple Homemade Chicken Pot Pie

If you’re in need of some warm comfort food, here’s a recipe for simple homemade chicken pot pie.  And it will also work if you have some leftover turkey you need to use up!

To lighten this recipe, filling goes into a bowl and pie crust is only used on the top.  The contrast between the creamy chicken and the crispy crust is perfection.

We looked for gluten-free pie crust at the store and surprise. It was all sold out.  Refrigerator pie crust works best; I think because it’s a bit thinner than prepared crust in the freezer section.  I was up for trying homemade gluten-free crust, but hub wasn’t up for it so Pillsbury, it was.

Early in the morning, I threw a frozen chicken breast into the crockpot with a celery stalk, salt, pepper and a sprinkling dried sage.  After just two or three hours it was cooked and ready to be shredded with a fork.

Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

              Ingredients
  • Prepared pie crust, cut to fit top of bowl, sprayed lightly with olive oil and lightly salted.  Baked according to instructions.
  • 1 can cream of chicken soup
  • 1 ½ cans water
  • 1 cooked and shredded chicken breast
  • 1 – 2 cups chopped mixed vegetables
    • I used
      • 1 potato
      • ½ cup frozen corn
      • 1 carrot
      • ¼ cup green beans
Directions

Prepare chicken breast (I cooked mine in the crockpot for a couple of hours with salt, pepper, dried sage, celery and 1 cup of water).  Shred and set aside.

Lightly spray oil on pie crust, sprinkle with salt and cut into bowl shape circles if desired. Bake according to package directions.

In a large pan, heat soup, water and mixed vegetables.  Simmer until veggies are as soft as you like and the soup is desired thickness.  You may need to add a bit more water as it cooks, especially if you’ve used starchy vegetables such as potato or corn.

Fill a bowl and top with baked crust.

Enjoy and make room in your tummy for seconds.

What I’m Reading

The third Sandman Slim, Aloha From Hell, made it into my reading queue this week.  I wanted to rate it more highly, but there are a few too many characters to keep track of. And too much whining from Sandman.  Although this series is a lot about Hell, actual Hell and Satan and fallen angels, it’s not horror.  Just the normal spiritual battles it feels like we fight every day.  It seems as if Richard Kadrey might know something about actual Satan.  Hmmmm. Well, convincing to me.

The audio selection I’m listening to is Dean Koontz’s Innocence.  In typical Koontz style, the story vacillates between two characters and between the present and the past.  The prose is beautiful.  Koontz is the king of similes.   Don’t let the fact that it is a Koontz scare you – it’s not horror, but I think I’ll let you decide for yourself if you want to give it a go.  Narration is great.

Wrap Up

This weekend is the traditional kick off to the holiday madness, but it seems that may have already started this year.  Please slow down and enjoy your loved ones this holiday season.  And drink some eggnog.  Maybe with a little bourbon if you’re hanging out by the fire.

Which is what I plan to do with my new glasses.