Per Patrick's request *g*
Pat and I were discussing the glories of pot pies in chat last night and I was reminded of a recipe I haven't pulled out in a while. When Jeff and I were newly married, I asked his mom for a list of any of his particular favorite meals and recipes. I will eat just about anything, as long as I can pick out the onions (which I love, but which do not love me). Jeff has broadened his food horizens significantly since marrying me, but he was a pretty picky eater in the early days. Thus the need for tried and true recipes of his youth.
Surprisingly, his mom really didn't have a whole lot to share. I guess she wasn't as much in to cooking when her kids were growing up as she is now. But the following is one recipe that never failed in our house. We all love it. I tended to save it for special occasions like birthdays and family gatherings, because it makes a lot of food and requires a bit of extra prep time. But I haven't made this dish in probably 2-3 years for some reason. It's time to have it again!
Melt in Your Mouth Chicken Pie
Prep time involves about two hours to stew and prep the meat, which can be done as early as the day before you bake the pie. The actual assembly and baking time is less than an hour.
Ingredients:
5-6 pounds of stewed chicken (I usually use 6-8 large chicken breasts with skin and bone on. They stew better that way.)
1 1/2 to 2 cups of saved broth from the stewing
10 1/2 ounce can of cream of chicken soup (you could use cream of mushroom if you prefer)
1/2 tsp salt
dash pepper
1 stick of margerine or butter, melted
2 cups of self-rising flour (for some reason, I was thinking it was Jiffy mix, but it's not. She used that for her short cakes.) You do need the self rising flour for the biscuit crust to work right.
2 cups of buttermilk (my mother in law would by a big box of powdered buttermilk and mix it up before adding it to the biscuit dough. I much prefer to use real buttermilk - it makes the dough a lot better.)
For stewing, I fill a five quart pot with about an inch or so of water and add a generous dollop of cooking sherry and a whole bay leaf. I put four of the breasts in the bottom of the pot, not stacked, add salt and pepper on top, and bring the liquid to a boil. Then I cover them and let them simmer for about an hour and a half. You can do this twice if you only have one pot, but since I have two, I just do them all at once. You could probably do it in a crock pot all day, too. I've never tried that.
After the chicken has cooled enough to work with, skin it, pull the meat off the bones, and tear or cut the chicken into bite sized hunks. Then put the hunks in the bottom of a greased 9x13" casserole (or similar size). If you're doing this over two days, you can store the chicken and the saved broth in the fridge and prep it the next day. If you want the broth to be less fatty, that works well, because the fat congeals on the top and you can just scoop it off the next day.
Combine the saved broth and soup in a sauce pan, bring to a boil and pour over the chicken (meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 425°F).
Combine the self rising flour, melted margerine, salt, pepper and buttermilk. I use a whisk to make it as smooth as possible. Then, using a large spoon, scoop out dollops of the biscuit dough and plop on top of the chicken and gravy to cover.
Bake at 425°F for 25-30 minutes, until the biscuit crust is golden brown.
I serve this with little green peas. Mmmmm.
Surprisingly, his mom really didn't have a whole lot to share. I guess she wasn't as much in to cooking when her kids were growing up as she is now. But the following is one recipe that never failed in our house. We all love it. I tended to save it for special occasions like birthdays and family gatherings, because it makes a lot of food and requires a bit of extra prep time. But I haven't made this dish in probably 2-3 years for some reason. It's time to have it again!
Melt in Your Mouth Chicken Pie
Prep time involves about two hours to stew and prep the meat, which can be done as early as the day before you bake the pie. The actual assembly and baking time is less than an hour.
Ingredients:
5-6 pounds of stewed chicken (I usually use 6-8 large chicken breasts with skin and bone on. They stew better that way.)
1 1/2 to 2 cups of saved broth from the stewing
10 1/2 ounce can of cream of chicken soup (you could use cream of mushroom if you prefer)
1/2 tsp salt
dash pepper
1 stick of margerine or butter, melted
2 cups of self-rising flour (for some reason, I was thinking it was Jiffy mix, but it's not. She used that for her short cakes.) You do need the self rising flour for the biscuit crust to work right.
2 cups of buttermilk (my mother in law would by a big box of powdered buttermilk and mix it up before adding it to the biscuit dough. I much prefer to use real buttermilk - it makes the dough a lot better.)
For stewing, I fill a five quart pot with about an inch or so of water and add a generous dollop of cooking sherry and a whole bay leaf. I put four of the breasts in the bottom of the pot, not stacked, add salt and pepper on top, and bring the liquid to a boil. Then I cover them and let them simmer for about an hour and a half. You can do this twice if you only have one pot, but since I have two, I just do them all at once. You could probably do it in a crock pot all day, too. I've never tried that.
After the chicken has cooled enough to work with, skin it, pull the meat off the bones, and tear or cut the chicken into bite sized hunks. Then put the hunks in the bottom of a greased 9x13" casserole (or similar size). If you're doing this over two days, you can store the chicken and the saved broth in the fridge and prep it the next day. If you want the broth to be less fatty, that works well, because the fat congeals on the top and you can just scoop it off the next day.
Combine the saved broth and soup in a sauce pan, bring to a boil and pour over the chicken (meanwhile, pre-heat the oven to 425°F).
Combine the self rising flour, melted margerine, salt, pepper and buttermilk. I use a whisk to make it as smooth as possible. Then, using a large spoon, scoop out dollops of the biscuit dough and plop on top of the chicken and gravy to cover.
Bake at 425°F for 25-30 minutes, until the biscuit crust is golden brown.
I serve this with little green peas. Mmmmm.