Chicken Pot Pie

Last Sunday I tried out a new recipe from Real Simple: Chicken Pot Pie. I've never made a pot pie before, but I do have fond memories of the ones from the frozen food section that my sisters and I occasionally picked out when we had a babysitter. This recipe promised to have all the taste, but fewer calories than traditional pot pie. I think that it holds true, but there are a few things I'd do differently when I make it again.

1) One issue I ran into was that when we cut into the baked dish, we found that the insides were very runny. I don't know if that has anything to do with the 1% milk used, the frozen peas or if the recipe just needs more flour. But next time I will add more flour and defrost the peas first, in the hopes that it will be a little "firmer" inside.

2) The second issue was that the dish only uses one 9-inch pie crust. This greatly helps to reduce the calorie count, but it left the top a little thin. I think next time I'll use a deeper dish with a smaller circumference, or I'll actually use two crusts on top.

All in all, this dish turned out really tasty, and I will definitely make it again.


Serves 6
Hands-On Time: 35m
Total Time: 1hr 10m

Ingredients

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 onions, chopped
4 carrots, diced
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cups 1 percent milk
1 10-ounce package frozen peas
1 tablespoon fresh thyme (my grocery store didn't have any in, so I had to use dried thyme - still tasty)
kosher salt and black pepper
1 9-inch store-bought piecrust, thawed if frozen

Directions

Heat oven to 400° F. Cook the chicken in a pot of simmering water until cooked through, 10 to 12 minutes; let cool, then shred.


Meanwhile, heat the oil in a saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and carrots and cook, stir-ring, until they begin to soften, 6 to 8 minutes (do not let them darken). Sprinkle the flour over the vegetables and cook, stirring, for 1 minute.

Add the wine and cook until evaporated, about 5 minutes. Add the milk and simmer until the sauce thickens, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the chicken, peas, thyme, 3/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Transfer to a shallow 1 1/2- to 2-quart baking dish.

Lay the crust on top, pressing to seal. Cut several vents in the crust. Place the pot pie on a baking sheet and bake until bubbling and the crust is golden, 30 to 35 minutes.