Personal Chicken Pot Pies

It's about time I made Bill's favorite meal - chicken pot pie! You probably know by now how much I love my Kitchen Bible, but the chicken pot pie recipe just didn't work out for me. After some trial and error, I finally figured out how to make a good chicken pot pie. It's even a little bit healthier compared to the store bought version, according to Bill.

The first time I made chicken pot pie, I didn't know whether to cook the filling on the stove or in the oven. The recipe did not specifically say simmer until thickened, so I assumed the oven will finish the job. It came out very watery. Now I know better. When my crust is chilling, I make the filling and thicken it on the stove. Then it only takes 20 minutes to bake the crust and the pot pies are ready to eat! This time I decided to make personal pot pies because Bill was skeptical that these soup bowls will ever get used. I showed him! This recipe makes four personal pot pies or one 9 inch pie.

Basic Puff Pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour
12 tbsp unsalted butter
4 tbsp ice water
A squeeze of lemon juice

Chicken Pot Pie Filling
2 tbsp butter
1 cup chicken cut into pieces
1 medium onion
2 celery stalks1 large carrot
1 large parsnip
2 cups chicken stock
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 cup frozen peas
2 tbsp flour
salt & pepper

Puff pastry may seem intimidating the first time, but it really just take some prep work ahead of time. First, chill the butter in the freezer. I can't remember where I read this, but it's a really useful tip. Any time you start thinking about making a pie, put the butter in the freezer. It makes the butter easier to cut into the flour. When you are ready to make the crust, cut the butter in pieces and mix in with the flour.

Making Paula Deen proud

Cut the butter into the flour with a pastry cutter until well-mixed with some larger pieces of butter.

Add a squeeze of lemon juice and ice water, one table spoon at a time into the flour. Mix it with a fork until well hydrated. Pack the mixture into a ball and cover it with plastic wrap. Put it in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes. This is when you can start making the filling.

I like The Kitchen Bible's mix of traditional veggies (celery, carrots, peas) and parsnip. Next time I will try adding the green beans from my in-laws' garden. Pot pie is a great way to incorporate vegetables into a meal!

Stir veggies on medium heat with butter (or oil) until tender. Then add the stock and heavy cream. Simmer for 20 minutes. Sprinkle and stir in the flour one tablespoon at a time to thicken. Don't forget to season it with salt and pepper! I always forget.

After washing, chopping, and mixing the filling, your 30 minutes are probably up. Dust the surface and rolling pin. Roll the dough out into a 8x10 rectangle, then fold it in thirds onto itself.

I made a couple more folds so I could skip another chilling cycle after this one. Also, instead of chilling in the refrigerator, I put it in the freezer for five minutes, just to save a little bit of time.

Spoon filling into oven-safe bowls. Roll out the dough into a square and cut four pieces. Cover each bowl with pastry.

Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes. They are very hot. Be sure to cool for ten minutes before serving!

This one fell in

You can bake all four or save half of the filling and pie dough in the fridge up to three days for an easy lunch or dinner.