Chicken Pot Pie

Since Ellie was born (6 weeks ago!!) I've been craving all the foods I hated to eat while I was pregnant (thanks, Hyperemesis Gravidarum!). That means meat, vegetables, meat, meat and vegetables. Plus some meat and vegetables. Beef pot pie sounds amazing to me, but to do a proper job takes more time than I have in a week, let alone a day right now, so here's my recipe for chicken pot pie - which not only takes less than an hour, it definitely hits the spot!

Mmm...food!

Chicken Pot Pie

(yield: 6-8 servings)

4-5 cups vegetables*

2 tbs olive oil

4 tbs butter

1 c onion, chopped

1 c celery, chopped

handful cremini mushrooms, sliced

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1 1/2 c chicken broth

1/2 cup half and half (or milk)

3 tbs flour

1 tsp dried sage

1 tsp dried thyme

2 tbs dried parsley

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper

2 c shredded cooked chicken**

1 package puff pastry

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Toss vegetables with olive oil and spread on a sheet pan. Cook in oven til golden brown.

3. In a saute pan heat 2 tbs of butter and sweat the onion and celery. Meanwhile, in a small saucepan heat the broth and milk.

4. Add mushrooms and 2 remaining tbs of butter to the onions and celery and cook until mushrooms begin to soften ( minute or so). Add garlic and cook, stirring, til fragrant. Add the flour and cook, stirring for 2 minutes.

5. Whisk in the heated milk and stock mixture until thickened. Add the parsley, sage, thyme, salt and pepper. Add the veggies and the chicken.

6. Pour it all into a large, shallow baking dish/pan and top with puff pastry***.

7. Pop in the oven and bake until the puff pastry is browned - 25-30 minutes.

*I use about 4 cups frozen mixed veggies (peas, carrots) and add a chopped potato, sometimes I add broccoli.

**Buy a whole rotisserie chicken, this gives you about 1 c dark meat, 1 c white and a chicken breast left over for salad the next day!

***You can get creative here - roll it out, cut out circles, etc. With a 6 week old baby time is of the essence so I just roll it out slightly to fit the length of my pan and lay it on top!