Friday Pie Day: Classic Chicken Pot Pie

Who says pie has to be sweet? Some of my favorite pies are savory... pizza, for example:) My mom used to make the best chicken pot pie from leftover chicken. She'd whip up that crust so quickly, it all seemed to come together in a moment. You can take some shortcuts with this recipe but I wouldn't. Make it when you have plenty of time. I found the process to be almost as fun as eating it.

CLASSIC CHICKEN POT PIE

Ingredients

4 large chicken breasts on the bone, skin-on  (this keeps the chicken juicy)

3 tablespoons olive oil

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

4 cups chicken broth plus 1/2 cup optional

1 cup milk (I used 2%)

2 chicken bouillon cubes

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter

2 cups yellow onion, chopped

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup heavy cream

2 cups carrots, diced

2 potatoes, peeled and diced medium -sized

1 small onion, diced

1 1/2 cup fresh green peas (you can use frozen if you have to)

1 teaspoon thyme (I used fresh- you can use dried but use less)

For the pastry:

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 cup vegetable shortening

1/4 pound cold unsalted butter, diced

1/2 to 2/3 cup ice water, added a little at a time

1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water, for egg wash

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

For the pastry, mix the flour, salt, and baking powder in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Add the shortening and butter and mix quickly with your fingers until each piece is coated with flour. Pulse 10 times, or until the fat is the size of peas. With the motor running, add the ice water; process only enough to moisten the dough and have it just come together. Be careful to get enough water but not too much. The crust will tear easily as you handle it if there is not enough water. Dump the dough out onto a floured piece of plastic wrap and form quickly into a ball. Wrap the dough in the plastic and allow it to rest in the refrigerator for 30 minutes. Allow the dough to sit out for 3 minutes before you roll it out onto a floured surface. *REPEAT this process if you want a bottom crust for the pie.

For the chicken: put chicken breasts on a baking sheet. Brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 30 minutes. Remove. Add the carrots and the 1 small diced onion to the drippings and roast for another 10 minutes or until chicken is cooked all the way through. Remove and allow the chicken to cool slightly. Remove the meat from the bones and shred or dice it.

For the sauce: In a small saucepan, heat the chicken broth. Add bouillon cubes and dissolve completely. Fill another pan half full with water and bring to a boil. Add the peas. Cook for 3 minutes. Remove the peas and rinse to stop the cooking process. Set aside. In a large pot, melt the butter and sauté the onions and carrots over medium heat for 10 to 12 minutes or until softened. Stir in the flour and cook over low heat, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Add the hot chicken broth to the sauce, whisking it in a little at a time. Simmer over low heat for 2-3 more minutes, stirring, until thickened. Add 2 teaspoons salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and heavy cream. Add the chicken, potatoes, peas, onions and thyme. Mix together carefully. Check seasoning. Add more salt or pepper as needed.

Prep your baking dish by greasing the bottom and sides with butter or use a cooking spray if you prefer. You can either make this in one large baking dish or divide the filling between 4-5 small ovenproof dishes for individual servings. 

*If you are using a bottom crust, shape it to fit the dish or you can just cut it into strips and line the bottom of the dish. Use a fork to prick the dough and bake for 10-12 minutes or until it begins to turn brown.

Spoon the filling into the prepared dish. If you are using a bottom crust or if you like a very moist filling, you can add 1/2 cup chicken broth over the filling before topping with the crust.

For family style dish, roll the dough into a shape large enough to fit over your dish and to drape over the sides by 1 inch all the way around. For individual servings: divide the dough into quarters and roll each piece into an 8-inch circle. Place the circle on top of the dish and trim 1/2-inch larger than the top of the bowl. Using your thumb and pointer finger on one hand and your pointer finger of the other hand, crimp the edges of the dough to make a pretty edge or simply fold the dough over the side, pressing it to make it stick. Brush the dough with egg wash and make 3 slits in the top. Sprinkle with a scant pinch of sea salt and/or cracked pepper if you like. Place on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour, or until the top is golden brown and the filling is bubbling hot. The cook time will depend on the size of your dish. If the edges start to turn too brown, you can cover just the edges with a bit of aluminum foil.

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Passion for Purple: Drop Crystal Tree Centerpiece and Easy Wedding Flowers

One of the more frequent questions I get on my website and from friends is about wedding decor and flowers. People STRESS out about the flowers! Here are some images from recent weddings... all taken by our very favorite photographer, Arden Ward of Arden Photography. Take a look and get some ideas for your own wedding....  

PRETTY IN DEEP PURPLE

Purple has become one of the most popular colors for wedding decor because it really makes everything that is used with it just POP. Look at the beautiful nosegay shown below. While the arrangement and flower variety is simple and affordable, it looks rich against the deep purple gown. The same goes for the table decor to the right. Photos copyright/ courtesy of Arden Photography.

Fall for Apples! Try Martie's Caramel Apple Cake

My Mom was a wonderful pie baker but rarely made cakes... she had a fantastic pound cake and she occasionally made this Apple Dapple cake... a favorite of ours for an after school treat. All week, I've been working on recipes with apples and so I dug out her old recipe (I could not believe there actually WAS a recipe) and made it better by adding delicious hot caramel. The result was this Caramel Apple Cake which is one of the best cakes I've ever made/and or tasted. Try it for your family this weekend... it's got a great fresh apple flavor and a sweet caramel apple crust. Soooo yummy!

MARTIE'S CARAMEL APPLE CAKE (Apple Dapple Cake w/ Hot Caramel topping)  

Make in a tube pan. Bakes @ 350 for 1 hour. Topping takes about 15 minutes.

1 1/2 cups vegetable oil (like Wesson)

2 cups sugar

3 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

3 cups all purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 1/2 cups pecans, chopped fine

3 apples, peeled and chopped fine

Sift together flour, salt, and baking soda. Add apples and pecans. Stir to coat. Mix together oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Add to the fruit mixture. Spray a tube pan with Baker's Joy or grease and flour it. Bake at 350 degrees for one hour. Remove from the oven and sit on a wire rack to cool. While the cake is still hot, pour over the caramel sauce and then let it cool completely before removing from the pan.

HOT CARAMEL SAUCE(optional)

1 cup packed brown sugar

3/4 cup whole milk

3/4 cup butter ( 1 1/2 sticks)

Put all three ingredients in a sauce pan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low and cook for 3 minutes, stirring constantly so it does not burn. Pour the hot caramel directly over the hot cake while it is still in the pan. Be careful! Hot sugar will burn you!!

NOTE: It is important to pour the caramel over the cake in the pan because it creates this great coating on the bottom, side and top of the cake.

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MORE APPLE RECIPES FROM MARTIE KNOWS PARTIES:

Rustic Apple Crostini

Grilled Apple & Crispy Cayenne Maple Bacon Panini

Apple, Arugula, and Almond Salad

Caramel Apple Martini

Fall Favorites: Grilled Apple and Crispy Cayenne Maple Bacon Panini

What is better in the fall than fresh, crisp apples? After one trip to the u-pick-it orchard or to the farmer's market and I'm looking for new ideas for all of those apples. One of my favorite combos is semi-tart apple with bacon with a little cheese...  so why not make that a sandwich? I like wheat for this sandwich. No matter what bread you use, this sandwich tastes like fall.

GRILLED APPLE, CRISPY CAYENNE MAPLE BACON & PROVELONE PANINI

Makes 4 sandwiches

8 slices hearty wheat style bread

2 semi-tart apples, peeled and sliced into discs

1 tablespoon butter plus more to spread on the bread to grill

8 slices thick cut bacon

1/8 teaspoon cayenne

2 tablespoons maple syrup

4 slices Provelone cheese

1 tablespoon apple butter

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/4 teaspoon thyme plus a pinch for the apples

Pinch of pepper

Pre-heat a grill pan or griddle and butter the pan. Preheat oven to 400. Place a baking rack on a sheet pan and line the bacon on the rack. Sprinkle a pinch of cayenne pepper on each slice. Roast for 12 minutes. Remove and brush with the maple syrup. Continue to roast for approximately 5 more minutes or until crispy. The exact amount of time depends on the thickness of the bacon and the maple will burn so watch it carefully. Drain when done. While the bacon is cooking, season apples with a pinch of thyme and pepper. Grill apples in the butter until they are barely softened but don't let them get too soft. Remove from heat.

Make a spread by mixing the mayo, thyme, and apple butter together. Put a thin layer of the spread on both sides of the bread. Build the sandwich by layering the apple, bacon, and cheese. Spread the bread with a little butter and grill until cheese is melted.

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Sure Fire Favorites: Old-Fashioned Southern Lemon Meringue Pie

For some reason, I've had a craving for lemon meringue pie for about 2 months. This has long been a favorite of mine- my mother would make it for my birthday... but I've never really been able to master the thing and as any of you who know me know-- my mom did not use recipes. Therefore, I've been about the task of recreating her recipe and think I finally have it down. Lemon meringue pie is finicky, I've decided. It does not like too much humidity. It does not like too much heat. But even if it fails to set up properly or the meringue gets a bit sticky, there is still no better pie to me than this one. Hey, and if it doesn't set up, you can always use a spoon:)

OLD-FASHIONED SOUTHERN LEMON MERINGUE PIE

This can be used for tarts or for a pie. It will make about 12 tarts. One thing I learned from several mistakes is to pay attention to the directions and stir, stir, stir. Don't get distracted:)

You will need one crust, the filling, and the meringue topping. This took me about an hour, start to finish, not including the time to cool the pie completely before serving.

PASTRY PIE CRUST

I picked up some tricks from Alton Brown for crust making... I think my mom would have approved.

Makes a 9-inch pie crust

1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt (use regular table salt)

1/3 cup butter, chilled for 20 minutes

2 tablespoons shortening, chilled for 20 minutes (Alton uses lard-I chose Crisco)

3 tablespoons ice water (sprinkled in one at a time and you may need 4 depending on consistency)

Use a food processor with the blade attachment. Add the flour and salt. Pulse twice to combine. Then cut the butter into small cubes. Pulse a few times. Add the shortening. Pulse a few more times - until the mixture looks a bit like little peas. Be careful not to over mix. Next, let the processor run and drizzle in the ice water one tablespoon at at time until the dough just starts to come together. You may only need 3 tablespoons. Some days I have needed 4 so that the dough starts to form into a ball. Don't over mix it. Stop the food processor just as it starts to come together.

Turn the dough out onto a large piece of plastic. Working quickly so the heat from your hands does not melt the butter, form into a disc. Wrap in the plastic and refigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

To use: lightly flour the surface of another piece of plastic wrap and your rolling pin (and your hands). Gently roll out the crust, taking care to work quickly and not over handle or over work the dough. Use the plastic to drape the crust over the pie plate. Put a second pie plate over the top of it to gently press the dough into the pie plate. Remove the plastic wrap and you've got a pretty great looking pie crust. Easy, peasy.

You have to blind bake this pie crust before filling it. Prick the sides and the bottom with a fork. This prevents the pastry crust from puffing up too much. Bake at 450 degrees for 10 minutes or until golden brown.

LEMON MERINGUE FILLING

For a 9 inch pie or 12-15 tarts, depending on the size of your tart pan

1 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups whole milk

4 egg yolks, beaten well. Reserve the whites for the meringue.

1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest

1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

3 tablespoons butter, room temperature

 In a heat-proof bowl, add the egg yolks and beat them well until they are slightly thickened. Add the sugar, salt, and cornstarch to a saucepan. Use a fork to combine the ingredients. Add the milk, 1/4 cup at a time, stirring each addition to incorporate very well. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Boil one minute, stirring constantly to keep it from burning. Remove from the heat. Carefully temper the egg yolks with the hot mixture... add 1/4 cup of the hot liquid into the eggs, stirring constantly, to bring the eggs up to temperature. (If you do this step too quickly, you will end up with scrambled eggs) Add another 1/4 cup of the hot mixture to the eggs and then turn the tempered egg mixture into the saucepan.

Cook over medium heat for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat. Add the lemon zest, lemon juice, and butter. Stir well to combine. Pour into the baked pie shell once you have the meringue ready to go. Some people butter the bottom of a baked pie shell to act as a barrier between the filling and the crust so it won't get soggy. I did not do this step but you can if you like.

MERINGUE

4 egg whites

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar (find it in the spice aisle)

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Put the egg whites in a mixing bowl. Add the cream of tartar. Beat on high speed for 30 seconds. Add the sugar, one tablespoon at a time until all the sugar is added and stiff, shiny peaks form. This takes about 3-4 minutes. Beat in the vanilla. Spread the meringue over the hot pie filling. The key is to make sure to seal the edges so the meringue doesn't shrink away from the crust.

Bake the pie at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes. Put the pie on a wire baking rack and allow it to cool before cutting it. I usually allow it to sit for 20 minutes and then put it in the fridge for at least 30 minutes before serving.

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