Cristinas Chicken Pot Pie Food

CHICKEN POT PIE

Steps:

• Place milk, broth and stock powder in a large saucepan. Bring to a very gentle simmer over medium heat, add chicken and thyme.
• Place lid on, simmer gently on medium low for 15 minutes (do not boil, can make milk split).
• Remove chicken, shred or dice (don't worry if inside a bit uncooked). Cover pot and set poaching liquid aside.
• Melt butter in a large pot over medium high heat. Add garlic and onion, cook for 2 minutes. Add thyme, carrot and celery, cook for 3 minutes or until carrot is softened.
• Add wine. Stir, scraping the bottom of the pot, and cook for 1 1/2 minutes or until wine is mostly evaporated.
• Add flour and stir for 1 minute.
• Add about half the reserved poaching liquid and stir until all flour is incorporated - it will be a thick sludge.
• Add remaining milk broth, parmesan, pepper. Stir.
• Add chicken and peas, stir.
• Once mixture is heated (you'll see steam), cook for 3 minutes to thicken the sauce, stirring regularly. (Note 3)
• Remove from heat. Spoon into oven proof pots - 4 large or 6 small (Note 4). Cool in fridge at least 30 minutes. (Note 5)
• Meanwhile, remove puff pastry from freezer to partially thaw. Then use a bowl as a guide to cut rounds from the pastry about 2.5cm / 1" wider (all the way around) than the pots - be generous!
• Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
• Brush edge of pots with egg. Top with puff pastry, folding down the edges.
• Brush pastry with egg. Cut a 2cm / 2/3" slide in the middle with a small knife.
• Bake 35 - 40 minutes until deep golden.
• Serve immediately!

FISH POT PIE WITH LEEK, A CREAMY AND DELICIOUS COMFORT FOOD

Steps:

• Place the smoked haddock (skin side down) along with the other fish in a pan, and pour enough of the 20 oz of milk just to cover them. Remove the fish, bring the milk to a boil, then put the fish back in, reduce the heat, and simmer over low heat for 4 minutes.
• Remove the fish from the milk and allow to cool, then remove the skin from the smoked haddock. Strain the milk into the jug with the milk from the original amount, and set aside.
• Put the potatoes in a pot and cover with water with 3/4 tsp Kosher salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 13 minutes or until they are ready, then drain thoroughly. While the potatoes are cooking...
• In another pot over medium high heat, add one tablespoon of butter and leeks, and sauté for a few minutes until the leeks are a bit transparent, but not brown. Remove the leeks and set aside.
• Put the other tablespoon of butter into the pan, then add the flour. Cook for a few minutes without browning or the flour will taste raw. Begin adding a little of the measured milk into the pan a little at a time. Mix it well each time before adding more.
• Continue adding the milk until it's finished.
• When the sauce is ready, add about 1/2 tsp salt and some white pepper, then add the leeks.
• Flake the cooled fish into pieces.
• Next, add the fish to the sauce with the leeks and still well, but try not to break the pieces of fish any more. Taste for salt and pepper and adjust as needed.
• Spoon into ramekins and allow to cool while mashing the potatoes which should be ready.
• Mash the potatoes while still hot, adding salt, butter (I add about an ounce) and about 2 ounces of milk. If not soft and creamy, add more butter or milk, and salt if needed. Add a beaten egg after the potatoes have cooled a little and mix well.
• Either pipe the potatoes onto the fish pot pie in the ramekins or baking dish. I used a 1M tip.
• Or spoon the mashed potatoes on evenly and spread with a fork. I do prefer piping, but the flavor is the same.
• Use the fork to decorate the top. Place on a baking tray for easier handling.
• Bake the fish pot pie in preheated oven for about 30 minutes or until the potato topping is golden brown and the sauce is bubbling.
• Serve and enjoy while hot! Be sure to warn diners that the ramekins are very hot, too.
• Children love these, too, so don't hesitate to make smaller ramekins for them.

CHICKEN POT PIE WITH 2 CRUSTS

Steps:

• Heat butter over low heat until melted.
• Blend in flour, onion, salt and pepper.
• Cook over low heat, stirring constantly until smooth and bubbly.
• Remove from heat.
• Stir in broth and milk.
• Heat to boiling; stirring constantly. Boil and stir one minute.
• Stir in chicken and veggies. (Add in 1 - 2 diced cooked potatoes if you like!).
• Reserve.
• Line pie plate with prepared bottom crust.
• Pour in filling.
• Top with top crust. Cut slits in center to vent. Flute edges.
• Cook uncovered in 425°F oven until crust is brown; approximately 30-35 minutes.

CRISTINA'S CHICKEN POT PIE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400°.
• Spray a 2-quart casserole with cooking spray or coat evenly with butter. In a large saucepan, heat the oil and butter and sauté the onion until tender but not brown. Stir in the flour until blended. Slowly stir in the stock, whisking well. Cook the mixture over medium heat until the chicken, peas, potatoes, carrots, salt, pepper and hot sauce is heated through. Turn into the prepared dish, spreading evenly.
• To prepare the crust, stir together the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, sugar and salt. Stir in milk, egg and oil in a bowl. Do not overmix. Spoon the batter evenly over the filling. Bake until the top is golden brown, or for about 22 to 25 minutes. Cut into wedges to serve.
• cristina ferrare.

CHRISTINA'S BEEF POT PIE

Steps:

• Marinate beef in cola for at least 30 minutes and up to 24 hours in the refrigerator. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of cola, pat meat dry.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef, potatoes, carrots, celery, and onion and saute until browned, about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Lower the heat to medium, add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Stir in the broth, reserved cola, peas, and brown sugar. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Let simmer for 15 minutes.
• Divide the beef mixture among 4 (20-ounce) casserole dishes or oven-proof bowls. Roll 2 rounds of biscuit dough out to fit over the top of each dish and brush with the beaten egg. Bake until the filling is bubbling and the biscuits are nicely browned, about 30 minutes (cover loosely with aluminum foil if biscuits brown too quickly). Let cool slightly before serving.

EASY HAND-HELD CHICKEN POT PIES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Pour mixed vegetables into a microwave-safe bowl. Add water. Heat in the microwave until warmed through, 1 to 3 minutes. Drain.
• Spray a skillet with cooking spray and heat over medium heat. Add onion and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add mixed vegetables, diced chicken, condensed soup, salt, and pepper. Cook and stir until filling is heated through, 3 to 5 minutes more.
• Open biscuits and flatten each circle out with your fingertips. Place a portion of filling on one half of a circle and fold the other half over. Press edges with a fork to seal closed. Place mini pie carefully onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining biscuits and filling.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the outsides are golden, 30 to 35 minutes.

CHICKEN POT PIE

Steps:

• For the chicken: Start by putting the chicken in a pot and covering it with water. Bring the water to a boil, and then reduce the heat to low. Simmer for 45 minutes, and then remove the chicken from the pot. Set the chicken aside to cool briefly.
• Shred the chicken with 2 forks, reserving the bones. For the stock, return the bones to the pot and boil for 20 minutes. Remove the bones from the pot and discard.
• For the pot pie: When you're ready to use the Thyme Pastry, remove from the freezer and allow it to sit on the counter to thaw slightly, about 20 minutes. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Begin by finely dicing the vegetables. Slice the celery stalks into narrow strips, then slice in the other direction to create a fine dice. Repeat this process with the carrots, and the onion.
• Melt the butter in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots and celery. Saute until the vegetables start to turn translucent, a couple of minutes.
• Add 2 cups of the shredded chicken and stir to combine. Sprinkle the flour evenly over the vegetables and chicken, and stir to combine. Cook for a couple of minutes, stirring gently.
• Pour in the chicken broth, stirring constantly. Stir in the bouillon cube and wine if using. The flour will combine with the chicken to create a delicious gravy. Next, add the peas.
• Pour in the cream and stir. Allow the mixture to cook over low heat, thickening gradually, about 4 minutes. Season with the thyme, salt and pepper, and remove from the heat. Taste and adjust the seasonings as needed. Be sure it's adequately salted!
• Pour the chicken mixture into a deep pie pan or small casserole dish.
• Roll out the pastry so that it's 1 inch larger than the pan. Place the crust on top of the chicken mixture and cut small slits in the top. Press the crust gently into the sides of the dish to seal. I don't worry about making a perfect edge on my chicken pot pie because a) it looks more rustic and b) I'm lazy, hungry and I want to eat.
• Bake until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbly, about 30 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.
• To freeze: Allow the filling to cool completely then top with the crust. Cover with plastic wrap or aluminum foil and place in the freezer.
• To cook from frozen: Remove the pot pie from the freezer, brush with egg wash (1 egg mixed with 2 tablespoons water or cream) and place directly in a 375-degree F oven and bake until lightly browned and bubbly, 30 to 45 minutes.
• For the thyme pastry: Combine the flour and salt in a large bowl. Using pastry cutter, gradually work the butter into the flour until the mixture resembles tiny pebbles. This step should take 3 or 4 minutes.
• Lightly beat the egg with a fork, and then add it to the mixture. Next, add in the cold water and vinegar. Stir the mixture together until it's just combined, and then remove half the dough from the bowl. (Dividing the dough in half results in two pretty generous pie crusts. If you desire a thinner crust, you may divide the dough into three crusts.)
• Place in a large plastic bag (do not seal) and slightly flatten with a rolling pin. This makes it much easier to roll out the crust later. After flattening, seal the bag tightly.
• Repeat with the other half of the dough and place the plastic bags in the freezer. I like to make several batches of pie crust at a time so I always have a crust ready to go.
• For recipes other than this pot pie, remove from the bag and place on a lightly floured surface. With a rolling pin, begin rolling the dough from the center, outward. Be gentle and patient; it'll take a little time to get the dough completely rolled out.
• If you think the bottom is really sticking to the surface below, use a nice, sharp spatula to loosen it and sprinkle some extra flour on top. Then flip it over to finish rolling. Remember to roll from the center in single, outward strokes; no back-and-forth rolling.
• Again with a spatula, loosen and lift the pie crust and carefully lay it over a pie pan. Using your hand, lightly form the crust so that it fits inside the pan and overlaps the edges.
• Because it's quick and easy, I just tuck the excess dough under itself above the rim. Then you can apply whatever decorative effects that you like to the edge. Or you can leave it plain if you'd like! Just tell yourself it's more rustic that way!
• Fill the pie crust with filling and bake according to the pie recipe's directions. Or, for a pre-baked crust, fill with pie weights (or pinto beans placed on aluminum foil) and bake at 400 degrees F until golden, about 10 minutes.