Silver Palate Chicken Pot Pie Food

CHICKEN-TARRAGON POT PIE

Steps:

• To make the crust, combine flour, butter, shortening, salt and sugar in a food processor. Pulse together just until the mixture is crumbly and butter is broken into small pieces. Pour 1/3 cup ice water into the machine, and pulse 3 or 4 times. Squeeze a little dough in your hand to see whether it clumps together and is evenly moist. If not, add another tablespoon of water, and pulse 1 or 2 times more. Don't overmix so that the dough forms a ball.
• Turn out dough on a large sheet of plastic wrap. Lift ends of plastic to gather dough together inside. Press into a large disk, and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to 2 days.
• To make the filling, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add carrot, celery, leeks and tarragon, and cook, stirring, just until slightly softened but not browned (reduce the heat if necessary to prevent browning), about 3 minutes. Transfer cooked vegetables to a bowl, wipe out the skillet, and place it back on the stove.
• Add remaining 3 tablespoons butter, and melt over medium heat. Whisk in flour, and cook, whisking, until the mixture bubbles and smells cooked. Do not let it brown. Whisk in 2 cups broth, and cook, whisking, 1 minute. Whisk in cream, and cook 2 or 3 minutes, just until thickened. Add salt and pepper. If the sauce is too thick, whisk in remaining broth.
• Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Add cooked vegetables and peas, chicken and sauce to 8-inch deep pie dish or other baking dish, mix gently, and taste for seasoning.
• Flour a work surface. Remove dough from refrigerator. Roll out the dough, turning and flouring often, and cut a shape approximately the size of your baking dish plus 1 1/2 inches overlap all around.
• Roll dough up onto the rolling pin, and unroll over dish, so it rests evenly on top of filling. Fold the edges under and crimp. Poke tip of knife through crust to create 3 vent holes near the center. Whisk the egg with a teaspoon of cold water. Use a pastry brush to lightly coat the entire crust with egg wash. Place on cookie sheet, and place in oven.
• Bake 20 minutes, then reduce temperature to 375 degrees. Bake 25 to 30 minutes more, until crust is golden and filling is bubbling through vents. Let rest 10 minutes before serving.

CHICKEN POT PIE

Steps:

• Cut up the butter into very small pieces and place in the refrigerator while you measure the other ingredients. Place the flour and salt in a food processor and pulse to combine. Add the butter and pulse several times, until mixture resembles coarse meal. With the machine running add the ice water through the feed tube and process until the dough just comes together. (To test this, pinch a piece of the dough between your fingers.)
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface, shape into a flat round disc, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for one hour before using.
• Cut the chicken into 1" pieces. Place the potatoes in a pot of cold water and bring it to a boil. After 5 minutes, add the carrots and cook for a few minutes more, until both the potatoes and carrots are fork tender. Drain and set the vegetables aside.
• Melt the butter in a large skillet oven medium heat, add the onions and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle in the flour and cook stirring constantly for a few more minutes, making sure not to brown the butter.
• Slowly add the broth and cook, stirring constantly until the sauce thickens. Add the cream, tarragon, salt and pepper and cover the pot. Simmer for a few minutes. Next, add the chicken, potatoes, carrots and thawed peas to this sauce, mix gently and remove from the heat. Check the consistency, and if the mixture is too dry, add a little more chicken stock. Next, pour mixture into a deep 2-quart casserole or soufflé dish. You can also divide the filling among individual ramekins.
• Preheat the oven to 425° F. Mix the egg and water in a small bowl and set aside.
• Roll out the pastry and place over the dish or cut the pastry to fit the ramekins. Trim the pastry leaving a 1" border. Brush the edge of the dish with the egg wash and press the overhanging dough onto the dish. Crimp the pastry decoratively and brush the top of the pastry with the egg wash to give a nice glossy finish to the crust. Cut a few steam vents in the pastry.
• Place the dish on a baking dish and bake on the middle rack until golden brown, about 20-25 minutes. Serve warm.

THE SILVER PALATE'S CHICKEN MARBELLA

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, vinegar, prunes, olives, capers and juice, bay leaves, garlic, oregano, salt and pepper. Add the chicken pieces and turn to coat. Refrigerate overnight.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Arrange the chicken in a single layer in a shallow roasting pan; spoon the marinade over it evenly. Pour in the wine and sprinkle the chicken with the brown sugar.
• Bake until the thigh pieces yield clear yellow juice when pricked with a fork, 50 to 60 minutes, basting two or three times with the pan juices once the chicken begins to brown. (When basting, do not brush off the sugar. If the chicken browns too quickly, cover lightly with foil.)
• Transfer the chicken pieces to a warm serving platter and top with the prunes, olives and capers; keep warm. Place the roasting pan over medium heat and bring the pan juices to a boil. Reduce to about 1/2 cup. Strain into a heatproof bowl, add the parsley and pour over the chicken.

SKILLET CHICKEN POTPIE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 425 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.
• Season chicken with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet (or other heavy bottom skillet) over medium heat. Sear chicken, skin-side down, until deeply golden brown and some of the fat has begun to render out, 5 to 8 minutes. Rotate chicken and continue to cook on all sides until evenly browned and cooked through, an additional 8 to 10 minutes. Remove chicken, keeping all the drippings in the skillet, and let cool slightly on a plate.
• To the drippings, add carrots, celery, garlic, onion and thyme. Season with salt and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally until vegetables are tender and just cooked through, about 5 to 8 minutes. Add flour and stir to coat all the vegetables. Cook, stirring constantly, until the flour has started to turn a light golden brown with no white, floury bits left, about 3 minutes.
• Slowly add the chicken broth or stock ½ cup at a time, using a wooden spoon to blend and scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Once all the broth or stock is added, bring to a simmer and remove from heat.
• Remove the bones and skin from the chicken and shred the meat and skin (discard any skin that is too thick or rubbery) into bite-size pieces or, alternatively, cut it with a knife and fork into bite-size pieces. (If you discover at this stage any pieces of chicken that are not completely cooked through, don't worry; they will finish cooking in the oven.) Add the peas, parsley and chicken and season once more with salt and pepper.
• Carefully unfold the puff pastry and working quickly, place it on top of the skillet (do not worry about it being a perfect circle), letting some of the dough hang off the sides (this will keep it from shrinking too much).
• Whisk the egg with 1 teaspoon of water and brush onto the top of the puff pastry. Cut three 2½-inch slits, about 1-inch apart and place the skillet on top of the sheet pan to catch any drips in the oven.
• Bake until puff pastry is golden brown on top and filling is starting to bubble up, 20 to 25 minutes. Reduce temperature to 375 degrees and continue to cook until puff pastry is baked through all the way and filling has thickened considerably, another 15 to 20 minutes.
• Remove from heat and let cool slightly before eating.