Mileage from a Chicken Pot Pie

 

What do these two pictures have in common?

Mileage.

(I know. I’m the Queen of Strange and Unusual Connections. I can’t help it. It’s the reading teacher in me.)

Allow me to explain…

(Well, I’ll explain the connection between the two pictures. You’ll have to figure out the reading teacher part yourself.)

My sister sent me this photo she took of the odometer in her car when it turned 400,000 miles just the other day. No extra zeroes in that number. That’s correct. Four-fifths of the way to a half-million miles.

She drives a 1995 Toyota Camry. Well, now her husband mostly drives it. They traded in his much newer car for another much newer Camry. (The one she now mostly drives.) And that officially makes them a Cam-Fam. (Get it? That’s Camry and family put together. I made it up. Like you didn’t know.)

And me? I’m green with envy. I mean, how many people out there can say they have 400,000 miles on their car, 385,000 of which they put on it all by themselves? (Not including Ferris Bueller. And he didn’t even go anywhere.) But, that’s what you get when you take excellent care of your car, people. My sister is the only person I know who actually waxes her car by hand and follows the maintenance schedule in the owner’s manual to a T. Contrary to the popular belief of most men, those manuals really are worth reading.

What does all this have to do with chicken pot pie? Well, it doesn’t come with an owner’s manual, unless you count the recipe. But chicken pot pie can definitely get you some mileage. I mean, how many dishes out there can you serve without a crust and still call it a pie? (Okay, not counting Boston Cream Pie.) That’s the point. You can serve chicken pot pie pretty much any way you want and still call it pie.

I prepared this chicken pot pie over the weekend, and it was the perfect answer to a bitterly cold January day. My friend, Jill, gave me the recipe several months ago, and I’ve made it three times already. I love that there is no canned soup in it, and even so, it’s still just as simple. Jill makes hers with top and bottom pastry crusts, but I changed it a little and used a biscuit topping instead. I love the buttery goodness of the biscuits with the creamy taste and texture of the chicken filling. Definitely comfort food to warm you, body and soul.

Dare I say it? Warm your engine and get some mileage with this chicken pot pie, no matter how you make it.

Yours in pie,

Mindy

 Chicken Pot Pie with Biscuit Topping

Filling recipe from Jill Kinnison

Biscuit recipe from Taste of Home 

For the filling:
1/3 c. butter
1/3 c. onion, chopped
1/3 c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1 ½ c. chicken broth
2/3 c. milk
2 to 2 ½ c. shredded, cooked chicken
2 c. or more frozen mixed vegetables (I used peas and carrots)

In skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and cook for 2 minutes or until tender. Stir in flour, salt, and pepper until well blended. Gradually stir in chicken broth and milk, stirring constantly until mixture is bubbly and thick. Add chicken and vegetables. Remove from heat and pour into greased 9” square (or larger) baking dish.

For the biscuits:
2 c. all-purpose flour
4 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. sugar
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. cream of tartar
½ c. cold butter, cubed
2/3 c. milk

In large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, sugar, salt and cream of tartar. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs; stir in milk just until moistened. Turn onto a lightly-floured surface; knead 8 to 10 times. Pat or roll out to ½-inch thickness. Cut with 2 ½-inch biscuit cutter.

Place biscuits over chicken mixture in baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 400° for about 20 minutes or until biscuits are golden brown.  


I shared this recipe on:

Full-Plate Thursday at Miz Helen's Country Cottage
Church Supper at Everyday Mom's Meals

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