dinner for a cold night

Who doesn’t love chicken pot pie? It’s just so comforting.  Unfortunately, not many recipes for chicken pot pie are very healthy, and when they are, it’s just not like the real thing.  But I needed to make chicken pot pie. It’s cold outside. Enough said.

This is my first experience making a healthier version of chicken pot pie, and I was pretty impressed. Instead of trying the regular pastry topped pot pie, I did a biscuit topped pot pie.  And I’m so glad I did; it was so tasty. I love biscuits. More importantly, it’s filled with healthy veggies!

The other great thing about this recipe is that it was pretty easy to make.  Once you’ve chopped all the veggies it’s pretty simple, and you have a tummy-warming, delicious home-cooked meal.

Try this tonight. I guarantee it’ll warm you up.

Biscuit-topped Chicken Pot Pie

Based off this recipe from Eating Well

Serves 6

Filling

• 1 TBSP canola oil, divided
• 1 cup chopped onion
• 1 cup peeled, chopped carrots
• 8 ounces mushrooms, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• ¼ tsp salt-free Creole seasoning (such as The Delicious Dietitian Creole Seasoning)
• 2 ½ cups low-sodium chicken broth, divided
• ¼ cup cornstarch
• 2 ½ cups diced cooked chicken
• 1 cup frozen peas, thawed
• ¼ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp ground pepper
• ¼ tsp fresh thyme (or a pinch of dried thyme)
• ¼ cup fat-free plain yogurt

Biscuit topping

• ¾ cup white whole-wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)
• ¾ cup un-bleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1 ¼ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp dried thyme, crushed
• ¼ tsp salt-free Creole seasoning (such as The Delicious Dietitian Creole Seasoning)
• 2 TBSP cold butter, cut into small pieces
• 1 cup nonfat buttermilk (or 1 TBSP white vinegar + enough skim milk to make 1 cup)
• 1 TBSP canola oil

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Heat 2 tsp oil in a Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and carrots, and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes. Remove from pan, and set aside.  Heat the remaining 1 tsp oil in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat, and add the mushrooms.  Cook, stirring often, for about 7-10 minutes, until mushrooms release their juices.  Add garlic and Creole spice blend, and stir constantly for about 30 seconds.

Return onions and carrots back to the pan.  Add 2 cups of chicken broth to the Dutch oven, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.  Whisk together the remaining ½ cup chicken broth and the cornstarch.  Make sure there are no lumps and the mixture is completely smooth.  Slowly stir the cornstarch mixture into the pan.  Continue stirring until the mixture has thickened.  Stir in the chicken, peas, salt, pepper, and thyme.  Remove from heat, and stir in the yogurt.  Be sure to mix well.

Pour mixture into a 3-qt baking dish. (I kept the mixture in the 3 ½ qt French oven that I used)

Whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, thyme, and Creole spice blend. With a pastry blender or two knives, cut in the butter until mixture is crumbly.  Add buttermilk and oil. Stir until just combined.  Drop biscuit topping evenly onto the filling.

Place baking dish on a sturdy, rimmed baking sheet. Bake the pot pie for 30 minutes or until biscuit topping is golden and the filling is bubbling.  Remove from oven and let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!

*I prepared the filling in advance, and it didn’t work very well.  Once the mixture cooled, it thinned out and wasn’t thick like a regular pot pie filling usually is.  Either way, the pot pie was still delicious. Just thought I’d warn you

Meme

Tagged: supper, The Delicious Dietitian

Posted in: Recipes