Chicken Pot Pie Recipe

One of my go-to-meals is definitely Chicken Pot Pie.  And since chicken breasts were on sale at Meijer last week, Chicken Pot Pie made it on our weekly meal list.  It's another one of those meals that may seem intimidating; but believe me, it's super easy and your family will love it!

Here's what you'll need:

Chicken
*I used two large chicken breasts because we like white meat.  But when I'm in a time crunch, I've used a store-bought rotisserie chicken and just shredded the meat.
2 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 stick unsalted butter
1 large onion (or 3 small ones this week), finely chopped
1 1/2 cups carrots, cut into 1/2-inch rounds
3 ribs celery, sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup flour
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 cup frozen peas
1 box refrigerated pie dough (you will need both shells if you want a top and bottom crust)
1 egg, beaten
kosher salt & pepper


Okay, let's just get this out of the way...

Yes, this recipe does call for heavy whipping cream and real butter!  Get over it!  If you use margarine or half/half, well I don't want to know about it.

Now that we've established that, let's start cooking!

First, preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Place your chicken breasts on a baking sheet (I line my baking pan with foil so I don't have to wash it later) and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  I used bone-in chicken breasts with the skins.  The skin keeps the chicken moist, and I remove it after it's baked.

Bake until done, about 40 minutes.  Allow to cool enough so you can handle it, and shred the meat.  Set aside.

Next, Mirepoix!

The culinary world has never known a finer marriage of flavors!  Chop the celery, onions, and carrots so they are all relatively the same size.  In our house, we have a little mouth to feed so we keep things about a half-inch in size.

In a dutch oven (aka big heavy pot), like this lovely...

My Precious

...melt the butter over medium heat.  Add the onions, carrots, celery, and garlic.  Season with salt and pepper.  Saute until the onions are translucent and the carrots and celery are tender.

Add the flour and stir constantly for 2 minutes.  The fat from the butter and the raw flour will combine to make a roux (thickener) for the filling.  You are cooking out the raw flour flavor, so make sure you stir for the full 2 minutes.  The mixture should be pasty and lump-free.

Next, stir in the broth, cream, chicken, and peas.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer until the filling thickens to your liking.

Line your baking vessel with one of the pie crusts.

It doesn't have to be pretty.  We make a family style pot pie, but you could make individual pies instead.

Ladle the filling into the lined baking dish.

Cover with the remaining pie crust and tuck in the edges.  Remember, it doesn't need to be super pretty.  Pot pie is supposed to be rustic.  Brush the top with egg wash and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake for 35 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.

Serve and enjoy!

Groceries On A Budget - Part 1

It's a typical Thursday in our home and that means it's grocery day.  We pack up a snack cup for Addyson, forget our reusable grocery bags at home, and struggle to find a parking spot at our local supermarket.  After thoroughly de-funking the grocery cart, we place our one-shoed (geez, where did her other shoe go now?!) child into the buggy and begin our journey. We're only here for a few items, so this should be quick and relatively painless.....  Two hours and one toddler meltdown later we exit the grocery store, laden with plastic bags stuffed with our recent purchases.  We pile into our mini-van completely exhausted.  Upon our return home, we clamber into the house and begin unpacking the leftovers from the fridge to make room for our new acquisitions.  During the process of the exchange, we discover that we forgot to get milk - a necessity in our home since Addy and I consume an average of 2.5 gallons per week - I suppose we'll go back later.  When the task is complete, we collapse in a heap on the couch to the sounds of Dora the Explorer singing "We did it, Yay!" (ironic), at which point the husband asks the age old question, "So, what's for dinner?"

Does this sound familiar?  This scene has played out many times in our home.  The number one reason - we never went into the grocery store prepared.  Ugh, I can hear some old man adage about "If you fail to plan, you plan to fail", blah, blah, blah.  But it's true!  I can't tell you how many trips to the market we've made, only to have to turn back around the next day and go again because we forgot something.  And I could never tell you how much we actually spent on food in a month, because I honestly didn't know.

Recently, I made it a priority to create a weekly grocery list no later than 10pm the night before grocery day.  Here's my process:

Step 1 - I get out my flash cards!  I have index cards with entrees written on one side, and ingredients written on the other.

 They're not really recipe cards since they don't have instructions on them, but they list every major ingredient going into the dish that I wouldn't typically have on hand (I don't list the minor items, like spices, that I always have in stock).  I probably have close to 25 different entree cards to choose from.  Of those 25, I pick out seven for our weekly meals.

Step 2 - I write out our meal plan on a weekly calendar and post this on the fridge.  Pretty soon the "what's for dinner" inquiries stop because all you need to do is point to the calendar.

Step 3 - Generate The List. 
 

The List
*The (M) notes items on sale at Meijer.  The (C) notes items I have a coupon for*

I take my meal cards and write down all the ingredients listed on the backs.  We keep a running grocery list in our house.  There's always a notepad lying around to jot down something we're running low on, and I add my meal card items to that list.


Step 4 - Do your homework!  I review several sites to find out what deals are going on in the supermarket world.  If chicken is on sale this week, you can bet there are at least three dishes on my list that include chicken.  After I check the online ads, I print any relevant coupons.  Lots of times you can find a coupon for something that's already on sale - double bonus!  Step 4 is far more in depth than this, so I will be writing a subsequent blog post about the online tools I utilize to get the most from my grocery shopping experience.  Oh, so glam!

Step 5 - Stick to your list!  Yes, I understand you can't totally eliminate the impulse buys, but do try!  We walk into the store knowing we have $____ to spend on groceries for the week, period.  Sticking to your list will help you stay on track with your budgeting goals.  And hey, if you have monies left over after your shopping trip...date night baby!

So that's the process I go through every Wednesday night.  It's painstaking, but sooo worth it!  This past week, we made one trip to the grocery store - ONE.  That's a minor miracle for this family.  I hope you find these tips helpful in planning your next adventure to the supermarket!

All aboard!...The Blogger Bandwagon that is!

Well I suppose this mama has been intrigued by the blogger world for quite some time.  In fact, I've followed a few blogs for a while now.  Watching you happenin' mama's out there decorate, bake, paint, mod podge, and craft your busy little worlds.  I'm so impressed!  All the while I've been thinking, "Gosh, I'd really like to do that."  But, like so many of you mama's I'm sure, I'm already borrowing time from my "sleep pool" just squeak out a few projects here and there.  So how on earth will I have the time for blogging?!  Well, we shall see...

So here I am, joining you all on the Blogger Bandwagon!  Who am I, you might ask.  Well, here's a little background information about little 'ol me:

My name is Christina, and I'm 24 years old.  My husband and I began dating when I was just 13 and he was 14, making this our 11th year together!  In March, we'll be celebrating our 5th wedding anniversary.

We have one amazing daughter, and her name is Addyson.

If you happen to ask her what her name is, she will promptly reply, "CooCoo".  That's my girl!  She is my inspiration, my sunshine, and my happy little spot in life.  She is silly to the max!  She loves to dance and sing and play and pretend.  There's never a day she doesn't make some goofy new face or say something totally giggle worthy!

I love her, in case you couldn't tell.

So that's my little family as it stands now.  As for me, I'm an office worker-bee/coffee addict by day and a mommy/wife/cook/baker/crocheter/sewer by night.  Yes, I know that list didn't include sleeper, but I'm working on that, I promise.  I hope to use this blog to show you what I'm working on.  I may post craft projects, recipes, or just rant about the latest thing I'm absolutely crazy about.  (Right now it's caramel sauce, but more on that later.)  And of course, I'll be sprinkling in random cute pictures of my little coocoo, like this one!

I know I'm biased, but darn she's cute!

So stick with me!  I'm new at this, and fumbling through it and I may be absent at times, but I'll do my best to make regular appearances.  Ta-ta for now fellow blogger-oos!