Individual Chicken Pot Pies

In our Sep/Oct issue, Christopher Kimball, host of PBS’ America’s Test Kitchen, shares a couple of family-favorite recipes scaled back to serve two instead of six. Here’s an additional, web-exclusive, just-for-two dinner—individual chicken pot pies. For more great recipes, check out America’s Test Kitchen’s Cooking for Two 2011 cookbook.

Individual Chicken Pot Pies

Individual Chicken Pot Pies

Ingredients

• 1 savory pie dough
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
• 1 small onion, minced
• 1 small celery rib, sliced 1/4 inch thick
• Salt and pepper
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme or 1/4 teaspoon dried
• 1/4 teaspoon soy sauce
• 3 tablespoons unbleached all-purpose flour
• 1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1 (8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breast, trimmed
• 1/4 cup frozen peas
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Directions

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees.

Roll out dough on parchment paper to 12-inch round, about 1/4 inch thick. Use ovenproof 12-ounce ramekin as guide to cut out two rounds of dough, about 1/2 inch larger than mouth of ramekin. Fold under and crimp outer 1/2 inch of dough, then cut 3 oval-shaped vents in center of each crust. Slide parchment paper with crusts onto rimmed baking sheet and bake until crusts just begin to brown and no longer look raw, 10 to 12 minutes for homemade pie dough or 7 minutes for store-bought dough; set aside.

Meanwhile, melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add carrots, onion, celery, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook until vegetables are softened and browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Stir in garlic, thyme, and soy sauce and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute.

Slowly whisk in broth and cream, scraping up any browned bits. Nestle chicken into sauce and bring to simmer. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and cook until chicken registers 160 to 165 degrees on instant-read thermometer, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer chicken to plate, let cool slightly, then shred into bite-size pieces.

Meanwhile, return pan with sauce to medium heat and simmer until thickened and sauce measures 2 cups, about 5 minutes. Off heat, return shredded chicken, with any accumulated juice, to pan. Stir in peas, parsley, and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Divide filling between ramekins and place parbaked crusts on top of filling. Place pot pies on aluminum foil-lined baking sheet and bake until crusts are deep golden brown and filling is bubbling, 10 to 15 minutes. Let pot pies cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Calories: 1090

Fat: 70 g

Sodium: 834 mg

Carbohydrate: 74 g

Fiber: 5.3 g

Protein: 41 g

Diabetic Exchanges: 2 carbohydrate, 0.75 nonstarchy vegetable, 3 lean meat, 5.5 fat