Chicken Pot Pie

Ingredients:

¼ cup butter + 1 tablespoon

2 chicken breasts cut into bite size pieces about 2 1/2 cups chopped

salt to taste

⅓ cup onion minced

1 ¼ cups carrots diced

1 cup potatoes peeled and diced

¾ teaspoon dry thyme

¼ cup flour

2 ¼ cups chicken stock

½ cup milk

½ cup frozen peas

Crust:

2 and 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour plus more for rolling

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1 cup butter , cold and cut into 16 slices

2/3 cup ice water

Instructions:

Crust

Combine flour and salt in a large bowl.

Add butter slices and either cut into flour with a pastry blender until it forms small pea like clumps.

Add ice water and mix until dough forms a large ball (do not over mix). This is best done manually that way the dough is not overworked and will be flaky after baking.

Separate dough into two balls and gently flatten. Wrap disks in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.

While your dough is chilling, make the filling.

Heat 1 tablespoon EACH of butter and olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat swirling to coat the bottom. Add the bite size pieces of chicken, season with salt and sauté until cooked through then remove the chicken from the skillet.

Add ¼ cup of butter to the skillet and once it’s melted, drop in the onions, carrots and potatoes. Season with salt and thyme and cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Reduce the heat to medium low then whisk in the flour cooking 1-2 minutes. Next pour in the stock scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet and once everything is combined, fold in the milk and simmer over medium low heat with light bubbling for 8-10 minutes or until the sauce thickens.

Tip: Bring the pie crust to room temperature on the counter while the sauce thickens.

Remove the skillet from the heat and add the chicken and peas then taste, adjusting salt as you like.

Preheat the oven to 425°.

Transfer one sheet of the dough to a 9” pie pan, pressing gently around the inside curve of the pan.

Pour in the filling then cover the pie with the remaining dough. Seal with a fork, trim the edges to fit then slice a few small slits into the top.

Whisk the egg and 2 tablespoons of water together then brush lightly over the top of the crust.

Bake 40-45 minutes on a lower rack in the oven so both the top and bottom crust are golden. Cool for 10 minutes to let it settle then slice and serve.