I love preparing over-the-top meals for my friends and family, but I don’t always have time. After work and errands, by the time I finally make my way to the kitchen, it’s already time for dinner. That’s why I love recipes that take minimal prep time and require little clean up. Even better are meals I can make a day (or more) ahead.
If you’ve ever made a chicken pot pie, you know it can be a chore. You have to prep the filling, make the dough, and then assemble the darn thing. But, it doesn’t have to be so tiring. I use leftover chicken and ready-made puff pastry to create this no fuss pot pie. That and some white wine (or course), as it adds great flavor to the filling and keeps me occupied while I wait for the pies to bake to golden perfection. This recipe only calls for one cup of wine so you’ll have plenty in the bottle leftover enjoy alongside of dinner.
Because of this, I like to use an aromatic, slightly fruity wine that not only adds great flavor to my dish, but further enhances it when paired alongside. A great wine for this is Woodinville, Washington’s EFESTE Feral Sauvignon Blanc. This seemingly simple wine unveils complexity the more time you spend with it—making it a perfect wine to enjoy around the dinner table with friends, family and food.
Prep time: 45 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Makes: 6 individual pies
Ingredients:
3 cups chicken, cooked and diced (or shredded)
12 tablespoons butter
2 onions, diced
4 celery stalks, diced
2 cups frozen carrots/peas (mixed)
3 cups chicken broth
1 cup EFESTE Feral Sauvignon Blanc
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup flour
Salt and pepper to taste
Two boxes frozen puff pastry dough
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350° Fahrenheit. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, melt 3 tablespoons of butter and saute onion and celery until onion is translucent in color, about 10 minutes.
Once onion and celery mixture is well sauteed, reduce heat slightly and add remaining butter. Slowly sprinkle in flour (stirring constantly) to form a roux. Once thick and smooth in texture, slowly whisk in chicken stock. Once evenly incorporated add chicken, carrots and peas. Mix well, then slowly add heavy cream and wine. Reduce heat and let mixture simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes.
While pie filling simmers, prepare six mini loaf pans, mini tart pans or ramekins by lining the bottoms and sides of the pans with puff pastry. Follow the thawing directions on the puff pastry box, then gently roll out and trim to fit the pan you are using, reserving dough for the top of each pie. Once all the pans have been lined with dough, fill each pan then top with a thin layer of reserved dough. Use a fork to poke air vents in the top of each pie before baking.
Bake pies for about 45 minutes, or until tops have visibly puffed and are golden and flakey.
Let pies cool and serve, or let cool completely and freeze for later.
