Chicken Pot Pie

With Karissa's Celiacs, Chicken Pot Pie is not a meal we eat a lot, much to my great sadness, it is a favorite. But when we do make it we put biscuits on top since I am not very good at Gluten-free pie crusts yet and haven't ventured past bottom crust pies to ones with top crusts. That said this is the recipe I have used in the past and really liked it. It is from The Ultimate Southern Living Cookbook, a personal favorite. I don't know if you were doing a Double-Crust or not. If just doing at top crust the filling will work just as well and just top with 1/2 the recipe of pie crust or biscuits and cook for 15 minutes. I have to admit seeing this recipe again has me trying to figure out how to adapt it to be gluten-free. The soup in it is my main obstacle and I havn't found a good condensed soup sub, just a regular soup sub. That might be my challenge for next week.

DOUBLE-CRUST CHICKEN POT PIE
Pot Pie Pastry (recipe below)
6 skinned, boned chicken breast halves, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 medium onion, chopped
2 Tbsp butter or margarine, melted
1 stalk celery, chopped
1-1/2 C frozen peas & carrots, thawed &
drained or fresh equivalent
1 C sliced fresh mushrooms
1 C peeled, chopped potato
1-1/4 C chicken broth
1/2 tsp dried parsley
1/4 tsp pepper
1 bay leaf
2 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp water
1 can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 C shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 C sour cream
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 Tbsp milk

1. Make Pot Pie Crust and chill
2. Cook chicken an donion in butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until chicken is browned and onion is tender. Stir in celery and next 8 ingredients. Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 15 minutes or until vegetables are tender. Discard bay leaf.
3. Combine cornstarch and 2 Tbsp water, stirring until smooth; add to chicken mixtrue. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in soup cheese, and sour cream.
4. Roll half of Pot Pie pastry to 1/8-inch thickness on a lightly floured surface; fit pastruu into an ungreased 2-qt casserole dish. Spoon chicken mixture into casserole. Roll remaining pastry to 1/8-inch thickness, and place over chicken mixture; trim, seal, & crimp edges. Cut slits in pastry. Combine egg yolk & milk; brush over pastry.
5. Bake at 400-degrees for 35 minutes or until golden, shielding pastry with aluminum foil during the last 5 minutes to prevent excessive browning, if necessary.

POT PIE PASTRY
3 C all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 C shortening
6-8 Tbsp cold water

1. Combine flour and salt. Cut in Shortening with pastry blender until mixtrue is crumbly. Sprinkle cold water 1 Tbsp at a time, evenly over surgace; stir with a fork until dry ingredients are moistened. Shape into a ball; chill. I realize you probably don't need directions but here they are anyway. :)

Here is some tips for pot-pies I found in my The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook
1. If using pie dough topping, be sure to make it first and allow the dough to chill while making the filling
2. If making a biscuit topping, mix and shape the biscuits after making the filling and just before baking the casserole.
3. The filling must be hot when you top it or the pastry or biscuits will be gummy.
4. For individual pot pies, instead of pouring the filling into a casserole, use heat proof bowls or ramekins and top each with a single portion of pie dough or biscuits.