P-Dub's Chicken Pot Pie

I have a natural tendency to "tinker" with any and all recipes that cross my path.  My dear friend, Heather, and I are both afflicted with this condition.  Heather's mom, Oma, has strictly instructed us that at first, we are to follow directions.  Hmmm...follow directions.  I think God would agree that I have a difficult time with that.  It's one of the struggles I share with my children.  I have been fortunate to notice that God often uses our children to speak to us.  They are a reflection of us....and for me, it often scares me.  I see the wonderful and good things, but I have also found that all the "issues" they have are ones that I share with them.  So, even as an adult, the Lord still is working on me and unfortunately I think it becomes more painful to work through.  Oh, yes, back to the recipe...following directions.  I have made it my promise that no matter how strong the urge, I WILL NOT alter her recipes the first time around.  It was difficult tonight, trust me.  Mr. Garlic Powder was whispering from my spice drawer, wanting to shake things up a bit.  But, I didn't cave, he remained behind closed doors...literally.  I did, however, double the recipe and baked it in a 9x13".  I am such a deviant....this helped my "tendencies".  It was kind of like a Nicoderm patch for a smoker, I suppose.

So, last night, I cooked Chicken Pot Pie.  The verdict?  YUM!  I haven't had any other verdict yet, but I will keep it real.  I have to be honest that I would be suprised if every single recipe was a keeper.  But, stranger things have happened.  The recipe called for an optional addition of white wine which caused me to go back and forth.  Finally, I gave in and added it.  I love cooking with wine.  It adds a twang to a recipe that makes me smile and oddly my husband, Boots (aka. "wine hater"), seems to like it, too.  It contained minimal herbs, salt, pepper and thyme.  Thyme does not have a "spot" in my spice drawer.  Actually, I must confess I had to go out and buy it special for this recipe.  Being slightly afraid of the new herb, I bought a teensy bottle of it.  It was my way of being somewhat non-commital.  I wouldn't feel guilty tossing it if I didn't like it!  Again, awesome recipe and apparently you can make it ahead and either keep the filling separated and refrigerated for a few days or you can make the whole pie and freeze it.  It made me think of those Swanson pot pies from childhood only this was a 1000 times better! 

I am not going to post the recipe today.  It is only found in the cookbook and out of respect for PW, I will only post complete recipes or links if they appear on her blog.  If your interested in this recipe, I encourage you, AGAIN, to snatch up her cookbook!  However, you do place the filling in her Perfect Pie Crust.  I have used this recipe dozens of times and it is wonderfully flakey.  A lady came to our farm to buy some fresh, raw milk a few years ago.  In the course of conversation, we talked pies.  More specifically, pie crusts.  She told me the secret to flakey crusts was to find a recipe with vinegar in it.   When I did, it instantly made a difference and when I found PW's it was exactly perfect.  I love that I can make these pie crusts ahead, cover in plastic wrap and freeze.  Whenever, I get a wild hair to make a pie, sweet or savory, it's just as easy as a frozen, ready made pie crust.  Most of all, I love that it's fresh and not processed.

Another day, another adventure!
Blessings,
Prairie Kerri