Fall = Comfort Food

I absolutely love this time of year. I get a yearning for comfort food and baked goods that contain apple or pumpkin. Most of you who know me know that as the weather gets cooler, I get happier. I've never been able to figure out why I love cold weather. Maybe because I was born in January? When I think about comfort food, here are some recipes that come to mind: rice pudding, roasted chicken, chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin bread, and CHICKEN POT PIE! I love chicken pot pie and this is the best recipe I have found for it. It's actually very easy (and very comforting)!

Chicken Pot Pie (adapted from Best Loved Casseroles)

Ingredients:
1 (14.5oz) can chicken broth
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1- 1 1/2 c. milk
3 Tbsp butter
1 small onion, chopped
1/3 c. flour
2 c. diced, cooked chicken
2 c. frozen mixed vegetables (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower)
Small dash of dried thyme
1 Tbsp chopped parsley
1 store bought, refrigerated pie crust
1 egg, beaten

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Pour chicken broth, salt, and pepper into a large measuring cup. Add enough milk to equal 2 1/2 cups.
3. Melt butter in large saute pan over medium heat. Add onion. Cook 3 min. Stir in flour until well         blended.
4. Gradually stir in broth mixture. Stir until thickened.
5. Add chopped chicken, veggies, thyme, and parsley. Pour mixture into a casserole dish.
5. Place pie crust over the casserole dish (you may need to roll the crust out a little bit to fit over your dish. I usually use a 9x9 inch baking dish). Press the crust edges against the edge of the dish.
6. Brush crust with beaten egg. Bake for 30 minutes until crust is golden brown.

Alissa's notes: You can use whatever veggies you like in this pot pie. I added 1/2 c. corn and it was yummy. I usually defrost the frozen veggies in the microwave a little bit and chop them up smaller before adding them in. If you like celery, you can add 1/2 c. chopped celery in with the onion. This dish turns out better for me when I use a store-bought rotisserie chicken rather than cooking chicken breast myself. The flavor of the rotisserie chicken really compliments this dish.


RATING: 5 cupcakes