Chicken (or turkey) pot pie recipe

This is a recipe from a friend, with a few changes by me.

Can also be used with turkey.

And you can probably substitute whatever vegetables you like. Why not?!

This recipe makes at least two pot pies, if not three (one little one).

Yes, this photo is of two chicken pot pies I made in February 2013.

INGREDIENTS

Either:
4 chicken breasts
OR
a whole chicken
OR
4-5 chicken thighs 

OR

leftover turkey (depending on how much turkey you have left)

(I tend to use chicken thighs 'cause they're cheaper that the other chicken options)

1 onion chopped
1 1/2 cups of chopped carrots
1 1/2 cups of chopped celery
2 cans cream of chicken soup (you can use Campbell's Healthy Start as a slightly healthier alternative to regular Cambell's)
1 cup Chicken stock
1 tablespoon poultry seasoning OR 1 tablespoon of  marjoram (I use the latter)
1 cup frozen pearl onions (optional)
1 cup frozen peas
salt pepper
4 deep dish pie crusts (or make crusts from Bisquick or flour)
(I always have more than enough filling for two pies, so I try to make a third little pie with the pie crust dough I cut off later)

You can substitute yellow squash and/or green beans for the carrots and celery, if you want.

DIRECTIONS

If using frozen pie crusts, take them out to thaw - but ONLY for 25 minutes. That means don't start thawing them until the chicken is resting. Otherwise, they get too doughy.

If cooking the chicken (rather than using leftovers):

Put the chicken, chopped onion, carrots and celery into one baking dish, season with salt and pepper, drizzle well with olive oil, and bake or roast together at 400 degrees - will take 40 minutes to an hour, depending on how much chicken or turkey you are using. 

When it's done, take it out and let the chicken and veggies rest for 25 mins, at least.

If using leftover cooked meat:

Put carrots in a plastic bag along with olive oil and 1 T poultry seasoning OR 1 heaping teaspoon of marjoram. Shake vigorously to ensure oil and seasoning cover everything. 

Roast onion, carrots & celery in a 400-degree oven till done (this does not take long if you cut things thinly! Like, 10 minutes!). 

Sautee onion in butter. 

In a very large bowl mix the cream of chicken soup and chicken stock. You can cut some of the stock with juice from the roasted meat, if you have it.

Chop or shred the chicken and add it along with the onion, celery, carrots, pearl onions and frozen peas to the soup mixture and stir until it's well-mixed.  

If making crusts yourself, this is when to do it. I like Bisquick crusts most, because they are better than ready-made Pilsbury. But no judgment if you use ready-made. They are still really delicious. You want them as thin as possible. If you get a hole, just grab some dough, flatten it and patch it

Divide the mixture between 2 pie crusts. Don't overfill! You will probably have mixture leftover.

Top the filled pies with crusts. You will probably cut some dough all around the pie, because it will be too long. Pinch it all around the side. Save the cut dough - you may be able to make a mini pie at the very end. 

Make slits in the top of the crust for steam to escape. Cut off any pie crust hanging over the side - you will might have enough dough after doing this to make a little pot pie, especially if you have one more pie crust to use.

Bake all of them at 375 for 45 mins - 1 hour.

Eat one (nom nom nom). Cool the rest off, then freeze them (Better to cook and then freeze, rather than to freeze uncooked).

Cooked but frozen: Bake at 325 for 45 - 1 hour.

Battle of the blogs

First came a letter from Janine Kovac to her "friend", Doris

Then came a LOT of responses - the best of which is this alternative letter that sums up just what I, too, think of Doris's "friend."

And then Doris' friend Janine apologized for being an ass. Which I have to say I really respected - it's a heart-felt apology, not one of those awful "Sorry if I said something that might have offended someone" non-apologies I'm so tired of.

I love you, Interwebs.

Us - as cartoons & non-preppers

I drew these for a little announcement flyer to distribute in our neighborhood, so people know who we are. We're adorable!

Hopefully, it won't take months to meet our neighbors, the way it did in Canby. As I told a friend recently, I'm the opposite of a "prepper" - instead of isolating myself and creating a fortress and seeing everyone as a "taker" or potential enemy, I get to know my neighbors. That's partly because I like people, and partly because studies show that people that survive disasters are the ones that are part of communities where members have a strong sense of helping one another.

Not that we don't have enough supplies and equipment to get us at least five days without electricity or the car. But if civilization can't rebound in five days, we're totally screwed.