For those lucky souls that following me on instagram, this past Saturday, they experienced “scenes from a very weird snow day.” It was in fact, not a snow day. The storm that was going to bring snow was a bust in the morning, and by afternoon, it did bring the expected ice (which as a small business owner with a forecast of ice on Saturday is toxic) and then very quickly turned to rain (so the small business owner prayers were answered.) Needless to say, I had already had my heart set on a snow day, and since basketball was canceled, it was even easier to embrace the idea of staying in my pjs all day, playing games, reading, working on a puzzle, being in the kitchen, and then watching movies. So I just pretended. My kids were let down, but it turned out in life we all need a snow day, whether we can sled or not.
Chicken Pot Pie Soup
An old classic, with a simple twist, making it easier for week night cooking, and leftovers.
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Ingredients
1 lb chicken breast tenderloins, small chop
1 onion, small dice
2 celery ribs, small chop
2 carrots, peeled and small chop
1 T sea salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 tsp parsley flakes
1 tsp oregano
1 bay leaf
2 T brandy
1/2 c white wine or beer
4 c chicken stock
2 c milk
1 boullion cube
2 baking potatoes, peeled and small dice
1 c frozen peas
1 c frozen pearled onions
1 c frozen mixed veg, like carrots, corn and green beans, or TJ’s soycutash, which has corn, edamame, and red peppers
2 T cornstarch with a 1/4 c water
Instructions
Pre heat the oven to 350°. Drizzle oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on the chicken and bake for 20 minutes. Let cool just to the touch, so you can chop it up.
In a Dutch oven, on medium high heat, combine the onion, celery, carrots, salt and pepper. Cooking for about five minutes, until the veg begin to soften, stirring occasionally.
Add the bay leaf, parsley, and oregano and mix.
Add the brandy and wine to deglaze the pan. Cook down for 2-3 minutes.
Add the chicken stock, and potatoes. Bring to boil. Stirring occasionally, and checking the potatoes after 3 mins to see if they are fork tender. (This is the perfect amount of time for a Crazy 8 card game for two.)
Add the milk, along with the frozen vegetables. Return a just a boil, and then lower the heat.
Add the chicken.
This is the time to start the puzzle. Just let the pot simmer. It’s still early. Not quite dinner time, and so you can just set it and forget it.
When you ready to serve, which, can be the moment you add the chicken, it can also very likely be 15 minutes before this is ready, that you need it on the table, such is life. I digress. When you are ready, return the temperature to medium high, and add the cornstarch slurry. (In a small bowl, pour 1/4 c water over 2 T of cornstarch and stir, once combined, add to the pot.) Bring the soup back to a boil, and stirring occasionally until thickened, about 3-5 minutes. Return the pot to low for serving, or remove from heat to serve.
Notes
– Serve with your favorite biscuit recipe – Pillsbury, Bisquick, hand rolled, or dropped – whatever you like
– Top with pre-baked puff pastry tops.
– If you are a planner, cook the chicken ahead of time. I know many people, including myself that batch cook chicken. It’s not necessary, but if you think you want to make this on a Thursday in between third grade HW, and fifth grade basketball, it may be helpful.
– You can use whatever veg you want. You don’t like pearled onions, don’t add them. You don’t like corn, fine. You only like peas, no problem. You just need three cups of frozen veg. You don’t like veg at all, this may not be the recipe for you.
– You have a potato allergy – no big deal. You need to increase the cornstarch from 2 T to 4-5 T. Potatoes are a natural thickener, but can easily be omitted.
– You wake up one day, and decide gluten free is the way to go, this is the soup for you – minus my garnish recommendation
– This does not freeze well, but it does reheat well.
Keywords: chicken, pot pie, soup, gluten free