Chicken Pot Pie with Phyllo Crust

What better thing to make on a cold winter day than a nice pot pie! Oh, wait, it was in the 60s today. Well, I had already gotten all of the ingredients, so I just committed to trying out this recipe.


Ingredients:

cooking spray
1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breast halves, cut into 1/2 inch chunks
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 leeks, bottom 4 inches only, trimmed, washed well, and chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
2 medium white potatoes, left unpeeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1/2 pound fresh green beans, trimmed and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced (about 2 teaspoons)
1 1/2 cups nonfat milk
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 cup peas, thawed if frozen
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
3 sheets frozen phyllo dough, thawed
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Step by step instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350.
2. Coat 4 individual-sized baking dishes with cooking spray

3. Season the chicken with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. In a large, nonstick skillet, heat 2 teaspoons of the oil over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and brown, about 2 1/2 minutes per side. Transfer the chicken to a plate.

4. Add 2 more teaspoons of oil, the leeks, and celery to the pan and cook, stirring a few times, until the vegetables begin to soften, about 3 minutes.

5. Add the potatoes, green beans, garlic, and the remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper and cook for 2 minutes more, stirring to combine everything.

6. Add the milk to the skillet.

7. Stir the flour into the broth until dissolved and add to the skillet.

8. Cook, stirring, until the mixture comes to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and simmer, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes.

9. Stir in the chicken, peas, parsley, and thyme.

10. Spoon the mixture into the baking dishes.

11. Put the remaining 1 2/3 tablespoons oil in a small bowl. Unroll the phyllo dough and cut it into quarters. Place a quarter-sheet on top of each baking dish and brush with the oil. Repeat layering with all three layers. Tuck the edges of the phyllo into the dish rim.

12. Sprinkle the top of each pie with the Parmesan.

13. Place the dishes on a baking sheet and bake until the filling is bubbling, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.

recipe from Ellie Krieger

Evaluation: This recipe was a bit of a time commitment. For some reason, I looked at it and thought, hmmm, this should take about an hour. After cutting up all the vegetables and chicken and getting everything ready to bake, it probably took closer to 2 hours. It was, however, worth all the time and effort.

This dish was very hot. It wasn't hot spice-wise, but temperature-wise. I managed to burn my mouth a few times...and I believe I burned a few tastebuds off my tongue. Hopefully they'll be back soon...

The phyllo dough was a huge pain. It's super delicate and dries, tears, and breaks really easily. It's important to gently cut the phyllo dough. Since the dough dries out incredibly quickly, it's also important to cover the waiting dough with a damp towel so the dough that's not being used at the moment doesn't completely dry out and break.

Things I would do differently next time: I would cut the leeks bigger. I chopped them too small and they got a little burnt during their initial bout in the skillet. It added a nice smoky flavor, but I'm pretty sure they weren't meant to be that (over) cooked. I would also cut the potatoes smaller. I'm not sure I was uniform in my 1/2 inch cuts, but some of the potato pieces were just a little too big and were hard to eat.

Thai Basil-Coconut Chicken and Soba Noodles

I found this recipe last year and thought it sounded really good. I made it once and had one fundamental problem with the recipe: it tasted like fish. The culprit was the fish sauce. I don't know what it is about fish sauce, but its taste takes over everything it touches. The base flavors of the dish are good, so this time around, I just took out the offending ingredient.

Ingredients:

1/2 cup light coconut milk

1/2 cup fat-free reduced-sodium chicken broth

2 teaspoons cornstarch

4 tablespoons canola oil

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4 ounces each)

1 cup fresh or frozen shelled edamame

1/2 red bell pepper, thinly sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 tablespoons minced fresh basil

Step by step instructions:

1. Combine the coconut milk and broth in a medium bowl. Whisk in the cornstarch until combined. Set aside.

2. Pound the chicken lightly to create a uniform thickness. To avoid getting raw chicken juice all over, I like to put the chicken in a plastic bag before pounding it with a meat tenderizer. If you don't have a meat tenderizer, you can just use a small skillet.

3. Heat 2 tablespoons of the canola oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 2 minutes on each side, or until browned. Transfer to a plate and cover with aluminum foil to keep warm. I put the plate in the microwave to minimize the cool down.

4. Boil enough water in a pot to cover the soba noodles. Once water is boiling, add soba noodles and cook to the specifications on the package.

5. Once noodles are done cooking, strain and put to the side.

6. Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, the edamame, pepper, garlic, and salt. Cook until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds.

(please note the vintage Power Rangers plate circa 1995)

7. Add the reserved coconut milk mixture. Cook, stirring for 1 to 2 minutes, or until thickened. Add the reserved chicken and any accumulated juices on the plate. Spoon the sauce over the chicken. Reduce the heat to a simmer, partially cover, and cook for 5 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through. Stir in the basil.

8. Put cooked soba noodles in the skillet and stir in.

9. Make a prettier plate than I did.

Recipe adapted from Liz Vaccariello

Evaluation: This dish turned out much better than last time. If you're so inclined, the original recipe calls for 2 tablespoons of fish sauce that is added to the coconut milk and broth mixture. I would not recommend adding it, but that's just me.

This recipe yielded 4 servings.