Issue Date: October 15, 2006
Savory pies in a snap
These comfort-food dishes go together quickly for guests and family.
Short of grabbing a potpie from the frozen food case, most cooks wouldn't think of putting savory pie on the weeknight dinner table. Who's got time to prepare the meat, chop vegetables and roll pastry for a satisfying supper entree? But with a couple of shortcuts and a few good-quality prepared items, you can serve a pie that rivals one from scratch.
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Simple, Classic Chicken Potpie
6 cups shredded chicken (from two rotisserie chickens)
Freeze the second pie and serve another night.
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1 refrigerated pie crust from a 15-ounce box
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
2 medium onions, chopped
3 small celery ribs, cut crosswise, 1/4-inch thick
2 cups chicken broth
12-ounce can evaporated milk
1/3 cup butter
1/2 cup, plus 1 Tb. flour
3/4 tsp. dried thyme
1/4 cup dry sherry or white wine
Salt and ground pepper
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 16-ounce bag frozen peas and carrots, not thawed
Adjust oven rack to low-center position; heat oven to 400 degrees. If using whole rotisserie chickens, separate meat from skin and bones, and tear into bite-size pieces. Discard skin and bones. Then remove pie dough from its box and follow directions for bringing to room temperature.
Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions and celery; sauté until just tender, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl along with the chicken; set aside.
Meanwhile, microwave chicken broth and milk in a microwave-safe bowl until steamy, 3 to 4 minutes. Heat butter over medium heat in the empty pan. When foaming subsides, whisk in flour and thyme; cook until golden, about 1 minute. Whisk in hot milk mixture. Bring to simmer, then continue to simmer until sauce fully thickens, about1 minute. Turn off heat, stir in sherry or wine, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Stir chicken mixture, parsley and the peas and carrots into the sauce. Divide mixture between two 9-inch deep-dish pie plates. Top each with pie dough, and flute crust by pinching with your fingers. Set on a baking sheet and bake until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly, 30 to 35 minutes. (Optional: Wrap second potpie in freezer wrap and freeze for a later meal. Remove wrapping, place potpie on a baking sheet and bake at 400 degrees until golden and bubbly, about 1 hour.)
Two pies serve 12
6 servings per pie: 480 calories, 29g carbohydrates, 24g protein, 30g fat (10g saturated), 77mg cholesterol, 3g fiber, 577mg sodium
Rotisserie chicken, refrigerated pie crust and frozen vegetables simplify this delicious pie.
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Moussaka Cottage Pie
4 Tbs. olive oil, divided
2 medium onions, cut into medium dice
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 pounds lean ground beef or turkey
2 cups canned crushed tomatoes from a 28-ounce can (there will be leftovers)
1/3 cup dark or golden raisins
1 1-pound eggplant in 1/4-inch slices
Salt and pepper
1 24-ounce container refrigerated mashed potatoes, warmed in the microwave according to instructions
1 large egg, beaten
One nice feature of this dish is that you can cook and bake the pie in the same skillet.
Heat 2 Tbs. oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Sauté onions until tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, cinnamon and cloves; cook about 1 minute. Add meat, stirring to break it up, and cook about 5 minutes. Stir in tomatoes and raisins; simmer 10 minutes.
Arrange eggplant slices on a lipped cookie sheet. Brush both sides withremaining oil, and season with salt and pepper. Broil on upper oven rack, turning once with kitchen tongs, until golden brown, about 5 minutes per side.
Reduce heat to 400 degrees. Lay eggplant in a single layer over meat mixture. Whisk egg into mashed potatoes; spread over eggplant. Bake on lower rack until sauce is bubbly, about 20 minutes.
Serves 8
Per serving: 360 calories, 32g carbohydrates, 29g protein, 14g fat (4g saturated), 99mg cholesterol, 6g fiber, 571mg sodium
Find more of Pam Anderson's great weeknight dinner recipes at usaweekend.allrecipes.com.
Pam Anderson is the author of four cookbooks. Her latest is "Perfect Recipes for Having People Over" (Houghton Mifflin, $35).
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