I have a documented love of the chicken pot pie recipe in the classic Marshall Field's cookbook - it has the requisite sherry in it, and tiny, delicious pearl onions. But, it is also for individual pot pies with only one layer of crust on top, instead of a real "pie" that involves filling encased entirely in crust. I love crust. I think the crust is often the best part of a savory pie. So, with my eleventy thousand million pounds of Thanksgiving turkey leftovers, I wanted to make a turkey pot pie that had tasty pie crust on both sides.
I meant to stick fairly closely to my favorite Marshall Field's recipe, and just dump the filling inside a normal double-crust pie, but then I came across this recipe on the Whole Foods website and liked the sound of all those mushrooms in the pie, so I used those, too. You could also add cooked pieces of potato in the pie if you like that (I didn't), but be careful about the potatoes if you plan to freeze the pot pie; I don't think potatoes freeze all that well because the starches in them change consistency and the dish ends up grainy. I will say that baby red potatoes or fingerlings, which are waxier and lower-starch, are the best choices if you do go that route.
Sadly, I got carried away with the kitchen process and forgot to put the sherry and the peas in my filling for the first pie! Unfortunate, but not a dish-killer - it still turned out fine and I know that John didn't know any better. Thankfully, I doubled the filling recipe and put half of it in my refrigerator for freezing later, so I can add the sherry and the peas to that batch before freezing. If you make these, I definitely recommend using the sherry - it brings out the comforting flavors and makes a pot pie the special comfort food that it is. It is important. Just trust me.
Note that even after making TWO batches of turkey pot pie filling, I still have more than enough turkey to make a pan of turkey enchiladas, so that will be happening later this week!
Leftover Thanksgiving Turkey Pot Pie
adapted from this Whole Foods recipe
makes 1 9-inch double-crust pie
Ingredients:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
2 medium leeks, thinly sliced
2 stalks celery, thinly sliced
2 large carrots, chopped into a 1/4-inch dice (this is important, because the leeks and celery will cook faster than the carrots unless the carrots are pretty small, and you don't want mushy leeks and celery and raw carrots)
1/2 pound white mushrooms, quartered
1/2 pound shiitake mushrooms, stemmed and sliced
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups turkey or chicken broth
2 cups chopped cooked turkey
1 cup frozen peas
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon heavy cream, divided
1/4 cup sherry
1 teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
Dough for 2 9-inch pie crusts (You can buy those frozen ones in the tins if you want, but I can't advocate that.)
Method:
Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a large, heavy, high-sided pot. Add the leeks, celery and carrots and cook over medium heat until softened but not browned, about 10 minutes. Transfer the vegetables to a bowl and set aside. Melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter. Add the mushrooms and cook over medium high heat until they have cooked down enough to have given off their moisture and are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the leek mixture to the pot and stir to combine. Add the flour, stir well and cook for 1 minute. Stirring constantly, slowly pour in the broth. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring, until the sauce is very thick. Add the turkey, peas, all but 1 tablespoon of the cream, sherry, thyme, salt and pepper (be sure to taste the filling a LOT, and adjust the salt and pepper as necessary - you will probably need a fair bit of salt) and stir well. Remove the pot from the heat and set is aside to let cool. Around now, preheat the oven to 400°F.
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| This is two batches of filling, so don't freak out if yours doesn't look this giant. |
Prepare the pie crust by rolling out the disc for the bottom crust (or removing them from the freezer).
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| Crust is very important to me. |
Fill the crust with the cooled turkey mixture and moisten the edges with a bit of water. Quickly, so that the bottom crust doesn't get too warm, roll out the remaining crust and place it on top of the pie. (Note that if you are using the frozen pie crusts you can just invert it on top.) Seal the edges of the top crust to the bottom crust, crimping the edges with a fork. Cut a few slits in the top to allow steam to escape. Brush the crust all over with remaining tablespoon of cream. Bake the pie until it is golden brown, the crust is cooked through and the filling is bubbling, about 40 minutes.
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| Looking good after 40 minutes in the oven. |
Set aside to let cool for a few minutes, then cut into slices and serve. You can serve it with leftover stuffing, like I did, if you want!
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| No peas, sad. |
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| Yum. |
Enjoy! Let me know if you make them.
1 comments:
NICE! Thank you!
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