Hearty Chicken Pot Pie

When I was a kid, I used to love Saturday nights when we would have TV dinners.  When you're a kid, you don't think about sodium and I think if I ate a frozen pot pie today, I would probably contract a migraine within minutes.  Unfortunately I LOVE pot pies so I have been looking for a recipe.  I think I may have found it.

1 10 3/4oz. condensed chicken broth
1 1/2 C. water, divided
4 medium carrots
3 medium red potatoes, scrubbed and diced
2 tbsp. olive oil
2 C. quartered medium mushrooms
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 C. frozen peas
1/3 C. all purpose flour
1 15oz. package refrigerated pie crusts
2 1/2 C. chopped cooked chicken

Combine broth, 1 C. water, carrots and potatoes in a medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil over medium high heat.  Reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 10 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add the mushrooms and onion.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened.  Stir in the broth mixture and peas.  Increase heat to medium high and bring to a boil.  Whisk the remaining water into the flour until smooth.  Whisk flour mixture into vegetable mixture.  Boil, stirring frequently, until thickened.  Remove from heat.

Unroll 1 piecrust onto a floured surface.  Measure and roll, if necessary, to fit 1 inch larger than the top of a shallow 2 quart baking dish.  Line the baking dish with the crust.

Stir the chicken into the vegetable mixture and pour into the baking dish.  Place the remaining crust over the filling; trim and flute the edge.  Cut a scalloped round from the center with a cookie cutter.  Bake until filling is bubbly and crust is browned, about 20 minutes.

To save prep time, use a 10oz. bag of frozen vegetables instead of the carrots, potatoes and peas.  Skip step 1.  After cooking mushrooms and the onion, add the broth, 1 1/3 C. water and 1/3 C. flour.  Bring to a boil; whisk until thickened and smooth.  Add frozen vegetables; return to a boil.  Continue as directed.