Chicken Pot Pie

Ready for the recipe that earned me a handshake from a stranger?? I brought this pot pie to a friend that had a new baby. A couple weeks later my family and I were having lunch after church and ran into my friend and her family. My friend Heather introduced me to her husband and said “honey, this is Laura… she’s the one who made that pot pie you loved when we had the baby.” Her husband shook my hand and then turned to my husband and shook his hand explaining that he deserved a handshake for being married to the woman who brought them that pot pie. So funny! Now mind you, it is amazing. I mean it has half and half for cryin’ out loud! Enjoy!

1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves – cubed
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup frozen green peas
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon celery seed
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup half and half (you can substitute milk if you just can’t bring yourself to add half and half)
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside.
In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt, pepper, and celery seed. Slowly stir in chicken broth and half and half. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over. Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Perfect Pie Crust
Makes 2 crusts

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 t salt
1 t sugar
1 cup butter, very cold and cut into cubes
1/4 – 1/2 cold water (I add ice to the water to make sure it’s super cold)

Place the flour, salt and sugar into the bowl of a food processor and pulse to combine. Add butter through feed tube and process until the mixture looks like course cornmeal.
Slowly add water and process just until mixture comes together. Do not process for longer than 30 seconds.
Remove dough and form two discs. Wrap in plastic wrap and chill for at least one hour before using.
Unroll on well floured surface and place in pie plate. Before baking, chill dough again in pie plate for 45 minutes. Note: because of the amount of butter in this recipe, the extra chilling will prevent the edges of the crust from collapsing. This is a necessary step.