Skillet Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie is a standby at my house.  I have always followed my family easy cheat recipe with Pillsbury pie crusts, Veg-All, and cream of chicken soup.  Simple, hearty, tasty -- what's not to love?

I did take special pride in this recipe because everything except the crusts was made fresh.  No cans in sight!  While I'm not sure every step was worth the trouble for a simple weeknight, there are some tricks that I'll carry over to my cheat recipe, such as:

• Adding sautéed onions and mushrooms
• Cooking in the cast iron skillet
• Using Creole seasoning
• Egg white wash on the top crust

Would you take a look at how beautifully that crust turned out?  Crispy, crackly, flaky golden brown deliciousness, I say. 

Surprisingly, this pie was listed in the Southern Living booklet Best Fall Baking.  I guess it is a pie, after all, but I went looking through the book for sweet treats and happened upon dinner instead.  And yummy leftovers for lunch, too!

Southern Living also lists the recipe on their website. 

Skillet Chicken Pot Pie 

Ingredients
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1 1/2 cups milk
1 1/2 teaspoons Creole seasoning
2 tablespoons butter
1 large sweet onion, diced
1 (8-oz.) package sliced fresh mushrooms
4 cups shredded cooked chicken
2 cups frozen cubed hash browns
1 cup matchstick carrots
1 cup frozen small sweet peas
1/3 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 (14.1-oz.) package refrigerated pie crusts, brought to room temperature
1 egg white 

Preparation Instructions 

Preheat oven to 350°. Melt 1/3 cup butter in a large saucepan over medium heat; add all-purpose flour, and cook, whisking constantly, 1 minute. Gradually add chicken broth and milk, and cook, whisking constantly, 6 to 7 minutes or until thickened and bubbly. Remove from heat, and stir in Creole seasoning.  Next, melt 2 Tbsp. butter in a large Dutch oven over medium-high heat; add onion and mushrooms, and sauté 10 minutes or until tender. Stir in chicken, next 4 ingredients, and sauce.

Place 1 pie crust in a lightly greased 10-inch cast-iron skillet. Spoon chicken mixture over pie crust, and top with remaining pie crust. Whisk egg white until foamy; brush top of pie crust with egg white. Cut 4 to 5 slits in top of pie for steam to escape. Bake at 350° for 1 hour to 1 hour and 5 minutes or until golden brown and bubbly.