TASTE & CREATE ~ No Reason Needed & CHICKEN POT PIE

Taste and Create was started as a food event by Nicole from For the Love of Food. This is the 2nd time I've participated in Taste and Create and I don't plan on stopping soon. I enjoy meeting new bloggers, especially foodies.

The whole purpose of Taste and Create was, and has been, and continues to be to create a community of bloggers who test each others’ recipes and share links. The participants of the event are paired together and try a new recipe from one another's blog.

My partner this month is Carol from NO REASON NEEDED. I spent yesterday, a rainy Sunday afternoon perusing her recipes and was intrigued by her unusual recipe titles like elephant ear cookies, zippy slow cooker chili, pizza stuffed pretzels and super easy strawberry and lime ice cream when I zeroed in on a comfort favorite of mine chicken pot pie. So that was tonight's dinner.

When I was a child, Swanson frozen pot pies were a favorite of my mom's to serve in a pinch. I have to admit that as a child I loved them, but as my taste buds matured I started searching for a replacement recipe, a HOMEMADE replacement recipe.

I love my chicken pot pie recipe, but am always looking for new and better or even just different recipe so thought I'd try hers. On a bonus note that I didn't at first notice, Carol made this recipe last October 2009 as a part of Taste & Create when she was partnered with Natalie, from What`s for Supper? So LOL I guess we're doubling trying this recipe.

CHICKEN POT PIE
1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
1 cup sliced carrots
1 potato cut into cubes (as per Natalie's suggestion)
1 cup frozen green peas (I used FRESH)
1/2 cup sliced celery 1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup chopped onion
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt (CAROL omitted, but I left it in)
1/4 teaspoon black pepper (Carol omitted, but I used white pepper)
1/4 teaspoon celery seed (Carol used celery salt and I omitted)
1 3/4 cups chicken broth
2/3 cup milk
2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts (I used my own HOMEMADE recipe and only the top crust)

• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• 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 milk. 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. (I also like to decorate the tops - have to use those pricey Pampered Chef tools somewhere!)
  
• Bake in the preheated oven for 30 to 35 minutes (Carol cooked hers for 50 minutes and I made mine as small individuals so was able to use Natalie's timeframe), or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Carol mentions that Natalie mentioned:

• brushing the top of the pie with egg to make it golden brown
  
• making two pies (allowing you to eat one and freeze one for later) "....I just plop the uncooked pie in the freezer and wrap it well in plastic and tin foil. When I am ready to cook it, I just take it from the freezer to the preheated oven and possibly cook it a little longer than I normally would!"