Originally published on March 2, 2016
Pot pie of any kind isn’t really exciting. Just ask my kids. We eat it so often around here that it’s definitely not one of those dishes that has them running to the table. Making it a few nights ago, I once again wondered how I could jazz it up a bit, but felt as though I had run out of things to do with it. Cutting the top crust out into cute shapes, done. Using phyllo pastry instead of pie dough, done. But what if I took that same phyllo and instead of putting it on top, left it on the bottom of the pie? Turns out, not only did I get the cutest chicken pot pie possible, but we also had a tasty chip-like crust to eat at the end of it all.
Ingredients:
- 6 sheets of phyllo dough
- 1/2 cup butter, melted, plus more for greasing
- 3 cups roasted chicken, cubed
- 1 large carrot, diced
- 2 stalks celery, diced
- 1 onion, diced
- 2 cloves garlic, sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 4 cups chicken stock
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons dried oregano
- 2 tablespoons dried thyme
- 1 egg, beaten lightly with 1 tablespoon of water
- Salt
- Pepper
Directions:
1.) Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and generously grease a 12-cup muffin tin with butter.
2.) Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, add the diced carrot, celery, onion, and garlic. Stir to coat everything in oil and then saute just until vegetables begin to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the roasted chicken, the oregano, and the thyme. Stir to combine everything.
3.) Add the 2 tablespoons of butter to the skillet and allow to melt. Sprinkle the flour over top and then mix so that everything becomes lightly coated in flour. Allow to cook for 2 minutes.
4.) Slowly whisk in the chicken stock, making sure there are no lumps as you pour in the stock. Bring the entire mixture up to a simmer. Taste, add salt and pepper, and taste again. Adjust seasoning if necessary and turn heat to very low.
5.) Lay out one sheet of phyllo dough, keeping those you’re not using covered to prevent them from drying out. Brush the entire sheet with butter and sprinkle (very lightly) with salt. Lay another sheet on top, brush with butter, and lightly sprinkle with salt. Repeat until all six sheets have been layered on top of one another, and all have been brushed with butter.
6.) The next step is to cut the phyllo dough so that you end up with squares that will fit into the muffin tins. You’ll need 12 squares in total, and there’s a very easy way to do it. Start by cutting the phyllo in half right down the centre. Now you’re left with two big squares of layered phyllo. Cut those two squares right down the centre, and now you’re left with 4 narrow strips. Move your knife to the side of the phyllo dough, and once again, cut straight down the middle. Now you can see squares starting to form. Move to one side of that cut, and cut straight down the middle of the remaining dough on that side. Then move to the other side, and cut straight down the middle of that as well. Now you have 12 squares of phyllo dough!
7.) Gather one square of layered phyllo dough and place it into the muffin tin. Push it down gently to the bottom of the tin and up the sides. Repeat with each remaining phyllo square. (My squares were really big so I had to use every other well, using two muffin tin pans in total so the squares didn’t overlap each other.)
8.) Place the phyllo cups into the oven and bake for 10 minutes until the phyllo is golden brown and crispy along the edges.
9.) Remove phyllo squares from the oven and place on individual plates, or one large platter. Fill with the chicken pot pie filling.
10.) Serve and enjoy!