February Cont'd: Using Up Stock: Baby Chicken Pot Pies

So I made that roast chicken and it was delish. But I can only eat so much chicken...I put it in sandwiches and on salads but still had extra. I also had a ton of stock and I need to do something with it or freeze it.

Plan #1:
Chicken Pot Pie--uses chicken+stock. Win.

I love chicken pot pie. I always have. Really I love anything with a crust and gravy and this fits the bill perfectly. I'd seen a recipe for baby chicken pot hand pies or little chicken empanada things and figured that might be a good bet since a whole chicken pot pie to myself sounded pretty intense. I'm very glad I went this route because I froze half of the recipe unbaked and it worked beautifully.

Chicken Hand Pies
slightly adapted from sophisitmom

chicken hand pies or chicken pasties

-1 medium potato, peeled and diced
-1 tablespoon olive oil
-1 small onion, finely diced

-2 cloves garlic, minced
-1/2 a bag of frozen peas
-1 carrot, chopped (more if you like them)
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon unbleached all-purpose flour
-2 cups chicken stock (her recipe calls for a bit less)
salt and pepper to taste
-1 1/2-2 cups cooked chicken, shredded
pastry dough (recipe follows)
1 egg, plus a teaspoon of water, beaten

1. Place potatoes in a medium saucepan, cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until potatoes are tender. Drain and set aside.

2. Meanwhile heat a large pan over med-low heat and add in the olive oil, onion, garlic and carrot. Cook until onions are very tender, about 12-15 minutes.

3. Melt butter into the mixture and stir in flour. Let cook for 2 minutes or so, just to let the flour taste cook out. Pour in about half the chicken stock.

4. Add the peas and potatoes. Let simmer a few minutes and taste for flavor. Add salt and pepper if needed.

5. Add in chicken and simmer until heated through. The mixture should be thick, but not too dry. Add more chicken stock until you achieve the desired consistency (I used the 2 cups and maybe a little more).

6. Chill mixture--it's easier to fill the pies--while you make the crust.

pastry dough

-2 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
-1 1/2 teaspoons salt
-1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
-1 stick (112g) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
-1 egg, slightly beaten
-1/3 cup ice water

1. In a food processor fitted with the blade attachment, pulse together the flour, salt, and sugar. Add in the butter, and pulse a few times until the mixture is crumbly. Combine the egg and water in a container (remove all ice pieces). While the processor is running, pour the water/egg mixture in and pulse until mixture just comes together.

2. Pour mixture out onto a floured board and knead a few times to bring all the ingredients together. At this point I like to return it to the fridge or freezer before rolling it to make the butter a little colder.

3. Spray a baking sheet with Pam or some kind of spray-oil. Roll out the pastry dough on a floured board into a big rectangle. Cut in half, and then cut each half in thirds, to make 6 equal smaller rectangles.

4. With a large spoon, spoon a big scoop of the chicken mixture onto one of the rectangles of dough, placing it slightly off center. Fold the dough, encasing the chicken in a little pouch, and seal the edges with a fork. Place on the prepared baking sheet. Stab the top twice with a sharp knife, and brush with the beaten egg and water. Repeat. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

3. Preheat oven to 425 degrees while pasties chill

5. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the pastry is golden brown and puffed.

*Note: I only had half the dough I needed for the amount of filling I had. I used up the dough and then when I made my second batch, I froze them before baking them. When cooking them from frozen, expect to bake them a bit longer. They taste possibly better because the crust gets super flaky.