Dill Chicken Pot Pie Galette: a Pie for Fall

Sunshine and blue skies filled our whole day today and you’d never know that we had a huge downpour of rain yesterday. Our weather gets a little wacky sometimes, which alternating days of hot & dry Santa Ana winds at ninety hot-degrees, followed by a day of downpour rain and then a day of gorgeous light and sky. For those of you who don’t know of our local So-Cal talk, we all call this yo-yo of days: earthquake weather. That’s right. Earthquake: that common phenomenon where the ground starts to shake. Some folks freak out for a few seconds while others just wait for the dangling light fixtures to stop swaying. And then life goes back to normal.

Normal life for us in Southern California means heading to the beach of a doggie-leash-free walk and playing in the water. Yup, we’re spoiled that way. No snow on our end or too many leaves changing colors. We’ll always get some nice beach time and and great low tides this time of year. It’s certainly a trade-off for sure.

surfer at low tide on instagram

So far, there hasn’t been a earthquake following this weeks crazy weather pattern. But one thing is for sure, the weather is getting cooler and we’re craving comfort foods again.

It’s always around this time when the air gets cooler that we dive bellies first into the holiday menu. First, there was pumpkin coffee cake to ring in the new season and now we’re craving chicken pot pie.

Chicken pot pie is always a classic comfort food and regardless of how many times we eat it, there’s always a new variation or idea of what. In Summer, everyone is swimming in fruit and berry pies. Now that Fall has arrived, it doesn’t mean that we have to give up on our pie making. This month, we’ll be making plenty of savory pies, including this totally decadent and satisfying chicken pot pie.

Adapted from our soon-to-be-released cookbook, Bountiful (next week!), this chicken pot pie recipe now has a different pie shell. We made it into a galette, something a little more elegant to celebrate the arrival of Fall. Besides, when the chicken pot pie filling bakes on top of the pie dough, what you have is an amazing base that’s soaked up all the juices from the filing. It’s the best spoon-full of pie dough that you’ll ever eat.

Happy Fall,

diane and todd

Yield: two 10-inch Galettes

Total Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

The is an adaptation from a couple recipes out of our cookbook, Bountiful. It utilizes the filling from our dill chicken pot pie with puff pastry, combined with the super versatile dough used as the crust for several recipes in the book.

2 cups (250g) flour1/2 cup (1 stick / 113g) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces1 teaspoon salt1 egg1/4 cup (60ml) cold waterheavy cream, for brushing crust2 pounds (910g) boneless, skinless chicken (thighs or breasts)Salt and freshly cracked black pepper1/4 cup (60g) unsalted butter, divided4 medium shallots, sliced4 medium cloves garlic, crushed or minced1/2 pound (225g) carrots, cut into 1/2-inch pieces2 cups (330g) fresh corn kernels (from about 2 ears)1/2 cup (120ml) dry white wine2 tablespoons brandy1/4 cup (30g) flour1 cup (240ml) heavy cream, plus more for brushing the pastry1 cup (240ml) chicken stock1 tablespoon grainy mustard1/4 cup (5g) minced dill

Line two baking pans with parchment paper.

In a bowl, pinch together the flour, butter, and salt with your fingertips until most of the big chunks of butter are flattened or broken up.In another bowl, whisk the egg with the ice water until combined. Incorporate the egg mixture into the flour until the mixture binds together and forms a rough ball (you may need to gently knead the ball to incorporate the last of the flour).Divide the ball in two, roll each half into a ball, and then flatten each ball into a disk. Wrap each disk in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375°F.

Rinse the chicken and pat it dry. If the chicken pieces are thick, place them between two sheets of plastic wrap and lightly pound them to 1/2-inch thick. Season the pieces with salt and pepper.In a large sauté pan, melt 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until lightly browned, about 4 minutes on each side. Remove the chicken from the pan and set aside to cool.To the same pan, add 1 tablespoon of the butter, then add the shallots, garlic, carrots, and corn and cook over medium heat until the shallots begin to soften, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the wine and brandy and simmer until the pan is almost dry, 12 to 15 minutes.Add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. When it is melted, stir in the flour. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute, then add the cream and stock. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes.Cut the browned chicken into 1/2-inch pieces and add them to the cream sauce. Add the mustard and dill, then season to taste with salt and pepper.On a floured surface, roll the dough disks out to a circles slightly larger than 10 inches in diameter. Place each disk on a lined sheet pan.Divide the filling mixture between the two dough circles, starting in center and spreading outwards, leaving about 1 1/2 inches of the outer rim of dough uncovered. Fold the edges of the dough over the filling. Brush the crust with heavy cream.Bake for about 35 minutes, or until the crust is golden. Serve warm or at room temperature.

View the original article here