INDIVIDUAL TURKEY POT PIES
About the Recipe
I adore pot pies of all sorts. I think this is partly because I adore crust.
Long ago, I began to eliminate crust problems by skipping the (usually soggy) bottom crust altogether and baking the top crust on a separate cookie sheet to be popped --hot-- on top of the also-hot filling last minute, thus avoiding a not-yet-hot filling cum burnt crust or the opposite. Or bake the crust a couple of days ahead and to serve, reheat for a few minutes in a 350F oven. Or keep a baked crust or two--ready to reheat--in the freezer. You'll just have to keep a frozen crust in the oven a few minutes extra.
This pot pie is my go-to way to use up leftover Thanksgiving turkey. However, leftover chicken or a turkey-chicken combo--or even a store-bought rotisserie chicken work equally well. For something a bit unexpected, smoked chicken or turkey or even ham work well here too.
If you prefer, you can use a large gratin dish and make one big pie instead of individuals.
Individual Turkey Pot Pies
Serves 10-12
Ingredients
1 1/2 recipes The Brown Derby Crust for Pot Pies (below)
3-3 1/2 pounds cooked turkey (dark and/or light meat) cut into bite-size chunks
For the mushrooms:
4-6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 pounds white button mushrooms, wiped clean and thinly sliced
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
For the vegetables:
6 large shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
3 large onions, peeled and diced
5 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
4 large carrots, peeled and cut into thin rounds
3 ribs celery, trimmed and thinly sliced crosswise
Several sprigs fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
One 10-ounce bag frozen pearl onions (thawed)
One 10-ounce bag frozen green peas (thawed)
For the béchamel sauce:
4 cups best quality chicken broth, homemade or using Better than Bouillon
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
1 cup flour
2 cups whole milk
6 tablespoons brandy or sherry or a mixture
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg or to taste
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Freshly squeezed lemon juice to taste
Large pinch cayenne pepper
1/3 cup minced chives and/or fresh parsley
Method
Start the mushrooms: put 4 tablespoons of the butter in a large skillet set over high heat. When melted, add sliced mushrooms, salt and pepper. Add more butter if needed. Cook, stirring frequently, until mushrooms are very tender, about 15 minutes. Add tablespoons of water along the way if too dry. Put the cooked mushrooms on a platter.
Wipe out skillet and add 4 tablespoons of butter. Set over medium –high heat. When the butter has melted, add the onions, garlic, carrots, celery, thyme, salt and pepper. Saute, stirring frequently until the vegetables are soft and beginning to color, about 15-20 minutes. Add pearl onions and peas and cook, stirring, until heated through, about 2 minutes. Add vegetables to the platter.
While the vegetables are cooking, bring the broth to a simmer,. Place the remaining 1 stick of butter in a saucepan—large enough to everything on the platter plus the sauce—over medium heat. When the foaming subsides, add the flour and cook, stirring for two minutes. Whisk in the hot broth vigorously to avoid lumps. Cook 1 minute and then add the milk. Simmer, stirring, until the sauce fully thickens, about 3 minutes. Add the liquor and cook 1 minute more. Season with nutmeg, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and cayenne.
Add everything on the platter to the sauce and cook gently for a couple of minutes till heated through. Don’t boil or the sauce may curdle. Adjust seasonings. Off heat add the fresh herbs. At this point you can continue with the recipe or cool the mixture and refrigerate for up to 2 days before continuing.
Place the pot pie covers on a baking sheet and place in the oven to warm.
Divide chicken mixture among ramekins or pot pie dishes. If the mixture is no longer hot, turn the oven up to 350 and return the filled ramekins to the oven until they are. Cover with the reheated prebaked pastry covers. Serve immediately.
Note: You will need 10-12 ramekins that are approximately 4 inches high and 5 inches across.
Brown Derby Pastry for Covered Pies
Makes enough pastry for 8 individual pot pies
Ingredients
3 cups flour (I like to use 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour ½ cup whole wheat flour)
1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
1 cup (2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
4-6 tablespoons ice water
1 egg yolk whisked together with 1 tablespoon cream
Method
Place the flour and salt together in a food processor and process fifteen seconds to combine. Add the butter and pulse until the butter pieces are the size of small peas.
Add 4 tablespoons ice water all at once through the feed tube, and process until the dough just begins to come together. Do not let it form a ball. If dough is too dry to come together, add more ice water, 1 teaspoon at a time.
Form the dough into a ball and then press into a disk. Place the disk between two pieces of waxed or parchment paper and roll to about a 1/3-inch thickness. Refrigerate for at least an hour.
Using a 5-inch saucer or bowl rim as a template, cut the dough into eight circles. Refrigerate the cut circles for at least 30 minutes, preferably longer or overnight.
When ready to bake, preheat oven to 375 F. Place the circles on 1 or 2 baking sheets, paint them with a bit of egg yolk mixture, and bake until golden, about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Once cool, these pie tops will keep 2-3 days at room temperature.
Note: Well-wrapped, the circles may be frozen for up to two months. They can be baked right from the freezer. If frozen, baking time will be a few minutes longer.