Chicken/turkey Pot Pie

Our favorite thing to make with leftover chicken or turkey is pot pie.  I have learned how to make it dairy free, for those that are avoiding dairy or those are keeping kosher.  Either way, it's delicious!  We have also made it vegan, using tofu and veggie broth, and it was just ok, but we really prefer our tofu in a stir fry.

Chicken/turkey Pot Pie
Serves 6-8

6 tablespoons unsalted butter (or coconut oil for dairy free/kosher)
1 large onion, diced
1/2 cup celery, diced
2 cups potatoes, diced
1 cup carrots, diced
6 tablespoons flour
2 cups Chicken Stock (you might need a little more for dairy free/kosher)
1 cup milk (We use goat milk.  Skip the milk for dairy free/kosher)
1 cup sweet young peas (optional, sometimes we use green beans, cut into 1 inch segments)
2 cups shredded cooked chicken or turkey

Basic Piecrust
We like Smitten's all butter crust as it comes together in just 5-10 minutes but store bought would be fine too.  If you are making a kosher/dairy free pot pie, then use filo dough.  I like to either scrunch it up and cover the top with the little messy piles of filo OR I like to just crumble it and scatter it.  Drizzle it with coconut oil.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat the butter/oil in a large pot over medium-high heat. Add the onions, celery, carrots, and potatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, for 12-20 minutes until the veggies are almost cooked. Stir in the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the chicken stock a little at a time, letting it thicken a little before adding more. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the sauce is thick (if it's not already). Stir in the milk and continue to cook for another 4 minutes. Stir in peas or beans (any already cooked veggie), and chicken/turkey, and mix well.

Roll out one of a pie crusts and line it in your deep dish pie plate or a 9 x 9 x 2-inch baking pan (for dairy free/kosher you will skip the bottom crust, see the note above about techniques for the filo dough).  Pour the filling into the prepared pan. Roll a second crust and either place it on top of the filling and cut vents OR make a lattice top.  Tuck the edges into the pan, forming a thick edge and crimp the edges. Put the pie on top of a baking sheet and bake until the crust is golden brown and crusty, 35-45 minutes (mine always takes longer). Let cool for 5 minutes before slicing to serve.

Notes from/for Becky:

My great friend Becky likes to treat it like a soup and adds in a little "better than bouillon", quite a bit of fresh garlic, some dried thyme, basil, and herbes de Provence.

Sweet and Sour Chicken

This is a family recipe that when served with rice and broccoli instantly transports me back to my childhood in NY.  It's one of those easy to make, easy to love recipes that you wonder why you dont make it more often.

Note: the recipe below starts with raw chicken, but if you have just made chicken broth with chicken parts, then you can use the cooked chicken here.  I drastically reduce the cooking time when I do that.  I also dont let the chicken cook all day in the broth.  It should be cooked but not falling off the bone yet (that comes from the time in the oven).

Sweet and Sour Chicken
serves 4

1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup vinegar, white is fine
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon black pepper or to taste
2-3 pounds of chicken parts, cut up
one can of pineapple, drained.

Preheat oven to 425.

In a small saucepan, mix cornstarch with a tablespoon of water.  Add in sugar, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic, ginger, and pepper.  Cook and stir over medium heat till thick and bubbly.

Put chicken in a large baking dish in a single layer.  Brush with glaze.  Bake for 30 minutes, brushing with glaze every 10 minutes.  Turn chicken, brush again.  Bake for another 20 minutes, brushing occasionally with glaze.  Top with pineapple, bake another 10 minutes.

Serve warm or hot.

Grilled cumin wings

These wings were so good that even when my daughter was sick with no appetite, SHE ate a few!  They are simple to make and so delicious to eat!  I didnt make them spicy, but you could add in a teaspoon or two of red pepper flakes to the sauce for a nice kick.  The original recipe is from Serious Eats, check it out here, I barely modified it all (mostly just skipping a few bowls and the spice).

Spicy Cumin Wings
Serves 4-6

For the Chicken:
2 tablespoons ground cumin
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
3 pounds chicken wings

For the Sauce:
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup dry sherry (or sub in Mirin)
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil


For the chicken: Place wings in a large bowl and sprinkle with cumin, baking powder, and salt, tossing to coat evenly.  Cover and let sit in fridge for up to 8 hours.

To make the sauce: Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium heat. Add in garlic, cook about 30 seconds. Stir in soy sauce, sherry, vinegar, and sesame oil. Bring to a boil and let simmer until sauce has thickened into a thin glaze, about 10 minutes. Set sauce aside.

Grill on cool side of the grill until skins are crisp and are starting to brown, about 40 minutes. If wings have not browned, transfer to hot side of grill and cook until browned, 30-60 seconds per side; move wings back to cool side of grill. Mix cooked wings in a large bowl with glaze. Serve immediately.

Crockpot Moroccan Chicken

This is my attempt at converting our favorite Moroccan Chicken recipe (as seen before on this site) for the crockpot. Our Fridays are busy and getting dinner ready is often a rush, so I'm giving this a try tomorrow. I'll let you know how it goes!

UPDATE:  We loved it.  It's insanely easy and oh so delicious!

Moroccan Chicken, modified for the crockpot

2 teaspoons cinnamon 

2 teaspoons cumin 

2 teaspoons coriander 

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper 

1-2 lbs chicken on the bone (I used 2 organic packs from Costco)

2 tablespoons olive oil 

1 medium yellow onion, chopped 

1 teaspoon grated ginger root 

3 garlic cloves, crushed 

3 cups fat-free low-sodium chicken broth (enough to cover the chicken)

2 cups canned chopped no-salt-added whole tomatoes 

2 cups canned chick-peas, rinsed 

3/4 cup pitted kalamata olive, halved 

1/2 cup raisins 

2 tablespoons honey 

1 bay leaf 

1 tablespoon cinnamon

Add first set of ingredients to crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. 

Add the second set of ingredients. Cook another 30 mins. Serve with whole-wheat pitas and/or cous cous.

Charlie's Peanut Pasta (aka Cold Sesame Chicken/Tofu with Pasta)

A little friend of ours just LOVES peanut pasta, so I make it for Charlie whenever he's here (and it doesnt seem to matter if it's lunch, dinner, or snack).  He's a pretty awesome kid and I love kids that eat what I like to cook.

The kids like it best with chunked up cukes and chicken plus a ton of sesame seeds.  I love it with tofu.  It works fine without anything for a quick and easy side dish.  It's great for a picnic too, since it can be served room temp and it wont spoil like many mayo based pasta salads.

Charlie's Peanut Pasta (aka Cold Sesame Chicken/Tofu with Pasta)

(serves 6-8, great for leftovers)

source unknown

1 lb spaghetti, cooked (whole wheat works great here)

In food processor, mix together:

6 cloves of garlic (or less if you're serving picky little guys)

2T red wine vinegar (cider vinegar works here too)

1-2T brown sugar (or a splash of maple syrup, we like it barely sweetened)

3/4 cup peanut butter (I use natural, unsweetened)

1/2 cup soy sauce

3/4 cup sesame oil

5-6T hot chili oil (I skip this most times)

Mix sauce with pasta.  Serve room temp or cold with options below.

Add in any optional ingredients, JUST before serving:

4 chicken  breasts, cooked, shredded/diced

1 package tofu, fried/baked

Broccoli, diced and cooked

Cucumber, diced

Scallions

Sesame seeds

Chicken Fingers

I make the chicken from Smitten's Milanese Chicken quite often.  The kids love it.  It's great over any salad and it's easy to make BUT it uses eggs.  Our hens went on strike, so I needed a new recipe.  Enter Ree with her chicken strips...

Chicken Fingers
(ever so slightly edited, original recipe by The Pioneer Woman)
MIGHT feed a family of 4, but you'll be fighting for the last crispy bits.

1 pound chicken breasts
 Buttermilk/milk
1-1/2 cup Flour (50-50 blend of white and whole wheat worked for us)
2 teaspoons (to 3 Teaspoons) Lawry's Seasoning Salt (or Spices Of Your Choosing)
 Vegetable Oil-Coconut Oil blend

Cut your chicken in strips or fingers.  In a bowl submerge the chicken strips in buttermilk for 15 to 20 minutes (or longer, 4 hours for me).
In another bowl combine about 1 ½ cups flour and 2 to 3 teaspoons of Lawry’s Seasoning Salt (or other seasonings if you prefer). Mix this together well. Next, add about ¼ to ½ cup of buttermilk into the flour mixture and stir lightly with a fork as you add it.  It makes for a lumpy mixture.
Heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil-coconut oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
Remove a few of the buttermilk-soaked strips and place them in the flour mixture, turning them over to coat them thoroughly with lumps and bumps.  Cook strips in a hot pan a few minutes a side.
When golden and crispy, remove them to a paper towel-lined plate.  Keep warm in the oven.

Serve with your favorite dipping sauce or over salad. Yum!

Mongolian-ish Stir Fry

This is so simple and so good.  We mostly make it with tofu but I really want to make it with chicken and shrimp, since the kids still arent thrilled about tofu.

update: We made it with chicken and shrimp tonight and everyone was happy!

Eliza's Mongolian-ish Stir-fry
Serves 4 adults

1 block extra firm tofu, pressed and cubed*
2 teaspoons oil for frying
carrots, cut into matchsticks
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated (I've made it without it, but it's so good with it)
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
splash of maple syrup
green beans, defrosted and cut into bite size pieces
1 scallion chopped (I didnt have, it's a garnish)
fresh lime juice (I always forget it)

Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the tofu and carrots to the hot skillet and cook until browned on all sides.
While the tofu is cooking, combine the ginger, garlic, soy sauce, sesame vinegar, and maple. Mix well.
When tofu has browned, add the sauce and green beans, stir until sauce thickens.
Serve with brown rice, rice (our favorite!) or soba noodles, and garnish with green onion and a squeeze of lime.

*After trying many different techniques, I finally found one that works best for pressing tofu.  I wrap it whole in 3 paper towels (I'm going to try a dish towel next!) and place it on a cookie cooling rack under a cast iron pan for hours.  I like to start pressing it over lunch for dinner.  After it's pressed, I cube it.

Moroccan Chicken

We LOVE this dish (it's not quite a stew).  It cooks in one pot and smells so good as it simmers.  The picky eaters can pick out what they dont like.  The negative - NO leftovers.  Ever.  I always forget to double it.  Next time...

Update: I'm testing out a crockpot version, check that out here.

Moroccan Chicken 1 pot meal

(unknown source)

DOUBLE IT! Makes a light meal for 5 adults with salad

2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons coriander
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/3 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 teaspoon grated ginger root
3 garlic cloves, crushed
1 cup fat-free low-sodium chicken broth
2 cups canned chopped no-salt-added whole tomatoes
2 cups canned chick-peas, rinsed
3/4 cup pitted kalamata olive, halved
1/2 cup raisins
2 tablespoons honey
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1/2 lemon, seeded, cut into 4 wedges

In a shallow bowl, combine 2 tsp cinnamon, cumin and coriander, plus cayenne pepper and salt. Dredge chicken in spices.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add chicken; sauté until browned, turning once. Remove chicken.

Add onion to skillet, sauté 3 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and broth; sauté 5 minutes.

Add all remaining ingredients and the chicken. Cover and simmer 30 minutes. Serve in bowls with whole-wheat pitas and/or cous cous.

Chicken Finger style chicken

This is yet another Smitten Kitchen recipe (see a pattern?  I love Smitten).  We've only made the chicken from this recipe.  I serve it with ketchup for the kids, like chicken fingers and over lettuce for the adults.  It's super easy, moist, flavorful... fun!

Check out Smitten's recipe here or follow the recipe for the chicken below.

Chicken fingers
almost imperceptibly modified from Smitten
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 eggs, beaten with 1 tablespoon of water or milk (or whey!)
1 1/2 cups panko bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated pamesan
4 small organic chicken breasts, butterflied and lightly pounded/flattened (not tenderized; a good organic chicken breast will already be tender) to 1/4-inch thick*
Kosher salt and pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil, for frying

Set up a standard breading procedure in three wide deep plates. Fill one with flour, one with the beaten eggs, and one with the panko and grated cheese. Season the chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Take each piece of chicken through the breading procedure: dredge lightly in the flour, then the egg wash and then through the bread crumbs. Lay the breaded chicken on a sheet tray (or just use the flour dish) and refrigerate for at least one hour. [Do ahead: You could even prep these the night before, to save time. Cover them loosely with plastic wrap in the fridge.]

Pour olive oil into a large saute pan.  Bring to a medium-high heat. Test the oil by flicking flour or bread crumbs into the oil. If it doesn’t sizzle, wait! When the oil is hot, test it again by dipping the edge of a piece of chicken into the oil, the oil should gently sizzle. Cook the chicken in the oil in batches on both sides until it is a lovely golden brown color and is crispy, about four to five minutes on the first side and three to four minutes on the second. Do not crowd the pan or the chicken will become very greasy and soggy. When the chicken comes out of the oil lay it on paper towels to drain off the excess oil and sprinkle with salt. [Do ahead: You can keep the chicken in a low oven to keep it warm while the rest of the chicken is cooking. I did this to hold it until we were ready to eat.]

Lime and Coconut Chicken

We all loved this chicken!  The recipe says to marinate for no longer than 2 hours, but I found that 5 hours was fine.  It's recommended that you double the marinade/sauce but I did not, and it was amazing.  And of course, I did not have cilantro.    It would be great with it, but it's still great without it. I measured the coconut milk but just eye-balled everything else.

With the extra coconut milk, I made this pudding for an afterschool treat.  It was pretty awesome.

You can check out the original recipe here or my ever so slightly modified version below.

Lime & Coconut Chicken
Serves 6

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts
3 tbsp oil
zest of 1 lime or lime juice
1 tsp ground cumin
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
2 tbsp sugar
2 tsp curry powder
1/2 cup coconut milk
pinch cayenne (optional)
1 small fresh hot chili, such as Thai or Serrano, minced (optional)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
Fresh limes, cut into wedges (optional)

Slice chicken thin.
Mix all remaining ingredients except fresh cilantro and limes in large bowl.
Add chicken to marinade and chill in the refrigerator for two hours, more or less.
If you've doubled the sauce, pour the marinade into a small saucepan and bring to a rolling boil. Boil continuously for at least 2 minutes, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t burn.
In a heavy skillet or grill pan, heat a splash of oil over high heat.
Cook the chicken in batches to prevent over crowding the pan.
Place cooked breasts on a plate in a warm oven or under foil while cooking the remaining chicken.
Sprinkle with fresh lime juice and cilantro (optional). Serve with sauce on the side (if you've doubled it).