Take that, Banquet! *chicken pot pie recipe*

I buy a pair of whole chickens at Sam's usually once a month.  I can usually buy them for .79 a lb so it's a pretty decent deal.  My mother in law bought me an electric roaster a year or two ago and I use it for a bunch of different things.  I usually roast my chickens in that with my own simple recipe.  I rinse both chickens and pat them dry.  I sprinkle them with sea salt, season all, garlic powder and ground savory or sage.  I had to buy those seasonings for something one time so I use them when I roast chickens.  I also put half an onion on the inside of each chicken and a couple of garlic cloves if I have them on hand.  I like to season my food well, I don't like bland food at all. If you are watching your salt content, simply leave out the sea salt.  I roast the chickens overnight usually on 200-250 depending on when I put them in to when I wake up.  I get up at 6 so if I go to bed at midnight, they get put on 250 for 6 hours.  I also peel carrots (I buy a 5 lb bag of whole carrots at Sam's for usually $2) and put them whole in the bottom of the roaster, as that constitutes as my veggie side!  So that's how I roast my chicken.  Now for my chicken pot pie recipe, use whatever kind of chicken you want but I try to cook in abundance to use for more than one recipe.  For instance, with those two roasted chickens I've made roasted chicken, chicken pot pie, chicken salad, and chicken noodle soup today!



Ok back to the recipe at hand.  I like chicken pot pie.  In college, the banquet or swanson turkey and chicken pot pies were a favorite of mine b/c it was quick and easy. Now that I'm a momma and responsible for feeding my husband and half pint quality nutritious food, well I've had to adjust and I love it. I love to cook and try new things.  I can't ever ever remember my mom making chicken pot pie.  I'm from south Louisiana and we really don't eat that from scratch here.


I've tried a few recipes for chicken pot pie but the one I had last night really took the cake for me.  My only regret was that I used a bag of veggies that had green beans and corn in it and it threw the taste off for me but I loved the base of it. I'm long winded, sorry ya'll!  Here is what it looked like:

Here is my recipe:

2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1.5 cup half and half
3 tablespoons cream cheese (cut into small cubes)
2 cups chicken stock
1 16 oz bag of frozen peas and carrots
1 cup cubed potatoes (preboiled to almost done)
2 cups shredded chicken (if you dont like as much meat, you can reduce this to the amount you   
    prefer)
1 can crescent rolls
Seasonings you prefer-garlic powder, sage, season all, sea salt, cracked pepper, Tony's, paprika, etc


In medium pot, melt butter. Once fully melted, add flour and cook down for 2-3 minutes.  Add cream cheese and melt it completely.  Add in the half and half, all while whisking.  It will get clumpy.  It's ok--the stock will thin it out but remember to continue to wisk.  Let it cook about 2-3 minutes.  Add stock and wisk in completely. Add seasonings according to your taste buds.  Let cook for approx 10 minutes.  Then add shredded chicken and veggies. Preheat the oven to 350 at this point. Cook for about 15 minutes. 

Pour chicken mixture into a square pyrex.  I used  a smaller 3 or 4 quart deep dish.  Remember you have to use just one can of crescent rolls for the topping so you have to have enough dough to fit the dish.    After you pour the mixture, lay each stretched out crescent roll on top of the mixture to cover it completely.

Bake at 350 for 26-30 minutes.

Enjoy!