Michael Symon's Chicken Pot Pie!

Thunder, lightening, and pouring rain equal a perfect day for a comforting pot pie!  My favorite Iron Chef has the perfect recipe for mini chicken pot pies that can be found on the Chew.com: http://abc.go.com/shows/the-chew/recipes/mini-chicken-pot-pies-with-michael-symon

An important lesson I learned from making this is, don't wait until 5:00 pm to read the complete directions. I normally just scan them to see what I'll keep, and what I'll chuck, then go about my day before I'm ready to start dinner. This did not go so well for this adventure.

A good pot pie from scratch takes about 2 hours. (damn crust) I set Bridgett, my resident baker and pastry chef, to work on preparing the crust. It wasn't until it had come together that she stopped the mixer and read aloud "wrap crust in plastic wrap and chill for one hour",with that we looked at each other, trying to think of ways to make the chilling process go faster. Bridgett sealed the dough in a freezer bag and tossed on top of a bag of ice in the freezer. "30 min should be fine." We shrugged off out first road bump and I set to work chopping up veggies and herbs.

This was one of the rare times I didn't chuck the recipe... I actually followed it verbatim, okay except for the part where I added  some fresh Tarragon and Curry powder, oh and we made one big pie, instead of small individuals....

I began building the dish, sweating the onions and vegetables, then adding the flour and cream and broth. I was ready to add the chicken when I hit our second road bump: "simmer for 45 min before adding the chicken." It was going to be a long night. So long in fact, that Bridgett heated up some left over clam chowder!

We set the timer and watched Hannibal until it was time to add the last few indigence. When the timer began to chime, Bridgett putted out the now solid dough (do not put it in the freezer) and I added the chicken and adjusted the seasonings. Bridgett rolled out the dough and cut it into disks to strategically cover the top of the pot pie, and we threw the pot in the oven. It would be wise to remember to brush the "crust" with the egg wash before putting the dish in the oven. (third road bump)

Despite a few bumps in the road, this dish was delicious!  Michael's chicken Pot pie is a culinary work of art!  But that opinion could be a bit bias because I have a little crush on this awesome chef and it would be a dream come true to cook with him IN THE SAME KITCHEN!  In fact, if I had my choice, to cook with Michael Symon or have lunch with Bono, I would probably choose to cook with Michael.  And if I had the opportunity to cook a meal for Bono with Michael .... well that would be perfect! Hey, a girl can dream!