Pot Pie Tarts

Chicken Pot Pie Tarts
Since starting this blog, I’ve had to dig deep for some food inspiration.  But searching for inspiration is a lot easier when it’s right in front of your face asking, “Have you made the pot pie yet, have you made the pot pie yet, etc.” A friend/co-worker of mine has seriously been begging for some chicken pot pie for some time now.  Since I love it when people ask for my cooking, I didn’t mind setting aside time to come up with a recipe.  I decided to use the pop tart as the vehicle for my pie not only for nostalgia reasons (who didn’t have pop tarts as a kid?) but also for the portability.  It was a lot easier for me to wrap up a small pop tart and bring it to work rather than to transport a full pie to my friend.  

The result is this creamy, flaky delight.  You’ll notice that i chose to go with a chicken bouillon cube instead of chicken stock.  I really wanted an intense chicken flavor that only a bouillon cube could provide.    

Chicken Pot Pie Tarts
1 large chicken breast (bone in), 1 garlic clove, 1 tbs olive oil, 1 cup diced carrots, 1 cup frozen peas, 1 cup diced potatoes, ½ cup diced onions, 1 tsp dried rosemary, 3 tbs butter, 3 tbs flour, 2 cups whole milk, 1 cube chicken bouillon, prepackaged frozen pie crust, 1 egg, dash nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste

*1. Boil the chicken until done.  I add carrots, an onion, and a garlic clove to the pot to add some extra flavor to the chicken.  2. Once the chicken is done, let cool for 30 minutes, then shred the chicken with a fork. 3. Parboil the diced potatoes.  You don’t want them fully done as you will cook them in the next few steps. 4. Next, saute garlic in a deep pot with the olive oil until fragrant. 5. Then add the carrots and cook until almost tender.  6. Once tender, add the potatoes, peas, and rosemary. 7. Once mixture is tender, set aside and cool. 8. Now melt the butter in the same deep pot.

*You can use a prepared roasted chicken instead.

Chicken Pot Pie Tarts
9. Once butter is melted add the onions to saute for about 2-3 minutes.10. Next add the flour and cook for at least 5 minutes. This is your roux. 11. After 5 minutes, add your milk but reserve 2 tbs of the milk. 12. Dissolve the bouillon cube in the reserved milk. You may need to microwave the mixture for 30 seconds to get the cube to dissolve. 13. Next, whisk the bouillon mixture into the pot along with a dash of nutmeg, salt and pepper. 14. Continue to whisk until the mixture thickens. 15. Once the mixture seems to stick to your whisk, turn heat off and add shredded chicken and vegetables. 16. Let mixture cool in the refrigerator while you prepare the crusts. 17. Follow the thawing directions on your prepackaged frozen crust. 18. Cut crust into medium sized rectangles, roughly 4x2 inches. You want an even number of squares since you need a top and bottom for the tarts.19.  Put squares on a cookie sheet and refrigerate for 20 minutes.  20. After 20 minutes take crust and chicken mixture out of the refrigerator. 21. Fill each square with 2 spoonfuls of mixture. 22. Prepare an egg wash and line edges of the square with egg wash. 23.  Next place another square on top of the square that is filled with the mixture. 24. Pinch edges with a fork and puncture a few holes at the top of the shell as well. 25. Bake in a 350 degree preheated oven for about 20-25 minutes.

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