Chicken Pot Pie

This spring is the wettest on record in Michigan.  The damp coolness has led to multiple cravings of comfort food.  I bought the ingredients for Chicken Pot Pie and then ended up making it for a friend who had just had a little boy!  Here's the recipe. . .

Ingredients

• 1 pound skinless, boneless chicken breast halves - cubed
• 1 cup sliced carrots
• 1 cup frozen green peas
• 1/2 cup frozen corn
• 2/3 cup butter
• 1/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
•  3 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1 1/3 cup milk
• 2 (9 inch) unbaked pie crusts

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (220 degrees C.)
2. In a saucepan, combine chicken, carrots, peas, and celery. Add water to cover and boil for 15 minutes. Remove from heat, drain and set aside. 
3. Place pastry in pie pan and bake for 5 minutes.
4. In the saucepan over medium heat, cook onions in butter until soft and translucent. Stir in flour, salt and pepper. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk. Simmer over medium-low heat until thick. Remove from heat and set aside.
5. Place the chicken mixture in bottom pie crust. Pour hot liquid mixture over (some will be left over). Cover with top crust, seal edges, and cut away excess dough. Make several small slits in the top to allow steam to escape.
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 45-50 minutes, or until pastry is golden brown and filling is bubbly. Cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Note: I took the leftover chicken and pan fried it in olive oil and a little bit of salt and pepper (5 minutes per side).  Then I heated up the extra sauce and made some rice and vegetables.  I layered everything and had an unofficial casserole for dinner the next night!

S'mores Bars

In April our fundraising dinner (Dine and Sign) had a camping theme.  In the church basement we had a tent with a cooler, lanterns and heater set up with a bunch of trees set up behind it.  We served  brats, hotdogs, baked beans, chips and potato salad.  Campfires were going on outside and people had the opportunity to pull up  a lawnchair and make their own s'mores or they could enjoy a cup of dirt, a campfire bar or a s'mores bar.  Here is the recipe for the s'mores bars. . .they were a hit!                      

Ingredients

1 cup butter, melted
1/3 cup white sugar
3 cups graham cracker crumbs
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips
3 cups miniature marshmallows

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish.
In a medium bowl, combine butter, sugar and graham cracker crumbs until well coated. 
Press half of crumb mixture into the bottom of the prepared pan and bake for 5 minutes. 
Top with the chocolate chips, then the marshmallows. 
Sprinkle the remaining graham cracker mixture over the marshmallows and press down with a spatula.
Bake in preheated oven 8-10 minutes, until marshmallows are melted and a little browned. 
Cool completely before cutting into squares.

Cheesy Potatoes

Cheesy potatoes are one of those dishes that I wish I had known about my entire life.  I didn't have them until I moved to Michigan for college.  I love cheese and potatoes so this creamy and hearty and very easy dish is a winner in my book.  You can bake this in a 9x13 pan at 350 for an hour or you can put it in the crock pot for 4-5 hours.  Either is great and very easy.

1- 2 lb frozen hash browns  (I prefer the southern style that are cubed potatoes but you can use the shredded)
16 oz sour cream
10 oz shredded cheddar
4 oz Monterey jack cheese
1 stick or 1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup chopped onions
1 can cream of chicken soup

Directions

Mix all ingredients in big bowl. Save part of cheddar to sprinkle on top.
Cook in slow cooker about 4-5 hours on low. Then sprinkle remaining cheese on top.