Monday Munchies

OK!!  I'm finally getting around to putting up the turkey/ chicken pot pie recipe I promised ya'll.  Now, in looking back at what recipe I used for this I realized that I substituted and/ or improvised quite a lot, so I'm just gonna give you the basics here.  You can use whatever mixture of veggies you prefer and whatever meat you prefer really.  The only thing set in this recipe is the size, the crust and the broth.

Now, I took the leftover turkey and diced it up so I had probably 5-6 cups of meat or so.  You could use a whole fryer size chicken if you want.  Bake or boil it and debone.  My turkey was already baked so I chopped it up (about 1x.5 inch chunks) and set aside.  I took the bones and giblets and made my own broth.  Remove the bones etc. and strain if you want and then pour back into the pot.  I used a combination of potatoes, carrots, onions and mushrooms that I had diced.  It probably was about 5-6 cups of veggies also.  Add these to the broth and simmer for about 15 minutes.  Drain veggies and reserve at least one quart of broth.  Set both aside.

While your veggies are simmering, mix 3 3/4 cups of all-purpose flour and 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt.  Cut in 1 1/4 cups shortening until mixture resembles coarse meal.  This seemed like a lot of shortening to me but it comes out really yummy!  Stir in enough ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, to moisten dry ingredients and you can work it into a ball.  Cut off 2/3 of dough and chill remaining 1/3.  Roll the 2/3 of dough into a 16x12" rectangle, or there abouts, and fit into the bottom and sides of a 13x9x2 inch baking pan.  Set aside.

Melt 1/4 cup butter in a heavy bottomed sauce pan on low heat.  Add 1/2 cup flour, stirring until smooth.  Cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.  Gradually add broth, cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thick and bubbly.  Stir in 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and whatever other spices you might like.  (I usually add a little parsley, paprika and some garlic).  Add diced meat and veggies to this, mix well and pour into pastry-lined pan.

Roll remaining chilled pastry into a 14x10 inch rectangle and layover pie, folding edges under.  Cut several slits in dough for steam to escape.  You can also brush with melted butter if you like.  Bake 400 degrees F. for 30 to 35 minutes.

Add a simple salad with it and it goes further.  Any veggies work really; you can also use broccoli, celery, peas, green beans, rutabaga, whatever!
The main part that I would consistently hold to is the amount of broth, (I hate a dry pot pie and this one was yummy juicy but not overly runny) and the pastry proportions.  The crust was wonderfully tender and flaky.  I also use a non-hydrogenated, organic vegetable shortening but that's up to you.

If you try this recipe please let me know how you like it and what improvements you might add.  Enjoy!!