Happy Pi Day!

Well, it's 3/14, and you know what that means...it's Pi(e) Day!  So, it is the perfect time to share with you a recipe a tried recently, which had great results. 

This ain't your momma's chicken pot pie...but at the same time, it is.  It has all the comfort of a classic pot pie, but is fortified with awesomely nutritious ingredients like butternut squash and kale, which coincidentally, also make it even more delicious.  And the best part - this is a one-dish meal.

I spotted this gem of a recipe on Bon Appetit's website when they were sharing 8 flaky filled treats in light of the recent recall of Hot Pockets. (gasp!)  Seriously, if you're over the age of 20, there is no reason you need a Hot Pocket.  Even if you're under 20, you still don't need them...but, I digress.  I realized I had everything on hand to make the dish, and in fact, needed to use up some items that were about to wear out their welcome in the freezer.

I took about a hundred photos of this dish, but just wasn't happy with them.  Some were taken with my phone, others with my Canon, but I just couldn't get the framing of the shot right, and I was working with horrible light.  It was about 6:30 at night, prior to the switch to daylight savings time, so there was zero natural light to speak of, and only my recessed lighting over the countertop.  I Photoshopped to the best of my ability and used some fun actions I found on Pioneer Woman.  I think the actions would be awesome for quick adjustments to portraits.  My photos of the finished pie do not do it justice.  It was good.  All creamy and luscious on the bottom and then all flaky crisp on top...totally scrumptious!  I think some of the best photos came when I was cooking, when all of the great colors of the produce I was using could really show through.

All Hail Kale!

All of the filling ingredients simmering away
before I added the shredded chicken.

Another note is that the cast iron skillet I have is big one, at 12 inches.  The recipe is better suited for an 8 inch skillet as the recipe originally stated.  I think a 10 inch would work just fine too though.  If I had used a smaller skillet, the pastry would have covered the entire pan, which would have made for a lovelier finished product.  It sure did taste good though!

Skillet Chicken Pot Pie with Butternut Squash
Slightly adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 c. frozen white pearl onions, thawed
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 tsp. dried sage
1 small bunch kale, removed from stems, chopped
1/4 c. flour
3 c. chicken stock
1 1/2 c. butternut squash (about 1/2 of a small squash), peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 c. cooked chicken (about 1/2 a rotisserie bird), torn into bite-size pieces
1 sheet frozen puff pastry (such as Pepperidge Farm), thawed
1 large egg
Sea Salt
Black Pepper

Method:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 

Heat olive oil in a cast-iron skillet (preferably 8 to 10 inches in diameter) over medium-high heat.  Add onions and cook a few minutes, stirring occasionally, until they start to brown.  Reduce heat to medium-low and add garlic and sage to the skillet.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until garlic is fragrant and beginning to brown, which should take only a couple of minutes.

Add the kale and season with a generous pinch of sea salt and black pepper.  Cook, stirring often, until the kale is wilted, about 5 minutes.  Sprinkle the flour over the top, and cook, stirring constantly for 4 minutes.

Stir in the chicken stock, about a 1/2 cup at a time, then add the squash.  Bring the whole thing to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the squash is just softened and the broth has thickened, which should take about 10 minutes.  Add the chicken to the skillet, then season to taste with more sea salt and black pepper.

Unfold the pastry dough and smooth out any creases to the best of your ability (I just couldn't get my creases to go away).  Place the pastry over the skillet, allowing the corners to hang over the sides.  Whisk egg and a splash of water in a small bowl or cup.  Brush the top of the pastry with the egg wash and cut a few steam slits in the top to vent the pie.

Bake the pot pie until the pastry is beginning to brown, about 15 minutes.  Reduce the oven temperature to 375 degrees F and bake until the pastry is deep golden brown and crispy, another 15 minutes.  Let the pot pie cool for 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy your Pi(e)!

Italian Sausage and Tortellini Soup

Is this winter ever going to end?  Winter sports fanatics - you know, the outdoorsy type - must be happy, because we have had a steady snowfall this year.  Even if it is just a dusting, it has definitely been consistent.  Commuting has been great!  Do you sense the sarcasm?  I am hoping that there are people enjoying the weather, but it isn’t really “my thing.”  Especially the temperatures.  I cannot recall a winter that has been as consistently frigid as this one.  All the cold makes me want to do is curl up with a blanket, a book and some hot soup.

When I spotted the photo and recipe for Italian Sausage and Tortellini soup on Two Peas & Their Pod, it begged me to make it.  I had seen some other tortellini soups recently on Pinterest and other blogs, but this one jumped out at me.  I think it may have been the styling.  The soup contrasted nicely with the white crock-style bowl placed on a rustic wooden table.  Perfectly placed meatballs and tortellini peeked through a sea of broth loaded with good-for-you vegetables.  It looked delicious...so I put it on my menu list for the week and went shopping.

I picked up bulk Italian sausage from Sendik’s Towne Center in Brookfield, rolled into small balls and browned them in my trusty Le Creuset French oven.  I removed them with a slotted spoon and put them on paper towels to soak up some of the oil.

I added chopped onion to the rendered fat, sauteing for a few minutes, then added chopped red bell pepper, and finally, minced garlic.  After that cooked for a couple of minutes, I deglazed the pan with a little white wine, then added a bay leaf, red pepper flakes and some Italian seasoning (my go-to is the Little Italy blend from The Spice House), stirring it all around for a couple of minutes.  I then added a can of stewed tomatoes and broke them up with a potato masher (actually with a Pampered Chef Mix ‘n Masher, which is works even better).  Then I stirred in chicken stock and brought the whole thing to a boil.  I turned the heat down a bit, threw in some chopped kale and stirred it around until it was wilted.

Finally, I tossed in a couple of cups of cheese tortellini (I used Buitoni Mixed Cheese Tortellini) and piled my meatballs back into the pot.  Then I let it simmer until the tortellini were cooked through.  At the very end, I stirred in some chopped fresh basil along with some salt and pepper. 

It was a tasty and simple one-pot meal that was totally filling and the perfect warm-me-up.

I say this is a simple meal because the ingredients list isn’t very long and it doesn’t involve any complicated steps that a novice wouldn’t know how to accomplish.  However, after about 15 minutes into my ingredient gathering, rolling, chopping and mincing, Aaron shouted from the living room that he thought it seemed like a lot of work for soup.  I disagree, but maybe I just wasn’t as hungry as he was at the moment.

This soup was even better the next day (I think that is some kind of rule for soups).

Italian Sausage & Tortellini Soup (printable recipe)
Slightly adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod

Ingredients:
1½ lbs. bulk Italian sausage
1 tsp. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
1 large red bell pepper, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ c. white wine
1 bay leaf
Pinch red pepper flakes
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 (15 ounce) can stewed tomatoes
8 c. chicken stock
3 c. kale, chopped
2½  c. tortellini (fresh or frozen)
¼ c. fresh basil, chopped

Method:
Roll Italian sausage into half inch balls.  Heat 1 tsp. olive oil in a dutch oven or soup pot over medium-high heat.  Add meatballs and brown them on all sides until cooked through, about 5-10 minutes.  Remove meatballs to paper-towel lined plate and set aside.

To your now empty pot (which should have some fat from the meatballs),  add the onion, and saute for a couple of minutes, then add the red bell pepper.  Cook a couple minutes more, then add the garlic.  Stir and cook for 2 more minutes or until the onions are starting to brown and peppers are soft.  Add white wine and scrap up any brown bits on the bottom of the pan.  Add bay leaf, red pepper flakes and Italian seasoning.
Add the stewed tomatoes, breaking them up with a spoon or masher.  Stir in the chicken stock and bring the whole thing to a boil.

Reduce the heat to a simmer, then add the kale.  Stir it around and let it wilt a little bit.  Add the tortellini to the pot, along with the reserved meatballs.  Let simmer until the pasta is cooked through and the meatballs are re-heated.

Remove the bay leaf, stir in the basil, and season with salt and pepper.  Enjoy!

Note:  While I thought the soup was great as-is, there are a couple of modifications I would make on the next go-round.  As much as I thought I would love the meatballs in this soup, they didn’t disperse evenly enough throughout the soup, so I counted how many were in each bowl to make sure I was being “fair” when serving.  When I looked back at the recipe, I realized that it said to roll the sausage into ¼ teaspoon size balls.  If I had done that, I would have been rolling tiny meatballs all day!  Next time, I think I’ll just brown the sausage, breaking it up into little crumbles instead and save myself a couple of minutes.  On the topic of sausage, I also wasn’t crazy about the bulk Italian I used.  It had a touch too much fennel for my taste.  Next time, I will either swap it out for a different brand, or modify the entire soup recipe to incorporate elements from my grandmother’s meatball recipe that I love.  I also think that instead of the fresh red bell pepper, I will use roasted red pepper to give the soup a tad more flavor.  I might even get crazy and puree the roasted red pepper and add it in with the tomatoes for a richer, thicker broth.  Overall though, this recipe was hearty and tasty as-is.

I suggest you give this recipe a try, with or without my suggested modifications, and let me know what you think.

Now tell me…What is your favorite soup to help get you through winter?