cast iron chicken pot pie

everything tastes better in a cast iron skillet. chicken pot pie (which is pretty good to begin with) is no exception. this is a very easy recipe and i hope it quickly becomes a favorite in your dinner rotations.  


cast iron chicken pot pie
makes 8 servings
working time 25 minutes
total time 1 hour

2 tablespoons butter
1 medium onion, finely chopped
4 carrots, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
2 ribs celery, cut into 1/4 inch thick slices
1 potato, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch cubes
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 (or so)teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons heavy cream
2 cups reduced sodium chicken broth
1 rotisserie chicken (costco & safeway have them), shredded
1 cup frozen peas
1 cup frozen white corn
1 pie crust (i use pillsbury pie crusts)
1 egg, beaten
pinch of kosher salt 

1. preheat oven to 400 degrees. heat butter in a 12 inch cast iron skillet over medium heat. add onion, carrot, celery, potato, and garlic and cook until carrots begin to soften, about 6 minutes. season with salt and pepper.

2. reduce heat to medium-low and stir in flour. cook for 1 minute. stir in heavy cream and chicken broth, using a whisk, until combined. stir in chicken, peas and corn and bring to a boil. remove from heat.

3. gently roll out pie crust until it reaches 12 inches in diameter. cut vents (or a clover!) in the middle of the pastry. place dough a top chicken mixture and pinch over the sides. brush with egg and sprinkle kosher salt evenly on top. transfer skillet to oven; bake until crust is browned and flaky, about 35 minutes.

obviously this pie would really blow minds if it was made with a homemade pie crust and cooked chicken. but for now, this is pretty fine.

marcia's salmon
  

i had this salmon last summer at a bbq and still think about it all the time. it was SO delicious. my friend's mother in law gave me the recipe for her rub but i was a little nervous to make it on my own. i had never prepared salmon before but it is super easy and makes me feel very grown up. ha!

marcia's salmon
salmon (i like atlantic or just the lightest color you can find)
mayonnaise
lemon
johnny's seasoning
red onion (finely chopped)
fresh basil (finely chopped)
grated parmesan cheese 

set oven rack to two levels below broiler. preheat oven to 450 degrees. place salmon on foil on top of baking sheet. spread thin layer of mayonnaise onto salmon. squeeze lemon juice on top. sprinkle johnny's seasoning (less is more). evenly sprinkle red onion, basil and parmesan cheese all over.

turn off oven. turn it on to broil. place salmon in oven for about 14 minutes. check and take salmon out when the center is still a little pink (it will continue to cook once out of the oven). enjoy. 

oscar party 2014

we had our annual oscar party last sunday. and as usual, we dressed up like some of our favorite characters from the nominated movies. from left to right: david and tagg, astronauts from gravity. grace, elsa from frozen. sully, ironman. my dad, captain phillips and my mom, the somali pirate. craig, leonardo dicaprio from wolf of wall street. megan, ELLEN the host. and rachelle, amy adams, taylor, bradley cooper and me, jennifer lawrence, from american hustle. 

the prizes for best costume and most correct ballot. and some of our treats, including megan's delicious oscar statue sugar cookies. 

i had no idea taylor and rachelle were coming as american hustle people. it was quite the ensemble cast! and ellen with her creepy powdered out eyebrows completed the weirdness (and lets not even get started on my mom's costume!...). such a fun night. i love my odd family.