Pot Pie Perfection

I made up my own pot pie recipe tonight, based on church Miss L's own recipe and my own changes. I liked it; the kids didn't, but I think they were in a mood. I like it almost as well as those Swanson individual pot pies, you know, the ones in their own foil containers. My mom always served those to us by turning them out upside down. For me, that's the quintessential childhood pot pie. But mine is a pretty darned good adult version.

My Pot Pie

2 refrigerated pie crusts, at room temperature
appx. 3 potatoes, diced
appx. 4 carrots, diced
appx. 4 stalks of celery, diced
1 can corn kernels
1 cup green peas, frozen
4 tablespoons flour
3 tablespoons oil
4-5cups stock (I used vegetable)
salt and pepper

Boil potatoes in salted water for 10-15 minutes, until just tender. Meanwhile, boil carrots, celery, and corn in vegetable stock. When potatoes are just tender, add them to carrots, etc. Also add frozen peas (no need to defrost or cook ahead of time because they'll just get mushy. I only heat the corn ahead of time to drop the canned flavor and sweeten the broth). Simmer.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Then make a roux with flour and oil. When roux is done (i.e. brown but not burnt--if it burns, toss it out and start roux again. You can't get rid of that bitter burnt roux taste), add approximately 4-5 cups stock from vegetable pot. Allow to boil; the "gravy" will be thick. Drain the vegetables and then add them to "gravy." Salt and pepper to taste.

Spray inside of 9" pie plate with cooking spray. Roll out and lay down bottom pie crust. Fill with vegetables and "gravy." Top with remaining pie crust. Vent. Put pie plate on cookie sheet to prevent spillover. Bake for approximately 1 hour or until crust is brown and filling is bubbly.

Notes: You can, of course, add chicken or other vegetables. Miss L sprinkles her crust with nutmeg, which is good but makes me hunger for a fruit pie instead. And I imagine you could add cheese to that vegetable "gravy" for added flavor. Or you could add herbs, but since the kiddos don't like flecks of things in their food, I didn't add any. Next time I'll add some minced garlic to the vegetables. Mama suggests a splash of Worchestershire sauce. Miss L also purees some of her vegetables to thicken her "gravy." She uses the bag of frozen vegetables (squash, zucchini, carrots, cauliflower, broccoli) from the warehouse store as the mainstay of her pot pie.

J