Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie for #ImprovCooking

Welcome to our first #ImprovCookingChallenge of 2021 - where for the month of January we are given the ingredients of flour and buttermilk to combine in a recipe of our choosing to share with you. Find our group on Facebook if you're interested in joining in the fun; Nicole from Cookaholic Wife hosts our group! 

The options are pretty much always endless, but I have been trying to find more main dish recipes I can share even when given ingredients that make me thing of baked goods... so I found a main dish recipe that incorporated baked goods. Voila! 

This recipe was absolutely delicious - perfect cozy comforting food which is definitely a go to, this time of year with the cooler temperatures and often rainy afternoons around here. A bowl of comfort food always sounds like a good idea. Take that cozy comforting bowl, and tuck it in with some flaky homemade biscuits? And you've just given it a southern kiss on the cheek. 

You can change up the veggies to use what you like best or what you have on hand - have leftover turkey or ham instead of chicken? Use that instead! This is a great base to mix and match with to use up what you already have on hand. If you like cheesy biscuits, blend some grated cheddar or parm into the biscuit mixture! Yumm!

This mixture comes out fairly thin, which allows you to break up the biscuits into it and they sop up the liquid while you're eating - but if you want the mixture to be more "gravy like" and thicker in consistency, you can whisk additional flour in when creating the sauce base.

Come see all the yummy buttermilk and flour recipes we're sharing with you today!

Improv Cooking Challenge: January 2021

Buttermilk and Flour

• Batter Fried Herbed Chicken Wings by Sneha’s Recipe
• Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie by Making Miracles
• Buttermilk Pancakes by Kate’s Recipe Box
• Kodhuma Dosa / Wholewheat Crepes by Magical Ingredients
• Sourdough Buttermilk Biscuits by A Day in the Life on the Farm
• Baked Cinnamon Sugar Donuts By Cookaholic Wife

Biscuit Chicken Pot Pie 

Ingredients

Biscuits:

2 cups flour

1 TBS baking powder

1 TBS sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

6 TBS cold salted butter

3/4 cup buttermilk

Filling:

4 TBS salted butter

1 teaspoon dried thyme

4 carrots, peeled and sliced thinly (about 2 cups)

4 celery stalks, chopped (about 1 cup)

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup white wine (optional)

1 1/2 cups milk

2 cups chicken broth

4 cups shredded chicken*

2 cups (12-oz) frozen peas

1 teaspoon salt, more to taste

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, more to taste

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. In a medium mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt for the biscuits. Whisk to combine. Use a pastry cutter to blend the butter into the flour mixture, until it resembles coarse sand. Stir the buttermilk in with a form until dough comes together. Lightly flour the counter and a rolling pin. Roll out to about 1/2" thick (about shape / size of your dutch oven / pot). Use the envelope folding method to fold it back and forth about 3 times, before rolling out a final time. Cut into 2-3" biscuits (whichever size you want that will fit the pot you're using.)
3. In a 5-quart dutch oven, add the butter and melt. Add the vegetables, and saute about 5 minutes stirring occasionally. Season with a sprinkling of salt, pepper, and the teaspoon of dried thyme. When the vegetables are softening / browning lightly, stir in the flour until it absorbs. Stir in the wine and let it simmer and thicken slightly
4. Slowly whisk in the chicken broth and milk until well blended and creamy (should look like a creamy soup at this point). Add in the teaspoon of salt and half teaspoon black pepper. Bring to a low simmer as you add in the frozen peas and cooked chicken. Stir to combine.
5. Taste and adjust seasonings to your personal preference (more salt, pepper, a splash of lemon juice, more thyme, some rosemary, garlic powder, etc.)
6. Turn the heat off on the stove and arrange the biscuits over the top. Brush biscuits with a little butter or milk before baking for extra browning.
7. Place the pot in the oven and bake 25-30 minutes, until biscuits are golden brown and mixture is bubbling. Allow to cool and set about 10-15 minutes before serving.

* I like to use the crock pot with pickle juice covering the bottom and cook bone in thighs or chicken breasts for about 4 hours on high until the meat is fall apart tender, then use tongs to pull meat off the bone and discard skin / bones if needed. You can do this a day or two in advance and keep the meat in a tupperware in the refrigerator until ready to use. (Pickle juice might sound weird - but it adds great moisture and flavor!)

Recipe adapted from Pinch of Yum