Buffalo Chicken Pot Pie from Rachel Ray

Buffalo Chicken Pot Pie

Serves 6

Submitted by Rachael Ray
Yum-o! Family-Friendly on 10/03/07

Ingredients

• 3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2-1 3/4 pounds), chopped into bite-size pieces
• 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil (EVOO), divided
• 1 large onion, chopped into bite-size pieces
• 2 carrots, peeled and chopped into bite-size pieces
• 3 stalks celery, chopped into bite-size pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, grated
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 2 1/2 cups chicken stock*
• 1/4 cup hot sauce (add more if you want more of a kick!)**
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 boxes cornbread mix, such as Jiffy brand
• 2 eggs
• 2/3 cup milk
• 1 cup crumbled blue cheese***

Preparation

Pre-heat the oven to 375º F.

Heat 2 tablespoons of EVOO in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chopped chicken chunks and sauté them on both sides until golden brown. Remove the chicken chunks from skillet and reserve on a plate.

Add another 2 tablespoons of EVOO and the onion, carrot, celery and garlic to the same skillet and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, 5-6 minutes.

While the veggies are cooking, start the sauce: in a medium size saucepan, melt the butter over medium-high heat, then stir in the flour and cook until light brown, about 1 minute. Whisk the chicken stock and hot sauce into the butter-flour mixture and bring it to a boil. Simmer the gravy until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste.

Return the reserved chicken chunks to the skillet with the cooked vegetables and add the gravy, stirring to combine. Transfer everything to a 9-inch x 11-inch casserole dish and set aside while you prepare the topping.

In a medium-size mixing bowl, prepare the cornbread batter according to package directions. Stir the blue cheese crumbles into the cornbread mixture and drop spoonfuls of the batter onto the top of the casserole, covering it completely.

Bake the pot pie until the cornbread is baked through and the filling is hot, 20-30 minutes.

* I found that this recipe didn't make much gravy so next time instead of 2 1/2 cups chicken stock, will try between 2 3/4 cup and 3 full cups of stock.

***I did not use blue cheese in cornbread mix and did not substitute anything - just made the cornbread straight up following package directions

**Also, I like it spicy so instead of 1/4 cup hot sauce I used 1/3 cup and I found it to have just the right amount of spice but not did not have an over powering buffalo chicken flavor. Any less and I think the flavor may have been lost. And instead of regular hot sauce I used Franks Red Hot Wing Sauce.I will be making this again. I *loved* it. The hubby liked it but isn't a fan of pot pie or casserole type dishes. He says he will eat it again but it's not necessarily going on his request list.

Turkey Chili from Bob Green

Turkey Chili
from Bob Green's Best Life Diet cookbook

serves 4*

Vegetable oil cooking spray 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 large onion, chopped 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin

3 cloves garlic, minced 1 bay leaf

1 pound ground turkey 2 tablespoons chili powder

3 cups water Heaping 1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups choppped fresh tomatoes, or 1 1/2 cups canned no-salt-added
canned no-salt-added tomatoes kidney beans, drained & rinsed

1 sweet pepper, seeded & finely chopped 2 tablespoons chopped red onion

1 stalk celery, chopped 2 tablespoons shredded low-fat cheddar cheese

1. Lightly spritz a large heavy-bottomed stockpot with cooking spray. Heat over medium heat.

2. Add the onion and garlic and cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes, stirring regularly.

3. Add the turkey and cook until brown, about 10 minutes, stirring regularly.

4. Add the water, tomatoes, pepper, celery, cayenne, cumin, bay leaf, chili powder, and salt; stir and bring to a boil.

5. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.

6. Add the beans and continue to cook until the beans are hot, about 5 minutes. Remove the bay leaf before serving.

7. Divide the chili evenly into 4 bowls. Top each with 1/2 tablespoon red onion and 1/2 tablespoon cheddar. Serve.

PREP TIME: 20 minutes TOTAL TIME: 1 hour 20 minutes

PER SERVING (approx.):

calories 367 total fat 17 g

protein 29 g saturated fat 4 g

carbs 28 g cholesterol 90 mg

dietary fiber 9 g calcium 102 mg

sugars 7 g sodium 467 mg

*I found that it actually makes quite a bit and got more than 4 servings out of the recipe