Crock Pot Chicken Potpie

There is something about the smell of chicken stew cooking in the crock pot…all day long. I am always on the hunt for a new chicken stew to try. When flipping through a Real Simple magazine last week, I knew we had to try this recipe crock pot chicken potpie. We usually bust out the crock pot on days when we know we are going to be too busy to make dinner. This past Sunday was the perfect day for this crock pot chicken potpie. Of course, we have had our challenges with crock pot cooking, like the time someone forgot to plug in the crock pot. Well, this time we had a new challenge. My daughter had placed the chicken thighs in the freezer – not the fridge – the night before…frozen chicken thighs. Never fear, I popped them into a 250F oven for about 5 minutes, flipped them and then another 5 minutes. They were defrosted enough to go in the crock. Phew!

(adapted from Real Simple)

2 cups of cremini mushrooms, halved

4 carrots, cut into 1″ pieces

2 shallots, chopped

1/3 cup all-purpose flour

2 sprigs of fresh thyme

1 bay leaf

1/2 cup water

8 chicken thighs

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup frozen green beans

1 cup frozen corn niblets

1/3 cup heavy cream

1 sheet of puff pasty, thawed

1. Mix mushrooms, carrots, shallots, flour, thyme, bay leaf and water in 4-6 quart crock pot.

2. Place chicken on top of vegetables, season with salt and pepper.

3. Cook until vegetables are soft and chicken is cooked…4 to 5 hours on high OR 7 to 8 hours on low.

4. Twenty minutes before serving make the puff pastry pie tops…heat the oven to 425F. 

5. Cut a sheet of pastry into 6 equal pieces, bake on parchment lined baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until golden brown.

6. Open the crock pot and shred the chicken with two forks. Add the peas, green beans, corn and cream  to the crock pot…cover and cook for an additional 15 minutes.

7. To serve place a scoop of chicken stew in a bowl and top off with a square of puff pastry.

8. Enjoy.

Yep, this was the perfect end to our very busy Sunday. My kids loved the puff pastry topper…in fact I think they want me to make the puff pastry squares again tomorrow! I think the next thing I need to find is another way to bake up the puff pastry. What have you made with puff pastry? Something savoury or something sweet?