Gluten & Dairy Free Chicken Pot Pie

 I'll be honest, this was not an easy recipe to make, but boy was it tasty!  Chicken pot pie was something I ate as a child, but haven't had since, so when I saw the recipe in Kristin Cavallari's cook book, I knew I needed to make it.  I've never made a pot pie and probably only one or two pies in the past, so this was a big project for me.  For the first time making pie crust from scratch, I'd say I did a pretty good job.  I'll be honest, I made my own oat flour by blending oats and I had a little bit of trouble with the top crust for the pie.  I tried to make strips for a lattice top, but the crust kept breaking into pieces.  Then I tried to do a regular top, but it broke again.  So what did I do?  Well, I put a plate under a piece of parchment paper with the crust on top and flipped it on top of the pie.  The result?  Well, I got a great crumbly looking top on the pie, but I also ended up with crust crumbles all over the stove top.

All in all, this recipe was absolutely delicious and something I may make again for special occasions.  Between poaching the chicken, making the crust and baking the pie, the whole process took about 3 hours and made 5 servings (using a 9" cast iron pan).  

Total Time: About 3 hours

Servings: 5-6

Ingredients:

For the Crust:

3 cups oat flour

6 tsp arrowroot powder (or cornstarch)

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup coconut oil

2 eggs

2 tsp nut butter

For the Filling:

1/3 cup coconut oil

4 medium carrots, diced

1 small yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 stalks celery, diced

1/4 cup oat flour

4 1/2 cups chicken stock

1/3 cup coconut cream

4 cups diced cooked chicken

1 cup fresh or frozen peas

2 tsp chopped thyme

1/2 cup fresh parsley

1/4 cup chopped fresh sage

1 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

Instructions:

1. Prepare the crust: Grease a 9-inch pie dish or cast iron pan. 
2. In a food processor, combine 2 1/2 cups of the oat flour with the arrowroot powder, baking sola and salt and pulse until combined.  Add coconut oil, eggs and nut butter and pulse until combined, making sure to scrape down the sides of the food processor.  Transfer to a large bowl.
3. Add the remaining 1/2 cup flour and fold the mixture together until it's combined and resembles dough.  Split the dough in half and press one half into the pie dish.  Wrap the other half in plastic wrap and set aside in the fridge.
4. Make the filling: melt coconut oil in a large pan over medium-high heat.  Add the carrots, onion, garlic and celery and sauté for 10 minutes.  SPrinkle the oat flour over the veggies and cook for another 5 minutes.  Gradually stir in the coconut cream and chicken stock.  Let the mixture simmer for 20 minutes until thickened.  Add in the diced chicken, peas, thyme, parsley, sage, salt & pepper.  Cook for 3 minutes and then add to the pie dish.
5. Preheat the oven to 375° F.
6. Remove the dough from the ridge and place between pieces of parchment paper.  Gently roll out the dough into a 10 inch round and place over the pie or cut into strips for a lattice top.  Crimp the edges and use a knife to cut slits in the top of the crust.
7. Place the pie dish on a baking sheet and bake for 1 hour 45 minutes, until the filling is bubbly and the crust is golden brown.  Allow to cool slightly before slicing.