Chicken Pot Pie

Fall truly must be just around the corner...the weather is not giving up the high temps and humidity quite yet, but my cravings for all things fall have kicked in full blast. Suddenly hot tea sounds good in the evenings and I'm dreaming up recipes with pumpkin and cinnamon and apples.

One of my husband's favorite dishes made it's first appearance to the table after a long summer of avoiding hot oven dishes... chicken pot pie.

It's one of those ultimate comfort foods.

1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper
15 oz. chicken broth (just under 2 cups)
2/3 cup milk
2 cups cooked chicken, chopped
10 oz. frozen vegetables or 1 1/2 cup fresh (use what you like/have on hand; tonight I used a mix of frozen peas and green beans, some fresh chopped carrots, and a bit of garden fresh red pepper)
1/3 cup chopped onion
1 garlic clove, minced

In a sauce pan, melt butter; blend in the flour, salt and pepper. Stir in the broth and milk. Cook and stir until thickened. Add chicken, garlic, onion and veggies; heat through. Transfer to casserole dish (I use a cast iron skillet so I can go directly from stove top to oven). Top with Savory Pastry and bake at 400 for 25 min. or until crust is golden.

Savory Pastry:
1 1/3 cup flour
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 tsp celery seed
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 cup crisco
3 T water

Combine first 4 ingredients. Cut in crisco until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Sprinkle with water, one tablespoon at a time. Mix with fork until all flour is moistened and dough clings together. Press into a ball and roll out on a floured surface. Place on top of casserole, fold edge decoratively and cut a few small slits in the top.