Lighter Pot Pie

Last week I was in the mood for a pot pie.
Now I don't know if you've ever looked at the calories and fat in a pot pie, but it isn't pretty.
Must be the 'gravy encased in pie crust' the puts it over the edge.

In the past I have made this lighter version of a pot pie, and it is one of my and Jerry's favorites.

(Note: this is not exactly what I would call a healthy meal. More like a lighter version of a really unhealthy one).

The first step in making this dish a little healthier is ditching the pie crust, and substituting puff pastry. You can usually find this near the desserts or fruit in the freezer section. 
Puff pastry certainly isn't a health food, but it is slightly better than a pie crust, and it will only be going on the top of our pies. 


One sheet of puff pastry thaws in about 30 minutes, so take it out of the freezer while you prepare your filling.

You can put pretty much anything you like in the filling of your pot pie. 
I went a little traditional with diced chicken and vegetables seasoned with sage and thyme. 

• I sauteed half a yellow onion, 2 stalks of celery, and two carrots with one tablespoon olive oil and two tablespoons of butter. I added about 1/4 teaspoon of dried sage and 1/2 teaspoon of dried thyme, plus salt and pepper. 
• I added about 3/4 pound of diced chicken and cooked until almost done. 
• To make the gravy, sprinkle in 2-3 tablespoons of flour, and whisk into vegetables. (It will look a little like paste). Cook for a few minutes, then whisk in 2 cups of chicken stock. 
• At this point I added some frozen peas, corn, and pearl onions. 
• Once the gravy came up to a bubble I turned it to low and added lots of chopped parsley.

Next I rolled out my puff pastry.

I cut a piece to fit over the top of my oven safe soup bowls.
Then added my filling, and placed the pastry on top.

I used an egg wash on top so the pastry would get nice and brown.
I also cut the leftovers into triangle and baked those as well.

Into the oven at 375 for about 10 minutes, or until a nice golden brown.

If you don't have oven safe soup bowls (these were made for French onion soup), its not a problem.
Just cut the pastry into the desired shape, and bake on a cookie sheet until brown. Then just top your soup bowl with them.

I'm not going to lie, the light flaky, buttery crust was the best part of this.
I did really enjoy the filling, but the puff pastry is the best part.

I wasn't a huge fan of the pearl onions, but I am willing to bet they were Jerry's favorite part.
I felt that the chopped onion was enough, so feel free to leave them out. Or add/remove any vegetables you want. I would have like asparagus in this.

You could add a puff pastry topper to any kind of soup, stew, or chili you want.
In fact, I will.
The package always comes with two pieces of puff pastry  :)