Easy Peasy Chicken Pot Pie

Mention comfort food and chicken pot pie immediately comes to my mind. When it comes to homemade chicken pot pie I grew up on biscuit topped chicken pot pie, which happens to not be my favorite, so it was quite a few years before I decided to make my own. I love a flaky buttery pie crust outside to surround the vegetables, tender chicken and creamy filling. I can never decide which part I like better though, the crust or the filling. It's okay to like them equally though isn't it? I am a firm believer that I should make most everything from scratch atleast once. Notice, I said most everything. I came up with Easy Peasy Chicken Pot Pie totally off the cuff one day a couple years back and it was so good and so easy peasy, pun intended that I just haven't seen the need to mess with a good thing. If my Big, Bad Dad aka Mr. Picky Eater, who happens to be a huge chicken pot pie fan likes my easy peasy version enough to request it I must be doing something right. Easy Peasy Chicken Pot Pie 1 package deep-dish pie crust (2 crusts) 1 can condensed cream of chicken soup 1 can mixed vegetables 1/2 cup milk 2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed Preheat oven as instructed on pie crust package. In a medium bowl, mix together soup, mixed vegetables, milk, and chicken. Stir until combined. Pour into pie crust. Place second crust on top. Pinch edges together. Cut several slits in center of crust. Bake as directed for double crust pie, or until crust is golden brown. *You may find that you need more or even a little less milk - some brands of mixed vegetables seem to have more liquid than others. Just make sure your filling is pouring consistency but not runny. I highly recommend placing the pie on a baking sheet before baking to avoid having the ingredients bubble over into the oven. Talk about a mess!

Collecting My Coins

I do a lot of blog browsing, and with all the wonderful food blogs out there I'm constantly stumbling onto new ones. With all those food blogs comes the discovery of many new recipes and the reminder of quite a few others that I already know and love, but maybe sometimes let fall to the back of my mind. One of those new recipes I found recently was over at Janet Is Hungry. I can't recall how I found her blog, but Janet has a recipe for baked zucchini coins that immediately caught my eye. I love, capital L-O-V-E zucchini, and I thought this recipe would work perfectly with crookneck squash, another one of my favorites. For forever since I can remember fried squash has been one of my very favorite foods, but being that it's DEEP FRIED I try to refrain from eating it very often, so when I found this recipe it seemed like the perfect concept. I simplified the recipe a little, using storebought breadcrumbs and added a dash of Montreal seasoning. I've made the recipe twice and the first time around I loved it, but my Big, Bad Dad had a minor complaint and a few suggestions. He didn't care for the seasoning, saying the inclusion of sage in the spice blend made it taste like "Thanksgiving". "What's wrong with that???" I ask! Big, Bad Dad's suggestion? "Next time I think it would be better if you just breaded them in plain cornmeal." So that's what I did, but take my word for it, you should not, not, not use just cornmeal. Unless of course you want your zuccs and squash to taste like uncooked cornmeal. Yeah, not a good flavor, but at the last minute we stuck them under the broiler so they weren't a total loss. From here on out, it's breadcrumbs all the way in this recipe for me. Baked Squash and Zucchini Coins 1/2 plain breadcrumbs Montreal seasoning to taste 1 zucchini 1 yellow squash 1 egg olive oil 1. Mix breadcrumbs and seasoning on a plate. 2. Beat egg in a small bowl. 3. Slice zucchini and squash into 1/4" thick coins. 4. Dip zucchini and squash into egg and then into breadcrumb mixture. 5. Coat a parchment lined cookie sheet with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil. Arrange zucchini and squash coins on cookie sheet and back at 425 for about 10 minutes per side, until golden brown.

Summertime and the living is easy

Summer is a time for easy living and carefree fun. It's also hot as heck, here anyway. I love summer not only for the beautiful, yet sweltering weather but for the amazingly fresh and delicious fruits and vegetables. In my family we're no longer blessed with the bounty of fresh homegrown vegetables: yellow crookneck squash, cucumbers, juicy red tomatoes, new potatoes, butterbeans and string beans as our greenthumb gardner, my beloved Pop, passed away several winters ago. Summers are still beautiful and my favorite season, but they just aren't the same anymore. There is no more going to visit Nana and Pop, finding Pop hidden deep in his garden picking pans full of fresh veggies while Nana is inside canning tomatoes and beans or whipping up something fresh and delicious for dinner. I will always have the vivid memories of those summers to cherish for the rest of my life, along with a delicious recipe passed down by Nana for her Summer Chicken Bake. I remember it like it was yesterday, I think it was probably my eighth birthday dinner. We strayed from the norm of grilling burgers and she created this amazing dish for the first time. I've loved it ever since, and each summer look forward to making it myself. Preparing this recipe along with the others I've learned from Nana helps me feel like she's still here with us, and reminds me that a part of her will always live on, not just in my memories, but in the wonderful and beautiful parts of her that I see in myself. Preparing the Summer Chicken Bake is super easy, with the hardest part being the wait for it to cook. Patience is a virtue that I do not have, I admit it. My measurements are a rough guess, and can be easily changed to suit your taste and the number of mouths you are feeding. Summer Chicken Bake 1 lb skinless chicken breast 1 large yellow onion 1 lb yellow squash 2-3 medium size baking potatoes (or equivalent amount in weight of new/red potatoes) salt and pepper to taste 1/4 - 1/2 stick butter Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice vegetables into equal thickness slices. Starting with potatoes, layer vegetables and chicken in casserole dish. Season with salt and pepper. Cube butter into small pieces and scatter over top of chicken and vegetables. Cover with tinfoil and bake for 45 to 50 minutes. Uncover and bake for another 10 to 15 minutes, until vegetables are cooked and tender. Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes. *Can also be cooked on the grill by layering vegetables and one piece of chicken on large piece of tinfoil. Then season with salt and pepper and top with small pat of butter. Wrap foil to form a pouch. Place in middle of grill, and cover. Unfortunately I am not the grill master of the family and have not prepared this recipe on the grill myself, so I have no idea what the cooking time on the grill is. Sorry!